Noticing

Poems and Pictures from Everyday Life

Here are two poems from my book Noticing: Poems and Pictures from Everyday Life to celebrate Poetry Appreciation Month.

A Poem

I don’t sit down

to write a poem.

It sits me down

or wakes me in the night,

interrupts my life

with a thought that

won’t let me go,

with a person who

won’t go away,

a sunset that

stops me in my tracks,

beauty that stirs

me to praise,

brokenness that

tears at my heart,

calls me to

simply be alive,

just like now.

~Art by Pam Johnson.

Instructions for living a life:

Pay attention.

Be astonished.

Tell about it

~Mary Oliver

Noticing is available on Amazon and at my website paddle-pilgrim.com