New Year's Gifts of Poetry, Enchantment, and Loving Kindness

It is time to send good wishes. For Christmas peace and delight. For New Year blessings. For Hanukah. For all other holidays that people celebrate at this time of the year. Why do we need holidays? Holy Days? To set aside some time and "sanctify" this time with feelings and actions of goodness, forgiveness, loving kindness, delight, child-like wander, joy, and peace, and tranquility of the heart that comes from being at-one with the world, at-one with the time and space of right here, right now.

Of Bliss

I'm burning but I'm not burnt

In agony, but not yet dying

Light streams out of my heart

Filled into overflowing

Sounds of an ancient tongue

Trigger a glimpse of a time

When the rose and the flame are one

Wreath of fire which engulfs me

Dissolving into stillness

A white wave reaches its destiny

The valley brightens

Under a shaft of sunlight

The air is sweetened with flutes

And harps – how obvious,

how delightful! A breath

and music cascade into silence

Love is no father, no mother

But this: perfection

Of all things in all

Feelings collapsed into one

Not a longing, really,

And not satisfaction.

Perfect fulfillment: 

All dreams.

(c) Maja Trochimczyk, 2016, from Into Light

In my Christmas and New Year Wishes for 2017, I quote poems and post pictures of gifts that I'm thankful for, the gifts of art, of poetry, of presence and enlightenment that I received from my friends or found somewhere, somehow.

I was quite surprised that I got a gift from a new poet at our readings, Mr. Yatindra Bhatnagar, a serious man who somehow reminded me of my father in his seriousness, and earnestness, gravitas,  you could say. Here's the poem I received with delight and put on my desk at work:

LIFE

Life is sacrifice, make it,

Life is a reward, take it.

Life is beauty, admire it,

Life is success, desire it.

Life is a dream, conjure it,

Life is a struggle, endure it.

Life is community, reform it,

Life is a duty, perform it.

Life is reality, face it,

Life is love, embrace it.

Life is a battle, fight it,

Life is a path, light it.

Life is a game, play it,

Life is truth, say it.

(c) by Yatindra Bhatnagar.

Lovely, isn't it?  The voice of reason, the call to embrace life in all its complexity and challenges, in truth, reality, beauty and love... Thank you, Yatindra.

Pacific Beach in Ventura (c) by Maja Trochimczyk, 2016 

I was equally delighted when I got a message from my dear friend, a multi-talented poet-artist Toti O'Brien who wrote a short story about creating Sweet Relief, an artwork that now proudly adorns my home. Below is an excerpt from Toti's piece, published as "The Tapestry" in Communion, Issue 6. http://walleahpress.com.au/communion6-Toti-O'Brien.html

Toti O'Brien with Sweet Relief, August 2014,(c) by Maja Trochimczyk

"The inspiration for the painting came in times of fertility and steadiness, when I still was my own master. I conceived it as a mosaic of many squares, something I’d tackle a fragment at the time, then put together at last. From the same fertility a family sprung, while the work was two thirds on its way. The last third reflected my new status: I switched from brushes to needles… matching the mood of nursing and lullabying. The materials I used, thread and cloth, subliminally hinted at blood ties, domesticity." [...]

"I decided to call the piece “Sweet Relief”, when I began the sewing portion… to express my focus: exploring effects on color and form of a barely hinted third dimension. Therefore, I provided no more than a technical definition. Although, those two words were the title of a song I had liked, ten years earlier. I had fallen in love with it, even decided to learn it, listening to the same old tape a disconcerting number of times." [...]

"It took me sixteen years to complete the labor. During that time I was calling. Did relief ever come? I dare say yes. Stitch by stitch, I put it together. With my fading eyes, my ten fingers."

And now, this beautiful piece, that took sixteen years to create, square by square, one after another, is in the central point in my home. I like watching the patterns, repeating, varying, from image to image, abstract, pastel, yet rich beyond belief... Thank you, Toti. 

It is fascinating to me that Toti had the persistence needed to finish the work, to keep adding to it, square by square, year by year. What an amazing project! But what's equally amazing are the blessings we receive. Blessings of patience...

