Carol Schene

I am sending this poem as my contribution. I wrote it after encountering a Great Blue Heron as I was heading back from an early morning beach walk. As I reached the grassy path, it was just there and we both just remained still as we looked at each other. I was so inspired by its effortless grace and stillness and when it decided to leave it remained unhurried. When I arrived home, I wrote a poem to capture this experience. The heron displayed so many of the attributes, I see in Tai Chi that it is an image that stays with me when I am practicing. Last year NPR’s local station for the Cape and the Islands selected my poem to be read on their Poetry Sunday segment.

Great Blue Heron

She stands as still
as a breezeless day
against an entanglement
of gray-brown branches.

So statuesque,
she eclipses
the small pond
on her motionless,
stilt-like legs.

A quintessential symbol
of a Zen moment
that humans strive for
and she lives each day.

Then the outer world intrudes.
Her wings extend
like deep breaths.
She inhales the wind,
lifts effortlessly, and is gone.

Celebrate DV