There’s a Hole in My Sidewalk

An Autobiography in Five Short Chapters

By Portia Nelson

Chapter One

I walk down the street.

There is a deep hole in the sidewalk.

I fall in.

I am lost …. I am helpless.

It isn’t my fault.

It takes forever to find a way out.

Chapter Two

I walk down the street.

There is a deep hole in the sidewalk.

I pretend that I don’t see it.

I fall in again.

I can’t believe I am in this same place.

But, it isn’t my fault.

It still takes a long time to get out.

Chapter Three

I walk down the same street.

There is a deep hole in the sidewalk.

I see it is there.

I still fall in … it’s a habit … but, my eyes are open.

I know where I am.

It is my fault.

I get out immediately.

Chapter Four

I walk down the same street.

There is a deep hole in the sidewalk.

I walk around it.

Chapter Five

I walk down another street.

Rediscovered this old love. Perfect for the rainy spring weather today.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jJOzdLwvTHA

Bluebird

Breathing in snowflakes as the sun filters through,
Warming up this frozen canvas into morning dew.

Swirling between flurries and wisps of fog,
Back again after a winter of warmth and sun,
The bluebird sings of wildflowers,
The buds whisper to the wind of spring,
And I dance in green fields singing, singing the song of the bluebird.

Back again.   

1993

 

Wisdom

"There is nothing better than a friend, unless it is a friend with chocolate." Linda Grayson

Doors of Northern Italy

I saw this quote in "The Secret Life of Walter Mitty" and it kept popping up in my mind recently as I've found myself reminiscing and marveling at the warmth that friendship gives.

To see the world, things dangerous to come, to see behind walls, to draw closer, to find each other and to feel. That is the purpose of life.

Nirmala

we come to You,
hands open,
hearts searching,
steps hesitant as they approach the marble temple.

our eyes rest on the thousands of petals that decorate You and we are lost.
unable to fathom the place before us.

lions guard the entrance reminding us to tread carefully as the Goddess rests here.

Morning in India

Lights are dancing in the sky today.

The lingering fragrance from the night’s blooming flowers serenades the earth with its quiet symphony.

The air sways to the sound of clanging pots and rushing water as it hits the anklets on tiny feet.

The sun’s soft rosy glow filters through as chai is served with hands decorated in bangles and mendhi, all the sweeter as it touches one’s lips.

And as the musical horns fill the air and the dogs sing in response, you know that morning has arrived in India.

 

Beautiful watercolor and impressionist style artwork by my lovely friend, Holly Firth. Go admire and support this talented artist :)

http://hollyfirth.wordpress.com/
http://www.etsy.com/au/shop/HollyFirthArt?ref=l2-shopheader-name

Moments

Accidentally took a screen shot when I preparing to send my sister a birthday video. Ended up taking a few more and this was the result. Sometimes you've just got to make fun of yourself.

“[A] quotation is a handy thing to have about, saving one the trouble of thinking for oneself, always a laborious business." - A. A. Milne

Hello December

Look at this.

My ridiculously talented friend: http://scialodle.tumblr.com/

Marc Chagall

New poet-artist discovery! Can't believe I haven't come across him before. 


The country which is in my soul
Is mine alone.
I enter without a passport.
Like me,
It knows my sadness
And my solitude.
It numbs me
And shrouds me with its heavy scent.

For me the gardens flower.
Flowers are my creation.
The streets belong to me
But there are no houses,
They were destroyed in early childhood.
Its inhabitants roam in the air
In search of a home;
They dwell in my soul.

For this reason I smile
When my sun is barely shining,
Or I cry
Like a light rain
In the night.

There was a time when I wore two heads.
There was a time when these two faces
Covered themselves with an amorous dew
And were based on the scent of a rose.

Now it seems the same
To me when I return.
I look ahead
Towards a high portal
Behind which some walls spread themselves
Where faded thunder sleeps
And light breaks through.

The country which is in my soul
Is mine alone.

Preach Louis!

 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5HbYScltf1c

Ah, Sunflower

Uncontainable emotions spilled from my eyes to the courthouse floor,
I thought we had all made promises to never grow up.
And yet, through tear-filled eyes I watched as she said "I do."
Her smile, her dress, even her tears were befitting of her name.
Queen.

- - Italy - -

Our bicycle tires streaked the hills,
We painted our names on the mountain that day,
Yelling in exhilaration as the mist of the waterfall relieved our sun burnt faces.

You demand as I tiptoe around the echo of your voice.

Song-Poem thing

Clean up the dusty cobwebs in your mind,
Find treasure underneath piles of time,
The tickling of dust particles,
Remind of rays of light- bright illuminating your dark insides,

You will wake in a daze to find yourself beyond time,
Waiting for that ray of sunshine,
To dust you softly,
As you (s)tumble gently,
Into euphoria

*My very amateur attempt at writing a song. Wrote this last summer in the early hours of the morn. It does have a tune, but felt it was less embarrassing to share in written form...