Poems from my time on Retreat

In July, I went for my annual retreat. During this time of prayer, rest, and reflection, I was inspired by the beautiful grounds of our Chicago central convent. Looking at the trees and flowers moved me to deeper rumination, and I wrote poetry about it. I tried to capture my underlying thoughts under the surface of words about nature. In this blog entry I'm sharing two such poems that I wrote. For each, I've included an explanation of the message that I was trying to express.

Poem #1: Reverence 
As I looked out at the landscape of the different trees on the property, I thought of how beautiful it was because of the diversity that it represented. There were different kinds of trees that varied in many ways. It led to reflection upon the value that each individual person has. 

A tree.
As youth we learn to take up the standard crayon,
adding the green cloud shape to a brown rectangle.
The adult eye sees it that way, too,
each tree a slight variation on the stock photo,
until all blur together as one.

But each declares itself differently,
through pigment and contour, stature and girth--
Beauty taking various forms.
With lush foliage casting a blanket over every branch and twig
or modest leaf decorating a frame.
In unrelieved monochrome
or rainbowed layers, subtly changing.
Marked by towering ambition that stretches beyond
or squatly sitting in the foreground.
Dressing themselves in verdant shades:
pine or forest, spring or yellow-green, even blue-green.
Casting shadows as individual:
the traditional puff, or sparse, dappled with sunlight,
or providing generous shade.

Animals know the difference,
instinctively finding cover in one,
nourishment in another, or a home.
Finding value in each for what they are.
This is a common call:
stereotyped images replaced by
awareness, appreciation,
reverence.

Poem #2: Abundant Life 
I was drawn to a garden of wildflowers for several days before being able to think of the words to describe it. It reminded me that God's abundant love is like this garden: healthy, fruitful, and more overflowing than controlled. 

A patch of wildflowers,
spontaneous
with bursts of color and arrangement of genus and species.
In fact, this uncultivated garden
of natural growth
defies classification.
It's messy landscape is its own beauty.

Unhindered dandelions sway on tall, gnarled stems,
surrounded by thick clumps of black-eyed susans.
Hearty bushes with ample leaves
neighbor magenta zinnia.
Fertile soil dwarfed
by abundant life,
each competing for a fertile foothold.
Here is no delicate petal
or hesitantly-opening bud,
only boisterous wildlife asserting itself.

Honeybees buzz over sweet nectar,
lingering in focused hunger.
Hummingbirds rapidly beat their wings
to stay in place as they feed.
The king of butterflies
folds his wings as he partakes.
Insistent breezes  tug at the thin paper,
but he clings until satisfied.
His more humble cousins
flutter over the dense patch,
fascinated by one bloom after another,
before skittering away,
soon to return.
Drawn by the fresh boldness of the source of life.