New Poem – a need to pause…
Posted on Apr 18, 2014 in Blog feature, Recent Writing | 94 comments
A need to pause, to rest.
It’s at times like these
That I best notice
A bewilderment of gifts,
Treasures I never knew I had.
Just one long look out at the world
Any sunlit Spring morning
Excites me so,
Makes my heart ache.
Sometimes gets me thinking
I have woken somewhere else,
Somewhere new and exotic,
Exquisitely perfumed.
How revealing is that?
And so it means what it means,
This need to confess
That, for all our flailing around,
For all our yearnings
And our heart aches,
We barely scratch the surface
Of something so simple.
And therefore can be
Caught so unawares…
So thank you, God
For every new day
That bursts upon me.
Beautifully expressed…Spring always offers me a bewilderment of grace, which I’m so grateful for after the barrenness of winter.
Scott…you have captured something here that I believe we all are being asked to do. With all the continued barrage of information from daily life, we often forget to stop and take the moments as they are offered to us. To see the beauty in the simple things. For me, (as you now know from my latest article) that is in watching the marvellous heavenly landscape of clouds above me. Lovely piece!
So many of us are good at the flailing part.
Taking a pause is healing. Beautiful write!
Scott, we’ll always flail throughout our life. But then come moments when the beauty of living, of a child’s smile, or a sunset, or a beetle in the grass climbing bring us peace again.
Thank you for your gracious thoughts.
Every blink of an eye can reveal breathless wonders if we just take the time to look. What a beautiful tribute to that truth. Lovely.
A short poem by your standard Scott…why is it ‘exquisitely perfumed?’…i felt that line could be removed…the rest of the poem is neat…
Scott says: Thanks Shriram – I guess that line speaks so and is intended to underline the intoxication of the moment…
A beautiful and upbeat poem that is perfect for the entrance of this new Season. Thanks for sharing Scott!
Sweet zesty and fresh as Spring Grass.
Wonderful! A lovely poem indeed, Scott! Spring… a new beginning again… and even dreaming of somewhere exotic, adventurous perhaps and revealing indeed…even realizing how lovely this world of ours really is and how very little we need to be happy… whilst instead having no time, wanting and doing all the wrong things… Oh, yessss! Quite a poem. Happy you are sharing it with us, Scott! Thank you!
I like Picasso’s phrase which I posted on my twitter van Thool. ‘The meaning of life is to find your gift, The purpose of life is to give it away…’
Compliments Scott I envy your calm and I congratulate you for the deep poetry.
The torment inside me destroys me and will not let me close my eyes.
But in the end, my job is just to remove the superfluous to bring back what is hidden inside the stone.
Happy Easter to you
Best regards
Sergio
but in the being caught
what mysteries abound!
Lovely poem Scott. I think living with gratitude for all the good around us, is the right way to live fully. Happy Easter 🙂
I love the stillness which awakens appreciation. Another lovely write. Thank you for sharing.
Dear Scott,
Wonderfully written poem presenting the things we are often miss, so caught up in the often mundane things of life. I’ve been in and out of th hospital from July 2013 to February 2014 due to a botched surgery and five consequential surgeries and haven’t been able to get to your site. I’m mending now and can hopefully keep up.
Best of luck,
Micki
Scott:
Gifts are all around us, as you know. We only need to look, and experience contentment in the finding. I love what James Lawless shared from Picasso. Here’s a quote from Henry Miller that I try to live by: “Live each day as if life were a blessing, and not an ordeal.”
Blessings to you Scott. – Richard
Gorgeous is all I can say!!!
Happy Easter my good friend, Laura
Woweee! So wondrous again…
Thank you Scott ! I thought I was just getting old thinking I had seen the previous link before! As always, I love your work and you never fail to inspire me.
A Happy Easter to you and your loved ones.
Always A Fan,
Carolyn Sames
I enjoyed Scott.Thank you.
That’s the beauty of life to let us have a time for thinking, pondering,making new choices or even changing our outlooks. The poem deeply deals with memorable concerns of life and I should say(that)it was very beautifully written. Thank you for sharing it with us.
I like your new stuff, its elegiac
feel, and feel sure you’ll get something similar
out of the Cortazar flash-fic piece. Best wishes, William
Dear Scott,
‘A Need to Pause’ exemplifies the art of being present in the moment. Perhaps a return to the zeitgeist of essentialism [without the complications of our virtual distractions], this allows us as individuals to experience, almost as if for the very first time, a spring-like re-awakening to the marvels of our simply natural world.
Lovely, Scott!
Nice Scott.
Myra
I like this poem. The positive emphasis of it is so uplifting to the spirit.
Helene Pilibosian
A need to pause ,to rest, should be writ large in our lives.
