SURRENDER by Carolyn Riker

Life doesn’t always arrive as a neat package...

 It often shows up with rough and unraveling edges especially after it travels along winding decades of experience. The wrapping paper loses its luster and the twine becomes frayed. The heaviness of the package gets overwhelming at times; the responsibility to find its vision and destination daunting.

On a recent summer afternoon, I laid on the sandy colored carpet like a starfish at low tide. I had nothing left to give and my heart was shockingly exposed. My feet touched a pile of laundry and my hands grazed a stack of papers.

I closed my eyes and surrendered.

I settled into my breathing and asked for guidance.  I could hear what seemed like ocean waves lapping gently along a shore. Within minutes, a soft summer rain began to fall. Rain was not in the forecast but it came anyway. It was one of those universal messages that showered me with peacefulness. It gracefully washed over my confusion as I let the clutter in my mind melt into the synthetic fibers albeit a beach.

That evening, after rearranging some furniture in my heart and home, I settled into a new writing place and wrote this poem.

Surrender

On this summer’s eve,

set your intentions wide

I can see you hold the Sun and the Moon

A heavy juxtaposition

Close your eyes.

Linger long as you careen the foliage

and sip delicate rose water

Listen to the trees as they whisper wisdom:

Breathe, bend and lift

Chant with the owls

Let the light of the Moon guide your inner flame

Sail the turbulent seas of the North and South nodes.

Drink the alabaster nectar

Let the drizzle of the rain hum a lullaby,

Surrender, now

To an elliptical hammock

Suspended between the stars

To hold and infuse your sensitive heart

As it clearly resonates with a universal Om. 

~

Carolyn Riker is an elementary teacher, mental health counselor, writer and a poet who finds comfort and balance in her kids, nature, music and her sweet cat Copper.  She can be seen sipping soy lattes, nibbling on dark chocolate or savoring a full-bodied red wine. Introspective, forthright, kind and compassionate, she intertwines life with yoga, meditating and learning about Vedic Astrology and Ayurveda.  She also writes for Elephant Journal and Rebelle Society. Carolyn can be reached via her e-mail address carolynra7@hotmail.com or on facebook here.  

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