On Day 21 of Laura Shovan's February Poetry Project, Marilyn R. Garcia invited writers to explore the mystery between sadness and joy in their lives or the world around them. She challenged writers to write a poem about a time or period of life where the coexistence of sadness and joy was strong for you.
It is difficult to believe that it has been 10 months since my husband passed away suddenly. I found the above digital artwork that I created years ago. My journey since then has been one of unbelief, to anxiety, to grief. But it has also been a time of discovery. I tackle questions, such as who am I and where am I going.
My goal is to restore my soul, mind, and body. Plus, I realize that it takes many miles of walking on my spiritual journey to find peace. With sunlight not making regular trips this winter, grey clouds seem to agitate my mind. Recently, I wrote a blog post about holding the sun close to my heart. As the song, Restore My Soul, states, "revive my heart" is what I need.
I started this blog post with a proposed prompt to write a poem about a time or period of life where the coexistence of sadness and joy was strong for me. During the winter season, I have felt the sadness of loss and grey skies along with the joy of being with family, especially my three little grandgirls. The prompt by Marilyn R. Garcia asks us to take the lyrics from one of the Beatles' mysterious songs and make them make sense.
Keeping in line with the sorrow and joy of winter without continual sun is a mystery to me. Winter doldrums have brought unrest. The ending line of my blackout poem is what I would like to bring an optimistic point of view during this bereavement time.
Here Comes the Sun by the Beatles
Here comes the sun , doo-doo-doo
Here comes the sun
And I I say, "It's all right"
Little darlin'
It's been a long, cold onely , l winter
Little darlin'
It feels like years since it's been here
Here comes the sun , doo-doo-do
Here comes the sun
And I say, "It's all right"
Little darlin'
The smiles return ng to the faces
CVarsalona, 2026
A simple prompt helped me realize that sorrow and joy can coexist. If I hold on to hope and faith, my journey may not be as bumpy as it has been. I look forward to a smile opening each day.
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I thank Irene Latham for her recent blog post with an inspiring ending line to her poem "Watermelon, you"-:"Teach me how to hold the sun when the day is anything buy joyful".
winter's sun offers
both darkness and light with love
mystery of weather
CVarsalona, 2026✎
In addition, I am adding my draft poem for today's Poetry Sisters' February Challenge with Sara, Tanita, Tricia, Mary Lee, and Laura. I choose to use the 25th Poet Laureate of the USA, Aurthur Sze's First Snow poem as my mentor text. I offer a Golden Shovel draft poem with the strike line: the world of being is like this gravel.
dreams melt like the
falling snow in our swishing world
that holds the challenges of
of my swirling life - being
part of continual uncertainty is
unmeasurably worrisome - like
rabbits jumping from here to there this
journey reminds me of winter's icy gravel
(trying to melt what is in my way)
draft-CVarsalona, 2026
The companion photo will be created at a later time.
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I join the Poetry Friday Roundup with our host, Margaret Simon, educator, author, poet, and friend. Margaret is offering us three lovely poems she penned for the Ethical ELA Open Write.