The Gift of Patience

squeeze your eyes tight

raise your face to the sun

see the magic kaleidoscope

of jagged shapes

under your eyelids

the white light heals

the white light erases

the white light sings

a new world into being

a world without torture

a world without shame

a new world

just close your eyes

just wait, do not peek

the grace will come

the grace will come

the white light sings

(c) 2016 by Maja Trochimczyk, from Into Light.

Timeless Ray of Hope (c) by Maja Trochimczyk with text by Kimberly Meredith (thehealingtrilogy.com)

One source of blessings, for me, is the spiritual healer, Kimberly Meredith, who has a simple message, different for everyone, yet the same - forgiveness, love, compassion, living in the light, in love, in the present of grace.... I made an image with her words and hope to see her again. She helps people find their own way to health and happiness.

My way to happiness includes my friends, especially the four  "birds" of the Spiritual Quartet - Lois P. Jones (The Phoenix), Ambika Talwar (The Peacock), Susan Rogers (The Hummingbird) and myself (The Dove of Love, they called me). Once upon a time, the birds went to the forest. To be exact, to the enchanted forest sound-and-light installation at Descanso Gardens in La Canada. Pure magic. Something to remember and be deeply thankful for.

L to R: Maja, Ambika, Lois, and Susan at Descanso Gardens, 2016

There is a field of tulips changing color in waves, the symphony of oaks that play bells and chords modulating when you go around them, the color lights on the fog above water, the circles and spheres of light that change color when you walk from circle to circle,

Path of Light Drops, Maja Trochimczyk

The enchanted ancient forest with thousands of fire flies, the moving shadows on the lilacs, the blue, green and purple trees showing off their contours, the red lanterns reflected in the deep darkness of the water, beneath oak branches and camellia blossoms. Pure magic. With something for kids and something for adults, and stars above our heads, bright, oh so bright...

Give me your hand... by Maja Trochimczyk

This beautiful installation brings the best of technology and nature together. This is THE way to use the recent developments in technology: remote sensors that trigger beautiful sounds from hidden computers and loudspeakers when people dance about the oaks; light projectors and computer controls that move the thousands of fire fly lights on the canopies of redwoods and sycamores, that dance on the surface of the pond, that color the forest with a magic palette of violets and sapphires. 

All to create beauty, thankfulness and gratitude in people's hearts. The tall, majestic trees of Descanso Gardens are beautiful in any weather, any light. They are just that, beauty personified. But the colored lights and sounds add another dimension, playful, and delightful, to the already beautiful, enchanted and enchanting forest - something for children that are four, and children that are sixty four...

Rest with me... by Maja Trochimczyk

And then, I read, and read, and listened. I am on this endless quest to find the truth behind the truth, the core of reality hidden in plain view within our reality here and now. I found bits and pieces already. The Beatles sung about it - Love, Love, Love... It is so obvious and so present that it is so very easy to miss and ignore.

Japanese Garden by Maja Trochimczyk

You have to pause and think, or look at it from a different perspective. Say, the "timeline" of your life.  Can you change this timeline, can you jump to a different reality, a different world? Yes, it is easy, so easy. And you can do it in several steps (thanks to YouTube for posting the video with this inspiration, supposedly channeled from Egyptian deities that lived long ago).

• First Step: Imagine as your goal the timeline of the world of Loving Kindness
• Second Step: Fill your heart and head with the idea and feeling of Loving Kindness to all, everyone and everything, right here, right now
• Third Step: Act with Loving Kindness towards all, everyone and everything, right here, right now, and always
• Fourth Step: Persevere and maintain that mental and emotional state of Loving Kindness regardless of how people respond to you and how you are treated. 

That's it, you are done. 

You have jumped to the timeline of Loving Kindness. You live in Heaven, or rather, Heaven lives in you. 

Remember, the fourth step is the most important. Do not sink into regret, anger, fear, hatred, disgust, despondency, nor anything negative. Do not sink into the quagmire of self-inflicted negativity, neither self-indulgence, nor self-aggrandizement will take you to your destination of Loving Kindness.



Isn't it great? Entering this blessed and blissful world is very easy, having the intention to do it is also easy, what's hard is to keep going, stay in this magic kindgom, and maintain your attitude and feelings of Loving Kindness towards all, everyone and everything in the face of adversity, cold, trouble, mosquitoes that bite your arms, or pesky and annoying people that say nasty things to annoy you.

