Being with This (Poem)

Oct 21, 2026

sitting on the front porch
alone
late afternoon
in Autumn
golden leaves on the ground
encircling the tree trunk
like the center of a labyrinth...
those yet to fall
dance and sing with the wind...
a lovely ensemble...
the air is cool to the skin
so i return inside for a coat...
i observe how different leaves
from different kinds of trees shift in the breeze differently
but they all yield to the Way of trees and wind -
it's natural for them, and for us -
rooster crows from the neighbor's backyard
open sky
birds flitting here and there
limb to limb, tree to tree
to feeder and back to tree limb...
to my left
rust colored trees in the distance
with some green to the side...
across the field and highway...
and body is restless, unusually so -
can't calm the body...
confused as to why...
i hear inside, "What do I do with this?"
"Be with this," comes the reply
Not, "Change this."
Not, "Let go of this."
Not, "Accept this."
Not, "Get up and get away from this."
Not, "It shouldn't be this way" or
"It's as it needs to be."
Not, "Just be patient, and it'll change."
Not, "After all this time, you still don't get it."
Not anything but... a compassionate, kind, gentle
"Be with this."
i say yes to the welcome...
putting forth no effort at all but to
turn inwardly just to be with
myself and this - all of myself, all of it
i don't know if the disquiet will cease
if it does, okay
if it doesn't, okay
all about remains as it was
body settles, comfortably, in the space
quiet and solitude and
peace comes from
nowhere
- All is well. All is well. -
not because anything changes
though it does...
all was before as it was to be then...
and, like many times before, i'm not surprised
at what happened after the welcome -
it all makes sense...
having learned over many years
about the Way and its ways...
and it only takes a moment to turn
to what is natural, and there
realign with Life and yourself