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A Living Season

(x = space)

x

x

A Living Season

x

Food and water

Bread and wine

For mass

And other celebrations

After

x

Liturgically,

We note salvation all the time

Symbolism’s good

The real things

Are better

When they meet our needs

To lift the worldwide press

Off a crushing world

(metaphor again

they teach)

Are better

x

Symbolic food

Give actual food

Safe water in the present

Wine to seal the deal

For those who allow

As in that crass (unclassed) and useful way

We might worship

And also act in the world

x

Give money from a distance

Distribute packages

Place clean rims of containers

Upon parched, maybe dying lips

When everything’s all right

We’re fit

To talk about the rest

Negotiate

For healthy people

x

All this would make a season

Health is good for the economy

Living without

The need to bury

‘Til the righteous time

Worked into the primal design

And a pattern

For humanity

x

That make us better

People for the moon and Mars

Keeping us whole

At home

A home to have

And to return to

x

C L Couch

x

x

Photo by Rebecca Matthews on Unsplash

My husband and I have begun a few new ventures after getting back to ‘normal’ from the house fire we suffered in Feb. this year. I now make handcrafted soap, and he bakes bread and cookies. Our new neighbors love us, as they get to enjoy the fruits of our labors!

x

2

Three and Isn’t That Enough

(x = space)

x

x

Three and Isn’t That Enough

x

Today is day 3

Third day of Christmas

The brief season

The song calls for

Three French hen

Whatever a French hen

Might be

In addition to

Being or having been

A hen from France

x

My grandfather

The bird-bander

Might have been

Able to tell me

But I only saw him twice

At two and ten

And heard from him

Infrequently

x

He would send some years

At Christmas time

A box of holly from his

Home in the

Contiguous northwest

I guess that’s where we’re from

On my father’s side

Though I had only been there

Once (that was the time

at two)

He came and stayed with us

For a while

In Pittsburgh (that was ten)

x

He acted kindly

I also wanted

To like him

I have a Polaroid

Of him standing before

The Christmas tree;

He holds a pipe

And I must have moved

Because the lights on the tree

Are curved

And they were not that way

And did I take

Another shot?

x

The men I liked

Or tried to like

Tended to smoke pipes:

My father, grandfather,

J. R. R. Tolkien, C. S. Lewis,

The chair of my department

In college,

And my first prof

In graduate school

x

Gee,

What do you know

They all have died by now

(except perhaps

the grad-school prof)

As far as I know,

Pipe-smoking was not

(or will not be)

The cause

Though I could be wrong

x

Anyway,

Three French hens

Cook them

Keep them in a cage

As you will

I guess they could be taken

To a petting zoo

x

So far, six animals

That might be enough

But four more tomorrow

Then seven swans

That must be swimming,

Somewhere

x

Then there are things

And the people doing tasks

Easy for them perhaps

And in increasing

Numbers

Sigh

x

If you’ve had enough,

True love

I’m not sure how to let

The giver know

With such a plan

In execution

Good luck with that

Or add some rooms

And build positive relationships

With the staff

Of local parks

x

C L Couch

x

x

Photo by Soroush Karimi on Unsplash

I was really happy when I saw Eiffel tower. Like really really happy. It was rainy and gloomy but perfect.

[photographer’s narrative]

x

1

The Twenty-Sixth

(x = space)

x

x

The Twenty-Sixth

x

Now is the time

For peace on Earth

When there is no binding holiday

No slogan

No official reason

We must slosh inside the ordinary

Mind

Hope for the best

With hoping

Because there is a job to do

Gift wrap to amass

Maybe hope

For extended appreciation

Of the gift

x

Here it’s cold

There is no snow

What is a child to do

Outside?

How is it where you are?