So I wish everyone to find their own world of Loving Kindness and fill this world with blessings of love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control...If all people followed that path we'd have no wars, right? Why don't I start from myself? And end there? Since I cannot change others, only myself?

Loving Kindness is one of the names of God, and if we are made of Loving Kindness, we are simply Divine!  Here's a poem of gratitude for this astounding gift.

Double Delight Rose by Maja Trochimczyk

A Hymn

For the gift of freedom

Praise God's Holy Name

For the new beginning

Thank the One, True Love

For the spring of joy

Sing the purest song

Of Love that was, is

And forever will be in you

With you, all around you

Love the Love

Love the Greatest Love

Praise God's Holy Name —

(C) 2016 by Maja Trochimczyk, from Into Light

So now only one thing remains to be done, to wish all my poetic and artistic and kind and loving friends, warm and happy Holidays and a wonderful New Year!

May your Heart be light as a Feather,

May your Smile be bright as the Sun,

May your Days be sweetened with Laughter,

Happy Holy Days of Loving Kindness and Fun!

Best wishes for the Holiday Season and the New Year 2017!


Maja Trochimczyk

Into Light - Poetry of the Spirit to Brighten October

Why is that that we find ourselves, when alone in a birdsong-filled forest, park, or garden? Is there a sound more nourishing and refreshing than the song of the nightingale by the running spring?  I still remember the first time I heard the real nightingale in Poland, walking at night by a hedge of lilac in bloom, suddenly surrounded by sounds floating from nowhere. No wonder Oliver Messiaen, the great connoiseur of birdsong and music, has called some of these melodies the "lunar phrases" - they sound like the are coming from afar, sliding down to us on rays of moonlight. I wrote a couple of academic studies of the song of the nightingale in music, from Beethoven, to Mahler, Stravinsky, Bartok and Messiaen. Fascinating... 




Now I'm equally fascinated by light, its rays coming down to touch us, like the hands of Aten on the ancient Egyptian relief, giving us "ankh" - the spirit of life.  Here's a beautiful relief from the throne of Pharaoh Tutankhamun (or Tutankhaten), photographed by Jerzy Strzelecki:

Jerzy Strzelecki - http://es.wikipedia.org/wiki/Imagen:Tutanchamon_%28js%29_3.jpg

Since ancient times, some people lived on sunlight alone, the "sun gazers" they are called, and the energy they absorb from sunlight is the Qi or Prana energy of life.  Since they inhale and transform into their body energy the "breath of life" they are also called "breatharians." Read more about it or watch the documentary In the Beginning there was Light. 

I'm not going there, not yet.  I'll do it after I turn 90 years old, maybe. Or 100... then I'll live on sunlight and air alone... Meanwhile, my image from Descanso Gardens' birch and azalea corner, by a stream, captures some of these rays shining on colorful flowers in the spring. All we need is a unicorn coming out of shadows... and voila, a world of magic and wonder... I like this photograph so much that I used it for a "blessing of light" that was my Christmas wish one year:

May the blessing of light be on you

Light without and light within

May the blessed sunlight shine on you

and warm your heart

till it glows like a great peat fire

And, of course, there is the cover of my "Into Light" book of poems and incantations:

http://ww.moonrisepress.com/into-light-by-maja-trochimczyk.html

Another of my favorite "sun-ray" portraits is of a white camellia in Descanso Garden's camellia forest: Again, the straight white ray touches the heart of the flower, giving it life.

The Bluest

Oh, to float into blue distance —

a dream of weightlessness,

knowledge of nothing but the air

in the lungs, air carrying the limbs

from cloud to cloud into being,

into tranquility, into peace

All made of water, we live

in the Cloud of Unknowing

we breathe mist of a shroud

surrounding the mystical

peaks of the Ancient One

that will not be known

nor understood fully

We have to, we must fly

higher, we must grow wings,

strain in our childish hope

that we’ll find the brilliance

hidden beyond the bluest

blue of infinity, of time

(c) 2016  by Maja Trochimczyk, from Into Light: Poems and Incantations, first published in an anthology by Poets on Site, 2009. 

shadows recede

to the roots of new leaves - 

light blossoms

Why focus on light, when it is almost Halloween? Did you notice there are more and more ugly Halloween celebrations around? Dozens of horrid ugly masks in a local pharmacy, at a child's eye level, so they get frightened already... Fear, "loosh" is food for evil and generating fear is what humans are here for, on this dark energy factory, called  Earth... Or so they say. And then there are people who are psychic vampires, take our energy out of you, if you do not evade their attacks and avoid engaging in extended battles that nobody wins, except the vampires, of course.

