The Maze and the Spiral

One-line poetry from year-long wandering a decade ago

Life offers both —
the maze and the spiral.

By inhabiting Marina,
I’m flowing over the falls,
down the rivers into the sea
to be pulled by the tides
of the full moon
so bright in the sky
tonight.

All I wanted to do was to feel
the unwinding, softening
and soothing waters.

Who has landed on your roof today?

Here I am drawn into the forest life
to a place where thoughts drift away entirely
until I’m cleansed and at last can slip
into the embrace of trees.

I feel like I’m on a ship
listing permanently
to one side.

Alone, I walked up the trail
to cliff dwellings, placing my hand
on the cool morning
sandstone, listening
to canyon wrens
and the croak
of a raven.

The glitter skitters
off our kayak paddles.
We’re stirring up stars,
creating our own constellations.

I have a crush on adobe
garnished with turquoise.

When a red-shafted flicker
spread his wing to preen,
the fiery feathers matched
the fire of the red rocks.

I begin to see all that is circular
the round bowl of the cerulean sky,
the frothing bubbles in the headlong creek,
the globes of white snowberries.

She leaned in,
her long gold curly hair
flowing outwards
from the tree.

The hummingbird lands
not on a living branch
but on a dead pinyon
spire to see better.

I kept on skimming
like the kingfisher I revere.

—-by Marina Richie

Another version appears on my blog with photos— marinarichie.com