Well,

There are screens

And some controls

To occupy

Maybe made up of more

Than metal

And plastic

x

War goes on

That’s literal

And horrible

I don’t think it paused

For the official reason

Yesterday

Aiming for infrastructure

Destroying daily need

Aiming for

The sanctity of home

And then the nation

x

I mean Ukraine

Of course

But ask around

It’s happening elsewhere

x

Maybe it can’t happen

I heard the bells on Christmas day

When the pastor had no hope

Except to write

x

But today

Is the twenty-sixth

Only ordinary reasons

Will compel

Though that’s the only kind of peace

That lasts

The kind beside the holiday,

Lacking cachet

That’s global

Or across the street

x

Peace in normal living

Pericardial

Beneath the cranial sutures

Satisfying daily muscles, too

x

Yes, there is a Boxing Day

And turtles doves are due

And Hanukkah

The Festival of Lights

Completes

Its wonder

And bestows

x

And there are other dates

In other places

We don’t know

And they matter

With or without the nations

Knowing

Or the neighborhoods

x

What might be happening

Where you are

As your own

And annual thing?

x

But with all lack of ritual

We have

There were storms

Taking lives

In New York

And in the South

There is the danger in

Deep, freezing temperatures

x

And that’s here:

What’s happening with you?

x

Lights are on in capital cities

Not lit for holidays

x

There is no peace on Earth

The pastor said

And then the bells were heard

Through winter windows

x

Bells can ring a lot

As angels can call

Inside desert skies

It doesn’t have to take a day

Or twelve days

Or their nights

x

Listen

In undesignated times

x

Through the daily and dark glass

We must

Practice

Belief in clarity

There is real peace

In store

Even after falling

(after Eden)

Perfection not required

No more than fancy dress

To come inside

To keep the outside, too

x

Let’s have peace

Beyond the demons

Even the Skeksis

You might know

That’s also black

And brown and gray

With splashes of

Bright colors

That mean promise

x

Inside our kitchens

And our resting places

x

Where we study

Where our children play

Where we have our jobs

For pay

x

Cessation

Then a waging peace

Everywhere that’s

Unextraordinary

x

We may claim a season still

Or simply have the one

We have

Without an ego calling

x

Ordinary peace, of course

Start with restraint

Then offer simply

Globally

On many worlds

With all groups

All numbers of inhabitants

x

The words of love

Then actions

That profit nothing

Like the world

But keep the world

x

Practices

That work in capitals

And under smaller domes

Homely contentment

In the happiness in others

Yes, that prosaic

x

Don’t worry

If you must worry

The effect

Without expectation

Cross lines

Or move in shapelessness

Of time and place

Over, inside the world

And on all worlds

Like the song

Great and small

x

C L Couch

x

x

CNN

“I Heard the Bells on Christmas Day”

The Dark Crystal

“All Things Bright and Beautiful”

x

Photo by Jr Korpa on Unsplash

x

0

Christmas 1

(x = space)

x

x

Christmas 1

x

It’s Christmas day

What shall we say

But that the world

Is old and tired

And ornery

And peace taken

For an illusion

Some might enjoy

Invented

Only on the inside

Then a webinar

With fees

x

Here,

The sun is out

The temperature has climbed

Into two digits

There are icicles on the screen

Outside the casement

Of the window

Church is on line

Not only hundreds of miles away

But the consequence of heart disease

Is to stay

When the weather is extreme

Either way

And to deal with low energy

As in

It takes me forever

To do anything

x

And did Christ come today

Christ comes

Every day

x

And in a good way

I don’t care if

It was December 25

Or the ides of March

Something happened

The child of God was born

The child is also God

Was born

x

Is there meaning

In the other ways?

Of course,

There is

These seek the truth as well

And we should

Be

Should be

With them

x

Christmas is cultural

I’m at church

Hearing the songs

Hearing about the welcome

Of Ukrainians

Here

And I am glad

x

It isn’t peace on Earth

Only in

Such a small portion

Of the whole

x

And shall we say

Jesus was born?

I think we should

It’s history

x

Then in a supernal way

Maybe the spirit’s born again

In loving refugees

And loving refugees

Maybe there were times

When mortal Jesus

Felt outcast

Alone on Earth

As and why he walked away

From time to time,

Once

Prayed in the garden

x

You know,

We may take up

Exegesis

And

Evangelism

Later

And may I pause midstream

Like the saint to say

To the child Jesus

(I to you

and I a mortal child),

x

Merry Christmas

And for twelve days

That make

This varied

Still hopeful

Hopeful, still

Yes, brief

Season

x

C L Couch

x

x

Photo by Robert Kalinagil on Unsplash

x

0

The Day before Tomorrow

(x = space)

x

x

The Day before Tomorrow

x

Last day in Advent

Made it

Whew

Rain, snow

Overwhelming cold

We should be postal carriers

To endure

It all

Strange meeting place

This junction of

The Northeast, MidAtlantic

The weather comes

From north or south

Or east or west

I’m trying

To get used to that

It’s only taken

Twenty years so far

There are forecasts

But better to wait

To know what happens

Though encounter

x

How to plan a picnic

Must be an undertaking,

Strategy

Requiring options

(bring the ants)