So thinking about light, wrapping yourself in a cocoon of light is a way of protecting yourself.  Is it enough? Perhaps not, but if you cultivate the "right" kind of thinking, you may succeed.  First and last: avoid fear. As the famous man (FDR) said: "there is nothing to fear, but fear itself" - how true! Not just fear, giving in to any other darkness is to be avoided - worrying about things that do not matter, anxiety about the future, the yellow-eyed viper of jealousy, and the red-hot volcano of rage. Toxic emotions, toxic foods, toxic air, toxic thoughts - all to be avoided, replaced by the positive. Can't think of anything "light" - just laugh! The bubbles of air will lift you up! 

If the dark minions come anyway, avoid them, say "goodbye" and go on your way. Up and out: to the garden, to the forest, to the park... Among trees, listening to birdsong, walking barefoot on the beach, or digging into the soil to plant, move, trim, or care for your flowers and trees - that's where you will find safety. Breathe deeply and slowly.  Close your eyes, raise your face to the sun. When you go inside, turn off the TV. Listen to life-affirming music: classical symphonies, Bach's partitas for solo violin, Indian ragas, Native-American flutes, Ella or Frank or, even Celtic women.

Turn the music on and sit on the porch caressing your cat, if you have a cat. Let its purring be the afternoon's healing song. In short, make gardeners and musicians your best friends.  Of course, you cannot befriend a cat! Get a dog then, and stay in the light.

Breathing Light
for breathing in — breathing out

I am loved — I love

I am a gift — I give

I am creative — I create

I am beautiful — I share beauty

I am peaceful — I share peace

I am joyful — I share joy

I am patient — I wait in silence

I am kind — I spread kindness

I am strong — I share strength

I am wise — I share wisdom

I am Love in action

I am Light shining in all

Lovely words, poetic and to the point. I particularly like the shift in the line "I am patient - I wait in silence" - unexpected after the repetitions, and then, returning to the mantra-like pattern of reflected words, outside and inside, being and doing.

The Stream

I am the stream of Love

I flow towards the Divine

to all, in all, through all

I am the wave of Light

I move towards the Divine

to all, in all, through all

I am the cup of Love

I'm filled with Love Divine

for all, from all, in all

I am the spark of Light

I shine with Light Divine

for all, on all, through all

I am the sea of Love

I'm filled with Love Divine

for all, from all, in all

I am the ocean of Light

I shine with Light Divine

for all, on all, through all

Blessed be the stream

Blessed be the wave

Blessed be the cup

Blessed be the spark

Blessed be the sea

Blessed be the ocean

Now and Before and After

Now and Now and Now

I read these and other spiritual poems along with my friends, five poets  - Elsa Frausto, Joe DeCenzo, Marlene Hitt, and Ambika Talwar - during a special open and free reading during the Lit Crawl 2016 Poetry Festival in North Hollywood, on Wednesday, October 26, 2016.  The reading took place at XMA HQ, 5140 Lankershim Blvd., an unusual location for spiritual poetry, that suited us very well.  You may read the biographies of presenters and more about this reading on the Moonrise Press Blog. 

Marlene Hitt, Joe DeCenzo, Dorothy Skiles and Maja Trochimczyk

at the first reading from Meditations on Divine Names (2012).

The reading also included poems from Moonrise Press's anthology Meditations on Divine Names (2012), my largest "spiritual" project to date.  

http://ww.moonrisepress.com/meditations-on-divine-names.html

Let me end with one poem from this collection, a meditation on the distance between us and the divine, the distance that can only be breached by love.

Playful (Via Negativa)

Think what he think will; forevermore he shall find it

a cloud of unknowing that is betwixt him and his God.