Somewhere new and exotic Exquisitely perfumed.
Your eulogy for spring and reflections are food for the soul
Thank you Scott
David.
Scott, I’ve just read your wonderful poem, a need to pause… I concur with your ideas. In midst of our busy schedules we fail to pause take a moment to see or feel or contemplate on the serenity of nature. Your words never fail to enchant me:
“We barely scratch the surface
Of something so simple.
And therefore can be
Caught so unawares … ”
Yes! Nature is deceptively simple which catches us off guard and unawares and once we submit to its swoon, the feeling it entails is peace and contentment… These feelings can be evoked by your wonderful images and beautiful words … Your words have that magical wand which transports its readers to another dimension.
What do I like best about this offering…? Sweets in a jar, let me see … perhaps it’s “we barely scratch the surface of something so simple” yes, that’s it and may life’s sacred itch forever keep us scratching. Thank you once again, Scott… for the words. x
Scott, I find myself so completely relaxed in your reading! The splendor of beauty and tranquility paint such amazing visuals through your gentle words. Indeed, we have much to be thankful for, inspired by, at peace with in our surroundings. Our very disposition influences how we perceive things. Marvelous written word as always Scott.
Lovely write Scott with an excellent title…If only we could take a break from our daily routine we would be able to pay attention to treasures we never knew we had…smiles.. Happy Easter! 🙂
Spring is renewal; opening yourself to new possibilities is renewal. Nice reminder we need to step back at times, and really take a look around our world to recognize opportunities heretofore unseen. It’s amazing what you will find with an open mind.
Deeply peaceful…
Be still … take a moment to pause, let your eyes gaze, as your mind and soul ponder the wonder of it all.
Loved it, Scott. I appreciate you taking a moment to include me in this ” Beautifully Written, Timely and Appropriate piece.”
Have a great week my friend.
Scott, a beautiful poem that speaks to my heart. Yes, we are such a small ding on the surface. Yet, our own personal lives seem so enormous at times, and that is not what it is all about. As I am coming to find out, rather quickly. Very nice work.
Peace and love,
Pamela
Scott, Spring is the gift. It take us to get air, feel fresh and rest and it is of a beautiful nature. I like it. We thank God for making it and giving it to us. Your poem is a beautiful expression.
Lovely poem, Scott.
sometimes in our busy schedule, we forgot what we lived for. this is a timely reminder.
A nice poem. I enjoyed reading it and could also relate to my own experiences.
Happy belated birthday, Scott
I enjoyed your poem 🙂
Another very lovely poem Scott!! Hope you had a Happy Easter!
Lovely poem like the others you write. 🙂
What a beautiful creative piece, I really enjoyed the read. Great work Scott
Scott, I finally found a quite moment to pause in my mental labours to reflect on the bare rock truth of your expressive gentle poem. Gracias.
Your new poem “a need to pause” is exemplary of this time of year, spring, in all its glory and optimism. I always enjoy the indulgence of reading your writing; it’s as if I’m breathing fresh air!
To be caught so unawares can be the catalyst for finally trying to scratch below that surface. Lovely poem Scott.
It seems odd that after the confinement of winter, we feel the need to pause but we do. Perhaps it is the freedom of a softer world combined with the welcome rebirth that brings this need to the surface. Beautiful poetry, Scott.
In simplicity there is beauty. Walking by a river, sunlight through trees, birdsong and silence,these are treasures indeed. Glad to have stumbled on your lovely poem today through d’verse.
I like the need to pause & treasure the moments ~ Spring hasn’t quite arrived here but I am looking forward to new mornings ~
Scott, those places we always tries to find.. but once we found them we are eager to move away.. a wonderful poem…
This was definitely worth another read – and how marvelously well it fits the prompt
The moment we pause i think we make space for our emotions and dreams to get to the forefront a bit… sometimes surprising what we see..
A beautiful and necessary pause…filled with the mystery of awareness and life…no answers except to be there filling lungs, heart, mind, spirt with life and all its unanswerable questions….Beautifully done 🙂 ~Jackie~
Lovely Scott. And how true it is that in our quest for things material we miss the simple beauty that is this world of ours.
Anna :o]
Yes, the simple is an inexhaustible reservoir … keeps us writing poems trying to dig further down there. Nice.
Well expressed. I always think the stopping point and even a place of boredom is where new creativity is born.
Flailing – yes, indeed. We waste so much time in that state. And when we do find time to just be, to give ourselves space, after just a few moments, our minds get busy, busy, busy. A lovely, thoughtful piece, Scott.
Stunning poetry..I do love to find those hidden treasures..
Gratitude is most fruitful when we stop flailing I think. It comes in those quiet moments that escape from chaos. “A bewilderment of gifts,” I really like that.