Sometimes the living

Is absurd

If not cartoonish

But these are the days we have

And the environs

Those who stayed

Or passed back through

Appalachia

To stay

x

And all the world has

Its places

Its challenges

Its practices

x

And now (among

the practices)

It’s Christmas Eve

And there are days in Hanukkah

This year correlating

Come

To light our way

The world could breathe easier

Except in Ukraine

In Myanmar and Yemen,

Oppressive parts of China

And of Russia

And in the manipulative

Shadowed corners

Of the USA

All the places where we watch

For detonation

Also the human heart

The battlefield it remains

x

Sin and virtue

Pounding and pushing

Pulling circulation

Strain

(Sturm and Drang),

The devils on the inside

On the outside

Rendering Christmastide

So perilous

x

And yet we sing into

A night

We wish were silent

Save for children’s cries

For all the reasons

Children cry

Among them to receive

First oxygen and hope

Into the world

x

Render the night

Impossible in virtue

We’ll sing it,

Anyway

We’ll kneel

We’ll try to light our way

We’ll quietly acknowledge

Neighbors

Some will party

And some will do nothing,

I suppose

Though the world is affected

By what we do this night

And for a thousand years

And in the time

Remember birth and

Death

And everything

That circulates a world

Keeps it moving

In the spirit

In the flesh

x

Though maybe for an hour

Let all mortal flesh

Keep silent

And in fear and trembling

Stand

To receive

To hope for blessing

In the night

x

Let fighter planes

Fly so carefully

Perforce keep watch

Like shepherds

Over continents

And there might be songs

At crowded borders

And the lines

Kept distant

From welcome

Because mines have barred the way

x

Peace on Earth

The ersatz wish

Some must believe

(yet some must believe),

Withholding war

The practice

That must be enough

For now

x

Into the world

The child comes

The children come

And everyone

And everything

Now have responsibilities

To keep it together,

To throw

And try to seal patches

The worn places

And to keep watch

For the tearing places

On the outside of Earth

And, you know,

On the inside

Heaven

And hell

The human heart

x

Anxieties may end

Because it’s here

Our plans are done

And in place as they are

Out of necessity

Of time

As chronos

So might we have

Christmas

For a day

Twelve years

Perhaps a brief era

If only hours

x

A spiritual time

A cultural invention

Arms reach out for a change

Hand in hand

In brave hope

To sing a silent night

To sing in glory

Once the vigil is completed

And there is indeed

There really is

A dawn of hope

x

Glory and hope

Amazing

Because a child is born

That for a time

Affects the government

In minds

As well as capitals

Until when all time is done

And in a kairos of eternity

It’s Christmas day

And all the other graceful days

Together

x

C L Couch

x

x

Photo by Monisha Selvakumar on Unsplash

x

2

to an unknown god

(x = space)

x

x

to an unknown god

(acts 17:22-23)

x

the cars hiss outside

like snakes complaining

we had a storm

another might be coming

aren’t we always

in between

we can sleep

only through so much

and then must wake

if only to the aftermath

but then in earnest weather

we’d have been up

to take care of things

before the blow

the pounding of the fists

and stentor breathing

of an angry god

who cannot forgive

our not knowing its name

x

c l couch

x

x

photo by raychel sanner on unsplash

gathering storm over kansas.

x

note (c. f. earlier notes)

the computer’s back, I guess; if so, I’m thankful (thankful for the nonce, anyway)

merry eve before the eve

x

0

Late Cancer

(x = space)

x

x

Late Cancer

(diagnosed, lived out)