                                           ~ The Cloud of Unknowing, Chapter 69

A seductress

Enveloped in her seventy-seven veils

Disappears like a bride, shy in a lace cloud

A misty mountain

That knows how to dance

And moves swiftly to the horizon, calling me

Higher – follow – don’t stop – follow –

You play with me

Reveal and hide your secrets

Lure me to ascend

With a promise

Of the light’s softness on my cheeks

The reassuring glow of comfort

Dazzling absence

You shroud yourself in darkness

I walk closer, the horizon moves back, receding

Your steps are solitude

I fall into the crevice of silence

Like a plum in a bowl of my grandma’s kompot

Tranquility sings

With the blood in my veins

Louder than the ceaseless chatter of the world

Where are you?

I dream of your snowy peaks

In crystalline air above your meadows

In the Helena Modjeska Historic Home "Arden" Modjeska Canyon, Orange County, 2016.

Past, Present, and Future - Gifts for the Arrival of a New Baby

Is there anything better in life than holding a child in your arms? Your child, your grandchild?  I am blessed to have witness a miracle recently, a miracle that changed my existential status. From now on, I'm a Grandma, Babcia. 

These words seem rather abstract at the moment, as I think of my own Grandmas/Babcias and how ancient they seemed to me, when I was a child spending summer vacation in their village homes, eating strawberries and cherries in their gardens and orchards... No matter, age is not important. The new life of the new person just entering the world and opening his eyes to see the universe - this is what is important.

To welcome my Grandson, Adam Marcin (born in September), I spent the last month before travelling to Poland for this monumental occasion writing a long poem, entitled "I Give You the World" and illustrated with all sorts of photos - of family life and things I love to take pictures of, leaves, petals, clouds... There is a lot of personal material in that book, so I'm not going to make it publicly available. In fact, it has been printed in ten numbered copies and that's it. 

But some fragments of the poem can be pulled out to become independent pieces, and shared with readers. So here they are.

I Give You the World. A Poem for Adam

1.
I saw you 
with eyes closed
smiling

waves, shadows
changing direction—
where are you?

Adam, the first man
I give you the whole Earth
to name

2.
I give you my world with veins of gold
slicing through the drab clay of hours,
drops of amber hidden in sand,
bright turquoise among slabs of granite,
and pure diamonds in charcoal.

3.
I give you the strong scent of the Electron rose
with its hue of vermilion flames.
Here’s the gift of wings of the butterfly
shining yellow on a pink hibiscus
and the busy buzzing of bees
in the crape myrtle tree,
overshadowing my Sun-Land patio.

Can I also give you the ancient linden tree,
all awash with the bees gathering nectar
in my Grandma’s yard in Bielewicze—
the sweet noise of honey and July?

Careful, don’t catch any bees!
They die as they sting you.
Better save them from drowning
in the pool, bees are precious
they give us honey and fruit, lots of fruit.

4.
I give you rocks in the riverbed, 
white, grey, and veined with pink —
so you step on the solid foundation
and grow up with both feet on the ground
strong and stronger each day.

I give you water laughing in the stream,
so your laughter spills over 
the waves of air, lightly, in silvery droplets.

I give you the hummingbird’s feathers
ruby–red and emerald green —
their feisty owner suspended in mid-air
on invisible wings, drinking nectar
from a butterfly-shaped flower of bougainvillea
in the intense shade of magenta.

5.
I think you will love
my gifts of the pink grapefruit 
and juicy oranges fresh off the tree.
This one is funny! It wears sunglasses 
made of shadows. It is good to laugh at shadows…
And look! Is this a flower or a bird in paradise?

6.
I give you the patience of a lizard, sunning itself on my pathway, 
and catching flies — no, I do not give you the gift 
of catching flies,or maybe…  it could be useful!
Well, let’s stay with the hard-working habit 
of waiting for the right moment—Yes, do everything 
at the right time— do everything right.

You may like the intense hue of the California poppy
a wildflower of the hills. As orange as laughter,
with delicate green leaves of the spring, it comes back
year after year, without rain, after fires.  
Like this poppy, never give up!

