THE DANCE OF LOVE by Carolyn Riker

I’m often surprised where my writing takes me...

Lavender photograph by the author

It is a sensory experience. This poem was written on an early summer morning. I wasn’t expecting to write a poem about love, but after my brief garden walk and my affinity with nature, I experienced what it would feel like to be loved; it bordered on the tips of wholeness.

My translation of the experience was something I am still tender to share; I have wants as well as needs. In this poetic process I gently embraced my inner feelings. Ultimately, the desire to be loved and feel loved for who I am without the instinctual mindset to conform to the needs of another.

Furthermore, I realized it is easier for me to give than to receive. It’s almost as if, I’ve believed for many years, I don’t deserve more.

As I wrote, I didn’t over process, instead I let what was bubbling inside--flow. It was a unique internal exchange of awareness recognizing it’s more than okay to have wants and needs as well as a clearer sense of self.

I am not being selfish or wrong and for me that is an unusual space.

It is a mindfulness of self-worth. When I think of worth, I see respect. Love is respectful. This poem is my touchstone and the beginning of integrating myself to an integral awareness with a symbiotic dance of mind, body and soul. My heart is touching my mind and my soul is drinking the nectar of inner wisdom. It is beyond fascinating to witness myself stepping into believing who I am and what I foresee in the process with the relationship of love.

The Dance of Love

by Carolyn Riker

I want the touch

of gentleness

serene but justly held

of hands, vibrant

reading me like braille

each curvature

and silhouette

a muse of enlightenedness

not afraid of my darkness

or light of slight smile

hidden in crinkles of  lavender’s budding hue

we’d rest, side-by-side

beneath the stars

or near a river’s bend

at the peak of a mountain or nary sea’s within

with loving eyes to look upon

my tousled eclectic ways

I want to feel the breath of

morning mists

or saline visions,

to speak of memories, mixed with dreams

and craft sandy dunes anew

I want love to

whisper softly

and fill crescendos with sublime passion,

to quiver in the freedom, a dance of eloquence

for all my wants and deepest thoughts

these same gifts,

I’d share with you.

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.  

~If you are interested in seeing your poetry appear in this blog, or submitting a poem by a woman that has inspired you, please click here for submission guidelines. I greatly look forward to hearing from you!~