a thank you for you — and your light — Thank you, dear readers Heaven’s manna, being heard You are Grace and Feast — dark Before now crystal caves echoing flames of Afters ©Jenine Bsharah Baines 2021 I’ve been intrigued by the idea of a crystal cave ever since I read Mary Stewart’s The Crystal Cave when I was 14…

Take a walk with me… — “In the end, we’re all just walking each other home.” Ram Dass The above quote says it all for me. I could so easily make it my entire bio…Except I suspect Quy Ma expects a bit more out of me than this. (Insert smile emoji.)

An epiphany inspired by an imperfect movie — I don’t want to wait until I die to realize all cherry blossoms are perfect Whether withered, blighted, nipped in the bud, wind-frayed, faded, unfurled as enigmatically as tonight’s foggy sky, as unexpectedly as a sneeze, yellow watermelon, or green flash at sunset Whether what now, this morning, arises is…

Every word — every! — is an incantation, I promise — I should not make any promises right now. But I know if you Pray, somewhere in this world, Something good will happen. Hafiz Trust the process, an Incantation a master avatar taught mine Four-fingered flame — sabers unsheathed from reverent, confident hands sky-blue veined*, enlightening The Way. Avra kehdabra I create…

From sea gull to sea creature to Greek goddess — A wave waves, and at once I crave a swim, weightless release from a cramped nest too heavily feathered with too leaden to-do lists penned in fool’s gold – remiges* sprouting from goosebumps, throat opened wide to awed murmurs then a caw in the highest key of C as from the balcony’s rim to the…

When red tide wreaks havoc on your inner shore — An algal bloom or algae bloom is a rapid increase or accumulation in the population of algae in freshwater or marine water systems. It is often recognized by the discoloration in the water from the algae’s pigments. Wikipedia The sea is a quilt Red patches bleed into blue Tight toxic…

After walking into Chapel and falling flat on my ass rather than my knees — Fish: A common term used to describe a weak player at the table. Sometimes considered derogatory so discretion is advised. 888Poker I took a tumble — such a scramble to upright myself. The headmaster leaping instinctively from his chair to glissando through a chorus of giggling girls and a solo…

Feeding on awe and avocado toast — “I am the fiery life of the essence of God; I am the flame above the beauty in the fields; I shine in the waters; I burn in the sun, the moon, and the stars. And with the airy wind, I quicken all things vitally by an unseen, all-sustaining life.”…

Sometimes the wondrous creative process is an Adventure driving me to drink — Why sometimes I’ve believed as many as six impossible things before breakfast! The Red Queen/Lewis Carroll I seek excuses to dither Inner warrior Alice, emerge hither! Grow! Shrink! As Adventures require Dahlias from desert — sired