Circles of Motion

Eagle Poem

By Joy Harjo

To pray you open your whole self
To sky, to earth, to sun, to moon
To one whole voice that is you.
And know there is more
That you can’t see, can’t hear;
Can’t know except in moments
Steadily growing, and in languages
That aren’t always sound but other
Circles of motion.
Like eagle that Sunday morning
Over Salt River. Circled in blue sky
In wind, swept our hearts clean
With sacred wings.
We see you, see ourselves and know
That we must take the utmost care
And kindness in all things.
Breathe in, knowing we are made of
All this, and breathe, knowing
We are truly blessed because we
Were born, and die soon within a
True circle of motion,
Like eagle rounding out the morning
Inside us.
We pray that it will be done
In beauty.
In beauty.

From In Mad Love and War. Copyright © 1990 by Joy Harjo. Reprinted with kind permission of Wesleyan University Press.

When reaching the elder stage of life many of us realize with acute awareness that each morning that we wake up to an in breath/out breath, and open our eyes…. it is a gift.

What if the greatest act of creativity comes in this final stage of life. Knowing that how we spend our days, our moments, matters more than it ever has.

No purpose in holding back on our dreams or our tears, our love or our laughter, our artistry or our need to simply be still and at peace….even the challenges we face. But there is every purpose in stewarding abundant curiosity, conscious acts of kindness and compassion, and playing with our unique creativity

Indeed we were born, and die soon within a true circle of motion. One hundred years from now all that has been in our lives will be swept clean making room for new life. What will remain is the moon, sun, earth and sky.

We are a spark in the eternal circle of life, death, and regeneration. Time to open our whole being into the brilliant sunset time of our lives…..

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Sunset Over Blue Ridge Mountains, NC/Phtography by Gaye Abbott, 12/2023

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