A Light Unto My Path

On the first Thursday of each month, the Spiritual Journey writers gather together to compose their thoughts on the prompt of the month. On this Thursday, the teacher-poet, Kim Johnson, is hosting with the theme,  A Light Unto My Path. I have reflected for several days on how I should create this blog post. I poured through several homilies and podcasts of Father Mike Schmitz, a devout and energized priest and speaker. I also searched songs related to the spiritual journey and light. The reflective times I spent reading opened a path of peace. 

There are many aspects on how Christian singers, songwriters, clergy, and writers form their offerings but one photograph captured by my son, Derek, provided the start I needed. Within his photo, I not only found the beauty of dawn but observed angel formations fluttering in the clouds. This gave me pause, as did the songs that I gathered, poems I read, and spiritual leaders offering their input on Psalm 119:105: "Thy word is a lamp unto my feet and alight unto my path." 

As I turn my reflections into poetic thoughts, I listen to Amy Grant's beautiful song of praise, "Thy Word." It is a soothing, lift-me-up song that you can listen to by clicking here. With songs of faith and hope, I find myself in a calming state.

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illumination

on my spiritual journey

a pathway to peace

Divine Radiance's gift

"Let (the) light shine out darkness"

©CVarsalona, 2026

(last line is from 2 Corinthians 4:6)

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Thank you to Jan Annino for hosting Poetry Friday at Bookseedstudio. Her blog shares an interesting title, Chill, and showcases a gorgeaous photo sharing a moment of cool pool indulgence. 

This Spring Morning, I Pause and Reflect

Fellow Spiritual Journey Friends,

On this spring morning, I know it is the moment to "Make Time", to pause and reflect on my spiritual journey. There is one word that has guided me since the beginning of 2026. 

Digital Collage for Opening Blog

Since New Year 2026, I travel the spiritual journey path with thoughts on my one word, restore, and a song, Restore My Soul, that reminds me to find my way. 

Seasons of Restoration

one word floats

like snowflakes'

rhythmic flight

                                         WINTER FLIGHT 

chilled winds blow

earth freezes

tears hold grief

                                      BEREAVEMENT

awaken

from winter's

loneliness

                                  TRANSITION

spring's bounty

revives life

in chaos

                                          GRIEF COUNSELING BEGINS

despite rain

hope opens

new fountains

                                 MID-SPRING

music soothes

lifts grief's weight

sings with birds

                                        SPRINGTIME WISH

hope swirls while

gardens bloom

life brightens

                                        MAY REFRESMENT

grace, peace, and 

memories

opens paths

                              MAY DAYS

summer wish

make time to

reflect, pause

                                        SUMMER BREEZES APPEAR

lead me on

find new paths

summer smiles

                           ONWARD 

©CVarsalona, May 2026, tricube sequence

Click here to listen to the song "Garden of Grace".

For a year, I passed through seasons of change. I listened to earth's movements, managed the walk (even after I fractured my foot last October), broke down as tensions stormed through life, grieved, held on to faith, and prayed in silence, noting that changes needed to unfold.

Where am I now?

I am ready to mingle, not be frightened by grief, and continue my spiritual journey. There is more to come, I am sure but for now, I feel the power of faith while holding on to hope.

Spiritual Journey 2026

Logo: Margaret Simon and Photo: Molly Hogan

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For those who walk with me on the Spiritual Journey, I am thankful. Our small community is filled with faithful companions and friends who believe in the spirit of life. I send wishes for a wonderful weekend. - Carol, June 2026 Spiritual Journey Host

Spring's Gifts: Rain, Garden Flowers, and Nature's Beauty

On non-rainy spring mornings, I often receive a beautiful sunrise photo from my son, who enjoys taking early morning walks. 

Sunrise in Northern Virginia by Derek Varsalona

This photo reminded me of a poem written by John Clare. (The Rural Muse: Poems (Whittaker & Co., 1835) in the public domain.)

The Spring comes in with all her hues and smells,
In freshness breathing over hills and dells;
O’er woods where May her gorgeous drapery flings,
And meads washed fragrant by their laughing springs.
Fresh are new opened flowers, untouched and free
From the bold rifling of the amorous bee.
The happy time of singing birds is come,
And Love’s lone pilgrimage now finds a home;
Among the mossy oaks now coos the dove,
And the hoarse crow finds softer notes for love.
The foxes play around their dens, and bark
In joy’s excess, ’mid woodland shadows dark.
The flowers join lips below; the leaves above;
And every sound that meets the ear is Love.

