Homage to a Brimful Poet

Homage to a Brimful Poet

A message heart delivered by a musing troubadour

left footprints upon
a well weathered rivers’ rocky shoal

the lazy days of the summer’s

simmering ethereal breezes
lazily waft astir

Unknown distance ‘tween yonder skies azure;

thoughts of nebulous distances
fearlessly ignored 

Connectedness sown and deference’s
soar from high above,

yet beyond vast breadth
afar the great divide

His brimful heart in hand fulfills passersby thirst

needing love here, hearts on sleeves sincere,

wellspring sensibilities handed out willingly here

voids filled by word of quill …

right now is the known needed time

Glasses half empty suffused to their half full brims;

do unto others you will reap just what ye sow

A poet beyond the bounds of his own demure,

 bearing immense understanding

The quintessential essence of family love 

drips from heart like havens rain,

testifies the heart's purpose for being

A poet’s voice speaks in soul’s timeless tongues

unknown breaths
from another understanding realm 

too deep for words;

yet the word sayer struggles to see his forest ‘s poetic beauty for to see beyond the pendant beauty 

within the magnificent grandeur

his own gifted heart’s nurtured trees.

Harlon Rivers . . .©August 21st, 2013

You never know how many rings a tree's trunk 

while it is still standing rooted deeply in the bedrock of mother earth...

long may ye stand tall 

as thy poetic tree's 

ever reaching limbs 

touch heavens azure ...

Respectfully sincerely,

Harlon Rivers

~ Silently Thinking Out Loud ~

...when I started other chapters to the Word Whisperer Poetry blog, at the time I hoped Soul Journey would become the  most read and have evolved with me as a person...Admittedly neither has happened so I am going to reopen and try again... "Silently Thinking Out Loud" was a poem written last April of 2012 during a time I felt like I was getting back on track

"Silently Thinking Out-loud"

We are both

Blessed

and Burdened

by the empowering

responsibility of making our life choices

The path taken

is our journey’s evidence

fraught

with opportunities to reclaim 

our soul's influence of selecting options

We may choose our 

response

to what ever

obstacles

our pathway may incur

We may

resist

and loathe

the difficult moments 

in life

We will  find the valor

to evolve into 

the conscious moment's dimension 

free to be the moment

Blessed by the Burden

of truth...

Burdened by the doubters 

needing proof...

Compassionate understanding 

liberated by choosing presence 

Life here and now...

© 2012 Harlon Rivers ... All Rights Reserved 

Written ~ April 7th, 2012

Doubters vs Believers

Sometimes a first step starts a journey of 10,000 steps...It can be logical to question…doubt. But sooner or later moments of motion transcend fear within doubt, liberating belief in our actions…

a poem by Harlon Rivers

"Doubters" and "Believers" are polar opposites,

like North is of South

Yet there is a little of both East and West in everyone

The protagonist versus the antagonists, a stalemate of the middle,

neutralizing fire and ice into water

Doubt fosters uncertainty and disbelief darkening optimism

of hopeful illumination of brighter pathways.

Belief in humanity cultivates faith into new beginnings, 
brighter moments, hopeful tomorrows. 
Finding inner peace and balance awakens devotion to hope.

Fidelity of unseen gravity is grounding

Trust is found through sincerity,  authenticity,  and yet

doubters hazy indistinctness muddles the enlightenment

of confidence that the long and twisting road

does not come to a dead end

just around the unseen bend in the pathway

Significance of ideals can not be discovered 

until insignificance renders us into 

an egoless thought of a speck of dust 

As the volcanic flow of significance in thought immerges

from the dust,   it builds the doubters dome into belief

as if seeing becomes believing transforming ambiguity

into definable reflections of faith in love.

Nothing is inevitable except to know the circle of life is a circle.

There is likely only one complete,  complex journey around  

and only we can choose which crossroad to turn upon.

To dream of doubt concludes the final dead end corner.

To be a dream believer cultivates eternal faith in hope...

© 2012 Harlon Rivers

Cleansing Rain

...waiting for the pending winds of change to blow the storm clouds past... 

A long awaited metamorphosis... from the author of 

Word Whisperer...

Look up and breathe as the crying sky explodes

Inhale natures’ showering unblemished symphony

The oppressive black cloud hanging overhead lingers

Emotions ebb and flow with the moment’s immanent spirit of light

A freeing sensation excites anticipation

of the sky’s pending fated purposeful release

Heavens… flood down in a drenching act of baptism

by a merciful drowning in the river of celestial tears

Torrential rains wash over me like a cleansing rain

Cleanse the dust and ashes of the abandoned frozen traces

What once was a blossoming presence,

Evolved into a foggy cold winter season

Now all that remains is but a shadow of what once was,

Life was nearly eroded away by the years of fallen tears

Rinse away unrequited love’s stagnant inversion

Washing away the invisible chains that bind

To the loathsome heavy ball

Of an unforgiving past

Know the cleansing rain is the spirit of love

Washing over an exhausted heart of soul 

Left exposed and naked to the world

Look out with thoughtful eyes into the universe

Never stop believing the dream is eternal

Envision the clouds in the dark sky parting

As all that awakening light comes shining through

Renewing the promise that surrendering to love, 
shall be destiny’s purpose...

Harlon Rivers...December 10th, 2012

vocal chimera

... a poem by Harlon Rivers... from the Whispering Moon Beams poetry blog ~

... understand this moment has come to just write what you feel… don’t ever let anyone say what you believe you feel is wrong ~

... calling out my name

from the far off distance,

an enchanting  tone of voice

came to me in a dream ...

what if I was heard from another realm?

my soul screaming 

into the silence of the night?

... answering just wouldn't matter

when there is no one listening …

... awakened …

by a throaty voice

breaking the silence of slumber

... quietly standing tall

unable to escape from  a dream

that’s already come and gone …

... believing in something hard enough

does not make it true

ignorance of some portion of the truth

only makes you slightly aware

no matter how crystal clear

the vivid truth becomes…

whether you are taking

the placebo or the medication

... perception heals all wounds

answering rhetorical questions out loud

left me alone at dawn

stranded like a black sheep

banished from the fold …

... questions aren't really questions

when the answers are already known

misunderstanding the literal

erroneously innocent out of unawareness

seems like getting lost
taking the wrong road home ...

© 2012 Harlon Rivers

A Long Way Inward

© 2012 Harlon Rivers

A Long Way Within

It’s a long way across rivers wide

A lifetime from shore to rocky shoal

It’s difficult to envision that the earth is turning round

While leering blindly, lost in the womb of time

It’s been a long way from way back then to here and now

An unfinished journey from the cradle to the grave

When the mind can’t see tomorrow,

The stars won’t guide you home

It’s a long march up the proverbial hill

A long way across to other distant rock-strewn spires

The possibilities are vast and yet the pathway is unknown

It’s a long mile to carry the weight of that load

The road is long since the embryo of the dawn

Over the hills and far away

Glowing light at the end of the tunnel remains undefined

Until you take that final imminent earthly stride headed home

We’ll never ascend to the highest mountain peaks

Through faithless, fleeting stabs in the dark

Standing on the brink of a precipice

Just a step away leaves one hanging by a thread

There’s a distinct ulterior boundary wall

Looming in the vista beyond

Patient perception unveils the cosmic distance

Witnessing the sphere of life's evolution, through the spirit from within…

© 2012 Harlon Rivers