Curving toward the center

Poor in spirit

Posted on September 12, 2017 by Meisaan Chan

I belong because you are
I journey because you are
I hope because you are
I am because you are

Posted in Poetry, Spiritual poetry, writing | Tagged belong, belonging, essence, home, journey, poverty, surrender, trust | 1 Comment

“The tallest point in town”

Posted on September 11, 2017 by Meisaan Chan

Birds sitting on church steeple –
how easy it is to get higher
than humans’ conception of God

Posted in Poetry, Spiritual poetry, writing | Tagged Birds, church, conception, eternity, infinity, institution, limitation, steeple, worldview | Leave a comment

I alone am the doorway to me

Posted on September 8, 2017 by Meisaan Chan

There are so many voices and each of them will lead you astray from the center of my heart;
Some will lead you close
some will lead you far away
some will take you to the fringes
some will be the almost target
but none – none – can lead you to the very core of my core.
Accept that it cannot be done.
I alone am the doorway to me
I alone am the doorway to me

Posted in Poetry, Spiritual poetry | Tagged adventure, blindness, core, doorway, following, heart, journey, path, presence, trust, voice | Leave a comment

What’s at stake

Posted on September 8, 2017 by Meisaan Chan

The most important spiritual skill is listening
and then recognizing when it is I and when it is not;
all holiness and all destruction come from this

Posted in Poetry, Spiritual poetry, writing | Tagged destruction, discernment, holiness, listening, spiritual, wisdom | Leave a comment

The afternoon nap

Posted on September 7, 2017 by Meisaan Chan

My soul just splashed water on its face
put on new clothes
freshened up

Posted in Spiritual poetry, writing | Tagged nap, refresh, refreshed, soul | Leave a comment

The sacrifice

Posted on September 6, 2017 by Meisaan Chan

A friendship needs to wait until both are ready;
when one is ready, that is not good enough

Posted in Poetry, Spiritual poetry, writing | Tagged compassion, friends, friendship, mutuality, patience, sacrifice | Leave a comment

From deep prayer

Posted on September 5, 2017 by Meisaan Chan

the yellow arrow appears*

*On the Camino de Santiago, informal and sporadic yellow arrows mark the path. It takes time and effort to learn how to look for them, how to train your eyes. The yellow arrows become a companion, guiding and affirming your journey. When you’re at a crossroads, you look for the yellow arrows. If you suddenly don’t see the yellow arrows, you stop, backtrack, and ask for help until you do.

Posted in Poetry, recovery, Spiritual poetry, writing | Tagged adventure, arrows, Camino, discernment, journey, path, Santiago, vision | Leave a comment

When hunger is one of the most important holies

Posted on September 4, 2017 by Meisaan Chan

You know you are starving
and you know that God is food and is precisely
in that next feared step:
Take it! Follow the food!
You are skin and bones!

Posted in Poetry, recovery, Spiritual poetry, writing | Tagged addiction, body, food, path, self-hatred, self-love, starvation, starving | Leave a comment

It’s not just about listening, but who you’re listening to

Posted on September 1, 2017 by Meisaan Chan

You can listen to your anxiety
or you can listen to me:
we are saying very different things

Posted in Poetry, recovery, Spiritual poetry, writing | Tagged anchor, anxiety, deafness, listening, peace, strength, stress | 2 Comments

The God-calming

Posted on August 31, 2017 by Meisaan Chan

Safe, safe, you call to me
and gentle I appear; in the darkness
you allow me warmth of bed
and I stroke you, breath breathing
slowly now, lengthening body, calming down
yes, yes, I am for you
yes

Posted in Poetry, recovery, Spiritual poetry, writing | Tagged body, breath, calming, intimacy, safe, safety, sensuality, shelter, stroking, tenderness | Leave a comment