This Memorial Day weekend, the rain continually drenched my gorgeous peonies. Our Memorial Day patio picnic with the family turned into an indoor event. When the rain took a quick pause, my 6-year-old grandgirl learned how to fill different types of vases with what was left of my cherished peonies.  

Before the Rain

After the Rain

I took one of the lines from John Clare's poem (see below) and created a Golden Hinge Poem introduced by Patricia Franz. 

Fresh are new opened flowers, untouched and free.
Are they nature's perennials sharing their
New budding gifts of glee? 
Opened petals of pink and soft white share
Flowers swaying in fashionable wear.
Untouched, they stand with dignity,
And pose for all to stare
Free from life's responsibility.

Draft, CVarsalona, 2026

Digital art of peonies by CVarsalona

Thank you to Mary Lee Hahn at A(Nother) Year of Reading for this week's Poetry Friday Roundup. She is setting up a summer picnic with "yummy offerings for today's potluck". 

Let's Celebrate Springtime!

 april spreads its windy wings

poetry reverberates 

springtime sings

©CVarsalona, 2026

I Invite Slicers, Poets, Writers, Artists, Photographers, and Students

Join me during National Poetry Month. Offer your creativity to embellish my Spring Seeds Grace April Gallery. Add an original spring poem, nature photo, inspirational quote, or artwork to my new padlet. Click here. For a sample of one of my spring galleries, click here to see my 2016 Spring Seeds Gallery of Artistic Expressions. You may find one of your poems there.

I hope this calling card will inspire you to create an artistic expression for my newest gallery and padlet. I would like to showcase the work of slicers and other writers.

Happy National Poetry Month!

National Poetry Month-Day 14/30

Two Writing Teachers, a meeting place for a world of reflected writers.

Spring Seeds Grace April

 April 1st arrives with a bit of foolery. In the early morning hours, I witness nature's transformation. The beautiful buds on my dwarf cherry tree blossomed a few days earlier, as if they were announcing the Cherry Blossom Festival in Washington, DC. But, as fast as the blossoms bloomed, the tree lost its gorgeous softness of color. 

Mother Nature often surprises us with its timing. Recently, last year's pansies popped with wonder in my outside vase. Nature whispered a welcome greeting to the new season of Spring. I paused to praise the season and reflect. I, like nature, weathered many winter storms this past year. I grieved over loss, felt the pangs of hurt, and experienced fatigue, but there is something different floating in the air now. Springtime opened with blooming trees. Colors that turned from winter white to a dirty grayish hue in March waited for spring to share its runway of colors and open the doors to growth and inspiration.

Now spring seeds grace April as witnessed by my pansies unfolding and surprising me with their persistence from one year to the next. Pansies not only welcomed the season, but they also reminded me to prepare the soil of my heart for the seed of grace to germinate. 

I pray that this season will move me to a new level of growth while unleashing the grief that is deep inside. As a sliver of sunshine offers respite, some anxiety eases, and I hope for a transformation like nature's movement from winter to spring. 

April 1st marks the opening of National Poetry Month's 30th Anniversary. I will celebrate along with fellow poetry writers. Words and emotions will pop as spring seeds grace April. I shall write, read, and photograph nature's pathway through the month as my muse whispers to me and seeds of verse pop up. The richness of the soil and the germination of seeds will bring a level of calmness. 

Day 1/30

INVITATION

Join me this April as I look back on my Gallery of Artistic Expressions, Spring Seeds, which was unveiled in July of 2016.  If interested, write a poem and/or add a photo regarding spring seeds gracing April. I will gather these gifts of verse and create a new gallery of artistic expressions. Perhaps, you will find one of your poems or photos residing in the 2016 gallery. 

Let your imagination take you on a journey throughout National Poetry Month.

2016

Whispering Ink

🔏

spring seeds scatter

across palettes of color

gracing our world

soft whispers of words respond

bouquets of blossoms in verse

©CVarsalona, 2026

Embracing Positivity

Each month, the host of the Spiritual Journey Thursday community invites others to walk along life's path. When the invitation sent by Bob Hamera, aka arjeha, arrived in my email, I realized that the prompt, attitude, would be an appropriate one for me. Bob asked the Spiritual Journey community to take a look at our attitude and how it affects not only ourselves but also others.

 

As the community knows, I am walking a tightrope since the sudden passing of my husband in April. Each day, I wake praying to find a new avenue that will restore my soul, revive my heart, and renew my life. Unfortunately, at the end of most days, I find myself standing in a vast ocean of unpredictable, swishing waves, realizing that my emotions are scattered across the sea's waters. Another image appears, a remembrance of days at the ocean, watching the tide ebbing and flowing at a rapid pace. My feet sink into the sand, and my body falls into the cold water, unable to rise with balance. . .