x

My brother

Might have to be moved

Again

He is frustrated

Wants to be home

Before he wanted to be

Elsewhere

But elsewhere isn’t working out

I understand

The purpose of a medical setting

Is not to settle in

But to leave

When well

Stay is contraindicated

Home

As it cannot be managed

Still remains the prize

x

He’s in pain

Palliation only goes so far

Before the pain

Folds in again

He’s also frightened

I would be

I am in contemplation

Though these are his days

And shall the cancer

Diagnosed too late

A year ago

Take him to another home

Prepared

At last

To last

x

But there’s today’s pain

I don’t know how to wish

The pain to go away

Without invoking

The scary, heavenly alternative

But prayers aren’t magic

We aren’t dealing with a genie

Waiting to misstep

Our hopes

In misspoken entreaties

Heal my brother

Still

Is every prayer’s day

That might make nothing happen

‘Til the pain-releasing thing

Must happen

Tragically for us remaining

For him who suffers

Most of all

x

It is late December

I agree it is a magic season

How much amazing

Might be borrowed

From days

Of extra stars and circles

Green and all the other colors

Only for him

x

C L Couch

x

x

Photo by Kalle Kortelainen on Unsplash

[photographer’s narrative]

A crisp afternoon around 3pm in Dalsjöfors, Sweden these incredible snowflakes appeared on the hood of our car. You can almost hear the crisp snow creaking under the soles of the winter boots by just looking at them. Pure natural magic.

Dalsjöfors, Sweden

x

3

the winter of our contretemps

(x = space)

x

x

the winter of our contretemps

x

hello winter you are

welcome on a sunny day

in a few weeks

maybe not so much

when the cold has settled in

for a while

x

but then

the torrid in the summer

has its problems too

and we are headed there

and then when there

we shall return

by nature

x

a cycle

a circle

the top of an ellipse

and do the arches rise

with ages of experience

x

we seem to be stuck

in consideration

of annihilation

as the theme

and hidden ways

to prosper anyway

is it the zenith

or the nadir

how far do we have to go

to either

are we the zenith

or the nadir

x

we have this season

and the end of one

hello

goodbye

a cosmogony

fit for captain spaulding

because

hello we must be going

x

winter season

winter spices

wintry mix

(wintry salad)

wintry is the word

a descriptor for

three months to start

to tilt the other way

x

enjoy skiing

and snow people

and all the things we make

with what is

temporary

‘til the sun returns

or with time

the wind passes over

x

pleasure below freezing

snow angels

snow ice cream until

chemistry

became

our condensation nuclei

x

white on white

and satin dark

the stars will blink

though it’s our atmosphere

winter in our breathing

the steam we make

the challenge

of the next breath

go inside

make sure

for everyone

there are insides

x

c l couch

x

x

photo by kristaps ungurs on unsplash

x

some of the connection

has returned (c.f. my last note, prior entry)

how much

and how much will last?

the new part has not arrived

and will it fix

the device and the process?

I’ll be

of course

letting you know

thank you

happy winter

x

2

Brigid negotiate

(x = space)

x

x

Brigid negotiate

x

it’s the solstice

light a fire

the ancient gods

might have gone under

maybe to sleep

maybe to reconsider

but we want them

back

we want them

today we say

we want them to return

x

raise up the plants from seeds

so there might be

food

oxygen

and beauty

x

the sun-dwindled

day

unevenly dividing

light and dark

for winter

either side

contending

in the extreme seasons

x

have song, have silence

there are hours;

sing something old

and write down something

new–pillars

of tradition

are often raised by

rebel words

x

take nothing down

burn branches that are found

or acceptably

purchased

x

if gods want blood

they cannot have it:

that is our modern

prohibition

no longer

the fashion

or the will

I say respectfully,

thank goodness

x

Etain or Lugh

(Isis and Osiris)

might be mollified

with conviction

alone

or who knows maybe

with earnest play,

either

in the dance

around our dedicated

fires

and our spirits

moved

(maybe a feather for the soul)

x

have the day

contemplate

celebrate

we want the world to turn

to tilt the other way

through winter

through summer to the south

into spring

into autumn

all our seasons

x

C L Couch

x

x

x

https://www.timeanddate.com/calendar/winter-solstice.html

Winter Solstice, Northern Hemisphere–North America, Europe, most of Asia, Northern Africa. In New York, New York, USA: Wednesday, December 21, 2022 at 4:48 p.m. EST. (Change location.) This corresponds …

x

photo by someone I’ve cited before through Unsplash

x

I’ve lost most of the connectivity with my computer. The problem might get worse before it gets better. I’ll be receiving a new router to try. But if I’m away from here for a little while, you’ll know why. Thank you. And if I must say this now, Merry Christmas, Merry Yule.

x

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