Finding the spirit within the physical world

Hello friends, here is a poem as a sort of benediction for my brother George. As I move on with my daily life of exercise with caretakers, phone calls and Zoom meetings, I am still planning and doing, although at a much slower pace. The unexpected gifts of age are discovering an inescapable unity with nature, finding the spirit within the physical world of which we are all a part.  I once described my life as “lucky decades of a long dance,” and I feel the union of body and spirit that continues on even into my tenth decade.  Best, Gene

 

With Age and Loss

My life has been planning and doing,
looking toward many days,
engrossed with work and friends,
hoping to build a better garden.

The recent death of my brother, George,
renews a sense of cosmic oneness
without knowing the secrets of afterlife,
rather it’s a feeling of his presence

in yogic breathing, my arms up and back,
gathering in a bright vision
of the sultry sun on tree tops,
as I blend with encircling green.

With age and loss, with world suffering,
I’m healed by unexpected gifts.