After reading Bob's invitation, I realized that a new attitude is exactly what I needed. By chance, I found an interesting quote on the Purposely. podcast, "Life is 10% what happens to you, and 90% how you react to it." As in the Bible (Phillippians 2:5), Apostle Paul advocates for a new attitude: "Have among yourselves the same attitude that is also yours in Christ Jesus." Paul is speaking about having a humble and selfless mindset like Jesus. These thoughts may have been hiding all along, since I believe in a positive mindset. Now, I am ready once again to spark the fire that filled my heart with positivity. This is a necessity. I need to walk the spiritual journey with hope and faith and not waddle in the darker side of life that interferes with a positive attitude. With a strong mindset, faith, and hope, my goal will be to minimize the grief and anxiety I often feel. 

I am grateful for our Spiritual Journey host and community of faithful writers, and am eager to read each blog post. You can join us here if interested.

Silence's Sacred Space

blazing artwork

silently layers the sky

nature's gift of gold

©CVarsalona, 2025

For this month's Spiritual Journey Thursday, our creative poet, artist, librarian host, Jone Rush MacCulloch, offers a quote from Thomas Merton, "The world of men has forgotten the joys of silence, the peace of solitude, which is necessary to some extent, for the fullness of human living!". Following that, Jone poses a question, "What are you doing to promote periods of silence each day?" 

The world is saturated with chatter that encourages loud noise regarding political, environmental, financial, family concerns, etc. I sometimes feel overwhelmed by the news and humanity's lack of kindness across the world. Often, I slip and stumble when grief sweeps over me. Internal noises lead to sadness. Yet, I know that "For God alone my soul waits in silence" (Psalm 62.1) Nature brings the essence of love from the Creator. With thanks, I lean into the beauty of the land, the flight of birds, and glorious garden grounds wondering if is this enough for me to remain present in still moments pondering what life will bring on my spiritual journey. Some days seem dark. Restlessness sets in and shuts out stillness. I reach out to nature to nurture my soul so I can find silence's the sacred space where I can contemplate in peace. 

I sit here now listening to the sounds of silence, feeling the rise of breath and the exhale of what does not belong. This sacred space refreshes me and lets me contemplate about reaching the fullness of human living. I realize that I need to embrace silence more and revere it as a sacred space for inner growth.

In the book, "Healing After Loss, daily meditations for working through grief" by Martha W. Hickman, December 4ths' meditation speaks of silence. The ending thought brought clarity. "In the flurry of the next couple of weeks, I will try to spend a few moments each day in prayerful silence-my own particular stay against the emotional and physical tumult of these days." I thank Jama Rattigan  for sending me this book that helps me slowly move beyond loss and friends that have walked this journey before me. 

My Closing Thought on Silent Meditation: 

• I will continue to write and provide time to ponder on how to remain calm in the midst of disquiet. 
• I will quietly await for peace to settle in my soul.

 

The image above is a magical scene I

photographed before we moved to Virginia. 

It has an ethereal quality reminding me.

Thank you Jone, for the creative, amazing Holiday Poem Swap she sent me. Thanks to Tabatha Yeatts for organizing the Holiday Poem Swap.

More will be shared in the future.

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I am also offering this blog post for the Poetry Friday Roundup hosted by a talented poet, author, and cellist, Irene Latham.  You can find Irene's blog at Live Your Poem where she is sharing information on her Open Call submission, a Barbara Crooker poem, and offers her new poem, "ArtSpeak Picasso.

autumn leaves

flitter-flutter in silence

winter's coming

©CVarsalona, 2025

A Bump in the Road

There have been many bumps in the road as I journey, but I always try to move forward. After twisting my ankle In October, I tried the usual remedies, ice packs, and elevation but they did not work. A few days later, an xray showed a fractured ankle. While this  bump in the road made me antsy for days, I decided that I needed to bring nature inside. 

The healing time may have been and still is a bump in the road but with friends and family it became a time to move forward. Nature nurtures my soul during it's annual autumn fashion show. 

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bumpy rides are annoying

and at times soul destroying

 so to the countryside we go

spotting trees with color flow

nature eases antsy stresses

that life sometimes addresses

listen to fall's quiet voice

strike the cord and rejoice

Being in the moment is the positive choice!