7.
I am sure you will like the taste of red cherries 
right off the tree in Jelonki, in my childhood garden
later demolished  to build a street for those tall 
apartment blocks that are as ugly as machines 
to live in—but cherries, ah, cherries, with juice 
flowing down your fingers and your chin—

I give you all the riches of the clear, crisp air
in the fall, when gingko, maple, and poplar
leaves are yellow and crunchy under your feet,
when the last peaches are getting wrinkly
and too sweet on empty branches in the orchard.

8.
I give you the heady scent of needles
on the Christmas tree, a Douglas fir covered
in handmade ornaments, hidden behind
a mountain of gifts in crinkly wrapping paper
green, red, gold, and navy — next to a row
of stockings waiting for chocolate on the mantel.

Please, accept the fragrance of resin melting in the hot sun, flowing 
in large drops down the branches of my juniper and cypress —
and down the trunks of pines that lined the sandy road to 
your Great Grandpa’s family house in Bielewicze,
where storks welcomed sunrise, ferns unfolded 
and stretched  in forest shadows, and silence rang 
like crystal bells at noon.

This is the time for trees to dream of sleep 
and for birds to map out long flights 
along mountain ranges, above green waves 
of forests, white-crested waves of the ocean,
soaring on waves of air.

9.
I give you the chirping of the cricket 
behind my chimney — their summer song,
the kind my Grandma heard in the freezing,
snowy winter in Trzebieszów—
I wish you always have a cricket 
behind your chimney— let it sing,
if it wants to sing!

10.
I give you the majesty of sequoias, tall and ancient
with heads in the sky, roots stretching down 
inter-connected. Solid, immobile, above and beyond 
it all. Theirs is the gift of nobility, strength and resilience.
They do not die in forest fires — just get singed and grow
new branches — that’s what I give you today.

11.
When you grow a bit bigger I’ll give you wings 
to fly in planes, across oceans to distant cities —
London, Paris, Rome, Barcelona and the City of Angels, 

and to the white coral sand under coconut palms 
on Pacific islands, and to the waterfalls 
and volcanoes of Hawaii—Come on! Grow! Let’s go!

We’ll enter magnificent cathedrals 
and listen to angelic voices and heavenly 
sawing machines of Johann Sebastian Bach.

We’ll climb the world’s most famous tower
To look down at the rooftops and streets,
Eating ice-cream, and almonds, and crepes.

We’ll admire crystal mirrors of rococo palaces
with the thrills and trills of coloratura sopranos 
and the Magic Flute by Mozart.

We’ll waltz in the rain with Chopin 
and rest under weeping willows
of his Mazovian plains. We’ll visit the willows

reflected in Claude Monet’s ponds, 
full of clouds and water lilies. We’ll spend
the dawn and the dusk in his garden.

At noon we’ll stand in the rainbow 
of stained glass windows on stone menagerie 
carved into the floor of Sainte Chapelle.

We’ll travel through the primary colors 
and black lines of Mondrian to the upside down 
world of Magritte, where dawn and dusk 

are the same.  I wonder if you’d share 
my admiration for the smiles of Gothic Madonnas 
with blue-winged angels in gold-relief heavens,

nodding to the swinging rhythms of Brazilian samba 
and classical jazz, the luxury of mellow voices.
Ella and Frank forever.

12.
I give you the rush of understanding,
the “aha” moment when you get it 
and things fall into place where  they 
should have been from the start.

Stuffed into this junk heap of ideas
is a gift of making cosmos from chaos
in the pristine, strong light of your mind.
And don’t forget the white kernel 

of fresh walnut after you peel off its yellow 
wrinkly skin. All the bitter flavor is gone, 
only sweetness remains —
just like in life, when lived right.

So yes, I do give you the true gift 
of living right, capturing each moment
and dissecting it into what to keep
and what to discard.

13.
My gift is unique and hidden.
You’ll find it inside you, when your bare feet 
touch the new grass and your eyes follow 
shifting clouds in the blue-grey Polish sky.

This is the gift of seeing and knowing 
what is true, how grass grows, how clouds 
become scarves for the hills, sneezing in winter.

How to be present to changing sunlight 
on the mountain slopes with patches 
of shadow moving through distant canyons
and meadows.This is my gift.

