I'M OPEN by Leslie Caplan

 I wrote this poem last week. I was sitting with a writing friend in a local cafe', we took out our pens and gave each other random prompts…

Her prompt for me was "I'm open." This is what came spilling out in a timed 10-minute stream.  I didn't have any forethought of what I would write. I wasn't particularly percolating anything inside of me that day.  Often when I write, I don't know what comes out until it's finished and I read it out loud. I go into kind of a trance, move aside, and let the part of me that has access to myself so deeply, come forward.

This was the case with this poem. When I read it, I am more revealed to myself. I learn about the parts of me that long, are nostalgic, and that even when I ebb and flow, I rest somewhere in the 'in between'. This piece of writing speaks to both the mystic and the human being. It passes through hemispheres and lands on the earth. It's one of my favorite pieces. It follows a course, takes me on a journey and lands me in my belonging. This is what writing does for me. Thank you for taking the time to read it. 

I’m Open

by Leslie Caplan

I'm open as I close 

and contract

huddling into the swell of moon

and release of fall

where the death of things

is beautifully eerie 
and lush

until it becomes 
barren

with an exquisiteness 
of its own

I'm open

to being here

to letting go of things 

I wish I could remember 

and capture like

they belong to me

the memories, the bounty of my

budding womanhood

in the verdant mazes of grain

laying down with the horizon

in a bed of seeds to harvest

I'm open

and I miss certain things

that will never be again

The poetry of my young mothering

in a primeval forested temple 

where gongs and baritone bells 

thrummed my heart open

and changed my eyes

deepened their light

their ebony carved tears

that lead me there in the first place

I stay open

to a love that was,

a love that was born winged

and perched inside my soul until

a wind came through me

and asked that all things rooted

take flight

I was born into sky

the rippling thunder of blue and lavender 

just before rainfall

The scent of strength breathing my lungs open

and willing

to belong

to not belong

To be someone that lives

in the in-between

To rock and sway and move with

the elements of all that has brought me here

to this planet

to this unfolding

I am open

A turning into pages

of a book being written

etched with words that

sing in a language 

no one may understand

until I reveal their colors 

in the barefooted walk of my landing

here

open

changed

solid

and still

in the breath of all I have

come to know.

Leslie Caplan is a passionate writer and has been published internationally. She is a professional Writing Coach and editor who encourages and evokes the strongest, deepest expression of the writer's voice and heart.  She also facilitates writing workshops where writing is used as a tool for revealing and healing.  She lives in the small town of Ashland, Oregon and you can connect with her on her website 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!~