hoarding silence

 

This rickety old boat drifts on a wide and slow river, 

a river that bends into the blue sky. 

The boat floats past the village on the far bank, 

with the people and the little marketplace. 

Time is nothing. The boat drifts on, 

past the evergreen trees of the pine woods 

and on into the white and fluffy clouds. 

james lee jobe

Cows in the Evening, a poem by Nikki Wallschlaeger

People who own the world outright for profit will have to be stopped; by influence, by power, by us. 

Wendell Berry

Everyone's journey 

through this world is the same, 

so I won't complain.

Here on the plains of Nasu, 

I place my trust in the dew. 

 Sōgi, 1421-1502 CE

I hoard silence to use in the passing years. 

I love the emptiness of this quiet room, 

and I love my grief for its power. 

In the shadows and in the dark corners of night 

I see the face of my dead son. 

His beautiful face. 

Just that. 

james lee jobe

Willie Dixon, Sittin' And Cryin' The Blues

When the whole world is silent, even one voice becomes powerful. 

Malala Yousafzai

To each thing, its own 

true deepest inner nature: 

water does not think 

of itself as consort 

of the bright moonlight it hosts .

 Sōgi, 1421-1502 CE

The sunrise and the sunset don’t need us, 

a fact that eludes most people. 

Night comes and goes with or without us. 

Life is short, and don’t kid yourself; 

this life is all there is. 

So take it all in; the rain, the stars, the moon. 

The wind in the trees of the graveyard. 

james lee jobe

Muddy Waters & Little Walter, Walkin' On 

I’ve woven a parachute out of everything broken.

William Stafford

Call it loneliness,

that deep, beautiful color

no one can describe:

over these dark mountains,

the gathering autumn dusk. 

The Priest Jakuren, 1139-1202 CE

The secrets of living welcome us like bees, like honey. Will  tomorrow come? And if it does, will it come for us?

james lee jobe 

We see vulnerability as weakness, whereas in actual fact, it is the source of the possibility of care. 

Malcolm Martin

Hello. James Lee here. If you enjoy this blog, and I hope that you do, please consider making a donation through the BUY ME A COFFEE button below. It's done safely online, and just takes a moment. I could use the supplement since my mobility issues no longer allow me to work. 

Thanks! -jlj