14.
Of things I have not touched 
with my feet or the palms of my hands
I share with you Norwegian fjords 
and Alaskan glaciers, the glistening
black-and-white skin of my totem orcas, 
the whale-song and dolphins.

Play a tune on the teeth of a plastic comb,
immersed in water and a dolphin will come 
to investigate this new language 
of clicks — and will spit water on you 
if he does not like what you have to say—
maybe a dolphin’s insult?

They are smarter than humans, you know.
So, instead of playing, set them free. 
Yes, please, do.

15.
So, my dear first-born grand-son
son of my first-born son, I give you 
the colors, scents, and flavors
of fall, winter, spring and summer.

Know that what becomes old dies out,
letting flowers blossom and turn
into the delicious golden fruit 
of experience and memory.

Well, I never thought of memory as a jar
of pickled pears with cinnamon sticks 
and cloves ready for a winter feast.
Apparently, that’s what it is.

Thus, I give you some pickled pears 
of your Grandma,great-Grandma 
and other, greater grand-Grandmas,
with family recipes and stories to keep.

16.
I give you the bells of sailboat tack 
ringing against the mast on your boat
in the harbor, waiting for another adventure 
on gently undulating grey waves of a lake.
That’s for a summer day.

For winter nights, I give you 
ten billion suns in each of ten
billion galaxies as your playground.
You will find your way from sun to sun.

17.
I give you the shape of hand-written letters,
the spirals of sunflower seeds, and a snail shell,
the cycle of seasons, the living breath of our planet,
the fractal veins on a rose petal and on 
tributaries to a river you will see from the orbit
through electronic eyes of machines.

I give you the multitude of seeds 
in a pomegranate, each seated 
in its own ruby-red juicy pod, 
squished into the tightest space.

This is how tight knowledge 
will be packed into the neurons and cells 
of your brain,so you can squeeze 
its sweetness into words 
of supreme wisdom.

18.
I give you the gift of my language, many languages, really —
Two for certain, maybe three, four, five, or six 
I could have spoken if I tried harder, made more time.
So now you can do it —learn more skills, get more knowledge,
expertise, beauty. Let’s not forget beauty, the true meaning 
of life—see the snowflake star crystals melting on your glove? 
That’s what it means being like the lilies of the field that are clothed in glory 
and stretch their heads to the sun, breathing in the morning dew,
absorbing the golden essence  of life with each leaf, root, and petal.
So, there.

19.
I wish you the murmur of waterfalls
and the silver resonance of Tibetan chimes,
slowly swirling through the evening air
with the smoke of frankiscense.

I wish you the halo of light-filled sound 
and the brightest fragrance to keep you 
enveloped in a shield of light,
your armor against the dark.

I wish, I wish, I wish for you 
the most precious gift
of them all —the great 
river of light and 
the luminescence
of golden white love.

20.
I give you all the beautiful and good things I can find.
What you do with my gifts is yours only—
store them in the treasure chest
of your allotted time to do this and that,
and this much, and just enough.

May every step lead you to greater 
understanding and compassion 
for all living beings,to greater 
wisdom, higher awareness,
and more intense connection with all
others— plants, animals, people.

May your song echo widely
across the Universe.
May you learn to sail and swim,
and climb mountains,
and write sonnets, or paint, or plant.

May each day be full of hours
flowing by, like the feathers 
of a peacock—in delight and bliss.

21.
I give you the invisible secret of the universe —
cords of light tying it all together,
sand, stars and waves, tree roots and clouds.

The warm softness of the nose of a puppy 
or a baby kitten—would you like dogs or cats? 

And a myriad of happy eyes, looking at you
with the warmth of affection —
all one, all one, all one.

22.
I give you the gift of compassion,
the hazel light shining inside.

Close your eyes —you will see it 
in silence —you will hear it

in your heart’s gentle whisper
of love, nothing else, only love.

23.
So, I wish you the gift of un-feathered flight, 
the treasures of night sky, diamonds scattered on the water 
by sunlight as you swim in the lake.

The pearls of what, exactly? You go figure out 
your pearls, get together your plan for your life 
and own it.

Don’t forget where you came from
and why — to link, connect, span the globe 
and shine, yes, just to shine.

