[Dialogue] Four Gates of Grief

[Ellie Stock]

 Hi Karen,A preliminary response . . . also attached.Ellie :)elliestock at aol.com 
ITHOUGHT I HAD SHED ALL MY TEARS
 

Ithought I had shed all my tears,

alifetime of tears,

dropsrivuletting canyons in once smoothe skin,

cascadinginto deltas and emptying into a sea of sorrow,

nowparched and dried like

myonce choking and burning throat.

Ithought I had shed all my tears,

alifetime of tears,

sobsof shock and pain muffled in pillows,

deepshaking heaves trying to catch breath,

threateningto suffocate.

Ithought I had shed all my tears,

alifetime of tears,

ofhurt and hurting, of remorse for the done and undone,

thebetrayal of and by those close,

thefinal separation from loved ones, land, 

andwhat is most cherished,

ofsleepless nights and 

prayerslike drops of blood for the sick and dying,

ofbirths that never were.

offading health and dreams.

Ithought I had shed all my tears,

a lifetimeof tears,

screamsand cries of anger, fear, and anguish over

thecorruption, consumption, and killing fields of 

Earthand all that is in it,

billionsof years extinguishing 

inthe embers and ashes of truth and justice,

communitiesand trust shattered,

innocentsuffering,

sacrednessviolated, sorrow unbounded,

lamentingechoing lamenting, looping and looping and looping,

griefunbearable, unconsolable, overwhelming, numbing,

dried,vacant eyes staring stoically into the void,

filledwith harpies advertising, urging, encouraging

toeat, drink, and be merry.  But

howcan I sing while mourning in 

thisstrange, foreign land?

Ithought I had shed all my tears,

alifetime of tears, no more left to be wiped away.

Iwoke up in the middle of the night,

anxiouslyawaiting dawn, but

theheavens were weeping, lightning

andstreet lamps the only light,

cloud-bursting,four winds swirling,

thundering,torrents and storms of tears,

piercingthe soil and bouncing off asphalt,

quenchingthe drought-thirsty  trees losing 

autumnmuted colored leaves, 

tryingto cleanse, to refresh, to renew, to regenerate

theparched planet and also

piercingmy soul, drilling into

unbeknown,untapped fossilized tears that melted, trickled,

moistenedeyelids, then gushed,

flowing,cleansing and renewing.

Norainbow but deep gratitude and stillness and

a newCovenant with a new day and 

Allthat is in it.

ThenI calmly reached for a box of Kleenex.

ejhs

10/30/2023


    On Sunday, October 29, 2023 at 06:53:03 PM CDT, Karen Snyder via Dialogue <dialogue at lists.wedgeblade.net> wrote:  
 
 This week the Daily Good had an article by Francis Weller called “Drinking the Tears of the World: Grief as Deep Activism”. Weller articulates four gates of grief that I have never known how to acknowledge before:  
1.  Losing someone loved
2.  Neglected places of soul such as as a sense of shame and feeling of inadequacy
3.  Losses in the world of species, habitats and cultures
4.  Loss of community and rituals that keep us connected to our soul

With this understanding one realizes that everyone grieves.  I find myself wondering how much anger and hatred in society covers a deeper experience of grieving.  

What is your response to this writing?  



Peace and love,

Karen Snyder Troxel_______________________________________________
Dialogue mailing list
Dialogue at lists.wedgeblade.net
http://lists.wedgeblade.net/listinfo.cgi/dialogue-wedgeblade.net
  
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