I believe that poetry brings us into presence. Poetry transcends space and time and is timeless. Poetry speaks to the soul. Poetry is felt not read. Poetry is experienced through connecting with your hearts own experiences. Poetry is a place for whispers from the heart and soul that the voice sometimes struggles to speak and say. Beautiful poet Donna Ashworth brings us to that place so perfectly with all of her beautiful books. Books of hope, grief, love, and life. Each page delivering a delicacy of emotions that your heart reads, not your eyes. Books that speak from her soul to your soul in a soul recognition, reminding us we truly are all one. The deep wisdom of Donna's words and their deep meanings reminds us of the emotional experiences we all experience every day in our wee human jacket. For what is it to be human than to experience both pain and pleasure? Reading Donna's beautiful poems reminds us of the power of being human. That we get to experience all of lifes experiences which are all lessons and blessings and therefore all healingly beautiful in some way, on a deeper level. Donna's beautiful poetry reminds us that we are all truly connected, we all share pain and grief and loss and love collectively and within that it reminds us that noone is seperate or noone is ever alone.
Within Donna's most recent gorgeous book, growing brave, I love the poem "FriendShip."
Friend ship, the ship we are all on carrying us, navigating us through the storms and seas of life. The calm still moments, the surprising unexpected storm moments, the mists when we feel lost. Friend ships are the anchor that brings us home to ourself. Supporting each other through the storms, the lifeguards for each other saying, it's OK, I have got you. The importance of being kind to your own ship, treating yourself with love and respect as you would your crew mates. Tending to your ship, treating her lovingly and kindly and thanking her for being the vessel in which we experience all of lifes seas experiences. Friendship also contains the word end and sometimes friendships do end, usually unexpectedly on one end. One person ending communication at a cross roads junction, gradually or abruptly changing course direction in some way. But as is the flow of life, endings mean rebirth, new beginnings. Without endings, no new beginnings could begin. The shared memories made together, stay together in a piece of your heart and soul somewhere and all truly served there time and purpose, while a piece of that love remains frozen in ice as a photograph in your mental memory. Seeing this as all part of the path, that you both learnt from each other along the way.
Friendship, like the line where the sky meets the sea, trusting that life will always throw you a lifeline life rope.
Find yourself within the pages of Donna's beautiful books and you will truly find yourself.