May the beautiful luster of your un-excelled essence 
be known to all. See, I just read the story 
of Buddha and I’m writing like one, already – 

with millions of suns, dazzling star crowns,
constant bliss, serenity, supreme joy, and the lotus 
of wisdom dissolving into clear light.

24.
If you are an artist at heart,
make a living, be grateful
for your gifts,and give back in kind.

If you are an engineer, invent things 
to help people,or animals, or plants,
or to heal the water and air.

Make them happy, hear their song —
that’s what we want most of all,
to be happy, to love, to be loved.

When you choose,  choose wisely
and follow your heart,
always follow your heart.

Since boys love machines, I thought I'd add to this tribute to the newborn a humorous short story that's a life lesson in old computer language. 

I find it amusing and accurate - this is what we all have to do:  

Install LOVE on the HUMAN Computer

by Author Unknown


Customer: I really need some help. After much consideration, I've decided to install LOVE. Can you guide me through the process?

Tech Support: Yes, I can help you. Are you ready to proceed?

Customer: Well, I'm not very technical, but I think I'm ready to install it now. What do I do?

Tech Support: The first step is to open your HEART. Have you located your HEART?

Customer: Yes, I have, but there are several other programs running right now. Is it okay to install while they are running?

Tech Support: What programs are running?

Customer: Let's see... I have PAST-HURT.EXE, LOW-ESTEEM.EXE, GRUDGE.EXE, and RESENTMENT.EXE running now.

Tech Support: No problem. LOVE will gradually erase PAST-HURT.EXE from your current operating system. It may remain in your permanent memory, but it will no longer disrupt other programs. LOVE will eventually overwrite LOW-ESTEEM.EXE with a module of its own called HIGH-ESTEEM.EXE. However, you have to completely turn off GRUDGE.EXE and RESENTMENT.EXE. Those programs prevent LOVE from being properly installed. Can you turn those off?

Customer: I don't know how to turn them off. Can you tell me how?

Tech Support: My pleasure. Go to your Start menu and invoke FORGIVENESS.EXE. Do this as many times as necessary until it's erased the programs you don't want.

Customer: Okay, now LOVE has started installing itself automatically. Is that normal?

Tech Support: Yes. You should receive a message that says it will stay installed for the life of your HEART. Do you see that message?

Customer: Yes, I do. Is it completely installed?

Tech Support: Yes, but remember that you have only the base program. You need to begin connecting to other HEARTs in order to get the upgrades.

Customer: Oops. I have an error message already. What should I do?

Tech Support: What does the message say?

Customer: It says, "ERROR 412-PROGRAM NOT RUN ON INTERNAL COMPONENTS." What does that mean?

Tech Support: Don't worry, that's a common problem. It means that the LOVE program is set up to run on external HEARTs but has not yet been run on your HEART. It is one of those complicated programming things, but in non-technical terms it means you have to "LOVE" your own machine before it can "LOVE" others.

Customer: So what should I do?

Tech Support: Can you pull down the directory called "SELF-ACCEPTANCE"?

Customer: Yes, I have it.

Tech Support: Excellent. You're getting good at this. Now, click on the following files and then copy them to the "MYHEART" directory: FORGIVE-SELF.DOC, REALIZE-WORTH.TXT, and ACKNOWLEDGE-LIMITATIONS.DOC. The system will overwrite any conflicting files and begin patching any faulty programming. Also, you need to delete SELF-CRITICISM.EXE from all directories, and then empty your recycle bin afterwards to make sure it is completely gone and never comes back.

Customer: Got it. Hey! My HEART is filling up with new files. SMILE.MP3 is playing on my monitor right now and it shows that PEACE.EXE, and CONTENTMENT.EXE are copying themselves all over my HEART. Is this normal?

Tech Support: Sometimes. For others it takes a while, but eventually everything gets downloaded at the proper time. So, LOVE is installed and running. You should be able to handle it from here. Ah, one more thing.

Customer: Yes?

Tech Support: LOVE is freeware. Be sure to give it and its various modules to everybody you meet. They will in turn share it with other people and they will return some similarly cool modules back to you.

Customer: I will! Thanks for your help!