©CVarsalona, 2025 

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A month later, I visited my foot specialist doctor once again. I waited with bated breath. Would she approve my travel to Denver for the NCTE Convention? After spending Zoom time preparing a presentation on free verse with my talented poet/authors, Matt Forrest Esenwine, Georgia Heard, and Allan Wolf, I was eager to take the trip. After all, the last time I saw my writer, poetry, and and literary friends was at the 2019 NCTE Convention in Baltimore. 

With an ankle that was still in the early healing stage, I was more than happy to wear the stabilizing boot, walking with a walker, and using a wheelchair in the airport. So off I went to Denver hoping  for four days of learning and enjoyment.  Both were found but that's another Slice of Life.

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A poem from the past that brings peace to me:

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Thank You To:

• Melanie Meehan for organizing a breakfast get-together for Two Writing Teachers' friends at  the NCTE Convention. 
• Matt Forrest Esenwine  and Irene Latham for their open invitation to the  Poetry Peeps evening event at  the NCTE Convention.

🍁🍃🍂 

I now join Two Writing Teachers on their special day, Giving Tuesday. "Every year, on the Tuesday after Thanksgiving, this organization leads a movement encouraging others to give. This could be giving your time, creativity, care, or any act of generosity you can share with others."

I give you my Slice of Life with inspiration from the season of autumn in Virginia, and nature photography turned into digital art image poems. 

Hallow's Eve

It was the sign of the times. The Wraiths' Feast came to be. Collegiate voice lifters journeyed through the Witches' Passage to the nearest Wailing Walls. With Lantern Haze devices, they slowly proceeded onward. Under a darkened sky, they listened for Midnight Murmurs from Gossamer Ghosts who enjoyed lurking on the bewitching night of Halloween. 

Are you ready for a ghostly poems prompted by our creative Poetry Friday host, Jone Rush MacCulloch? Jone offers a list of Halloween prompts to create a variety of poems by our community of writer-poets.  What I did was take her poems and introduce them in a short tale that is partially true from my college days with additional support from Halloween photos I took while living in Long Island.           

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DON'T BE AFRAID!

Howling whisperers

screech and whimper.

With bated breath,

 Halloweeners creep quietly,

slowly inching their way

throughout the cemetery

until they notice

a formidable sign.

"Yikes!"  Do you see a conclave before us?

Ghastly, bellowing ghosts circle.

Whose Moolinght Graveyard is this?

I think I know, but

not all agree.

Some friends step back,

tingling like scared cats,

Others mesmerized by the Phantom Lullaby.

Howling screams, frozen in time, rise. Stop!

Something lurks by the Velvet Coffin.

"Let it be known", so it is said.

"There is something haunting

in the light of the moon."

Without delay, scratching voices

rise from the ground.

We quickly skedaddle

under the light of the evening moon,

before sirens chase us out.

©CVarsalona, 2025

Just Remember:

Beware of what lurks at night on Hallow's Eve.

@CVarsalona, free verse, Halloween 2025

@CVarsalona digital artwork 

Follow the light of the moon to Jone's Poetry Friday Halloween Roundup.

You never know what you will find.

Poetry Peeps were invited to the Poetry Sisters challenge for October! A burning haibun arrived from the ashes of my opening prose poem. As the Poetry Princesses noted, the burning haibun is not the "old regular haibun. It highlights the internal landscape of memory and within them, something somewhere must BURN." 

(Please enjoy visiting other poets who enjoyed creating burning haibuns: Tricia, Sara, Laura, Mary Lee, Liz, and Michelle K. Check Tanita's blog to see if more people joined in.)

In prose, I present Hallow's Eve.

It was the sign of the times. The Wraiths' Feast came to be. Collegiate voice lifters journeyed through the Witches' Passage to the nearest Wailing Walls. With Lantern Haze devices, they slowly proceeded onward. Under a darkened sky, they listened for Midnight Murmurs from Gossamer Ghosts who enjoyed lurking on the bewitching night of Halloween. 

Erasure #1. Result after the blackout technique:

it's time. Wraths' Feast came. Voice lifted. Journey with lanterns slowly proceeded. Darkened sky listened. Midnight ghosts lurking on Halloween. 

Erasure #2. Burnout leads to a haiku.

It's time wraith came

voices journey listen

night ghosts lurk

  Draft CVarsalona, Halloween 2025, burning haibun

Oh, what fun it is to capture Halloween Eve, especially since this year I am homebound with a fractured ankle. My boot and walker chair are my costume for a chilly night at home.

Please understand that I have been on slow-go movement since last week.