Beauty does take us unawares..a piercing arrow that clears the fog and lets in the light!
The greatest wisdoms come in the moments during which we pause long enough to listen.:-)
I walked in the park the other day in awe of all the life and beauty. Beautiful poem.
“A bewilderment of gifts,
Treasures I never knew I had.”….the lines speak of contentment and simplicity, a rare virtue these days…
Those blank moments when we pause do yield life changing insights, don’t they? Lovely piece.
Yes, indeed.
This resonates, Scott. So true…those pauses are necessary. For our sanity, I think. “We barely scratch the surface” – how true and apt. I’ve been using the tagline “barely scratching the surface” on my blog since I started it over six years ago. 🙂
Oh how I relate to this poem – the gratitude and simultaneously, the ache of the beauty around us, the gifts we dont always see……….wonderful write, Scott.
Treasures I never knew I had – perfect!
I love this. Reminds me just a little of “Today” by Mary Oliver–one that Garrison Keeler posted on Facebook today. I enjoy the details here.
Scott says: Thank you so much Susan, Mary Oliver’s poem is indeed a great one with a wonderful close.
Those caught unaware moments are what many poets write about. Perhaps in hopes of getting the reader to seek the same.
Elizabeth
http://soulsmusic.wordpress.com/2014/04/26/dialogue-with-my-dragon/
The beauty of seeing things from a new angle, noticing the “new-ness” that comes with every new day. How wonderful is that!
A wonderful write…
Filled my heart with serenity..
and your blog looks so soothing too!
Those moments of pause and wonderment which poets capture so well – but necessary for all of us, poets or not!
Such was my mood when I wrote this:
“Little Beautiful Things
Oh look at that butterfly, isn’t it beautiful?… ah and those
ones o’er there flapping like fairies in a dreamland!
May I know your names please?”
Thank you my friend for the wonders of your being!
I’m grateful to be able to say that I know that aching feeling that you describe in the face of nature.
Ah, but I love a good scratch…and for as much as we want to know ourselves…there will always be mystery waiting when we dig deep enough.
Beauty surrounds us if we only look to see
Wow this is so beautiful and so true..that what we have not explored may still exist..
There was a time that i was so sure there was no way up again…
Never ever give up..
Is the truth i know NOw..
as there are so many NEW things yet..i still know are there..
yet to explore AND TO FEEL AND EXPERIENCE to make life real2..in beauty more of living
as such…:)
I so relate to the ache….so much beauty, so little time!!!!!
Lovely to revisit this poem…lovely.
Your poem is a breath of sweetly scented lilac air… Full of contentment and happiness of just being.
Wow..beautiful Scott sir! Indeed,we must be grateful and indebted to God, with sheer gratitude, for each new dawn and for every breath of ours…realizing,”oh, so my soul is still in the body…I am there to greet yet another day,am very much in this world, beholding the beauty of nature, so prolifically bestowed upon us to grace.”
Amidst this fake world that we witness every day, we need to pause and ponder over these bounties of nature that soothe us and refurbish us with another spring of hope and another opportunity to live!
So profound sir…God bless!
Thanks for sharing another marvel.
With fond regards
Neena
Love the lines that tell us to stand, pause and stay alert…beautiful lines 🙂
Beautifully expressed, Scott. I look at the world as well sometimes and am awed by what I see. It is nice to look around and appreciate the simple……when we take time to pause.
I think maybe people deliberately rush about and avoid the pause, for fear they will have to confront themselves… and find emptiness? Very lyrical expression of the need to breathe, to wonder, to feel.
Oh, very good Scott.
I like the tone of this very much – it is a simple observation yet it is profound….it is not wordy but says so much…”and so it means
what it means”
Scott – how many times are we caught unaware after all that flailing about – the world opens her beauty before our eyes if we will only see – really lovely poem – K
Stunning =) I read the poem and have commented before but again I must say your writing is exceptional on par with the great poetical geniuses =)
Pause- It’s like a calm flowing stream beneath which every smiling pebble
and bubbling little fishes are felt and seen in their being!
Thanks for this call Scott!
So lovely – so true. As spring wans in this part of the world (New York City suburbs), the trees loose their flowers and turn green. Each day there are new flowers, new colors and shapes to see. It’s sad that so many people forget to look. Everyone should read “A Need to Pause. . .”
Scott, this writing resonates so within me. Of many changes to come, and dreams coming to fruition – you captured each day I arise and face what is to be.
Many blessings to you my friend. You are a genuine inspiration to this poetess.
Namaste
Thanks for your poems and for the need we all have to pause.
The most beautiful example is set by American Philosopher Henry David Thoreau. He went to live in woods. He wakes up in nature and take a cup of tea and then reading books that make him beautiful in thoughts….
“I went to the woods because I wished to live deliberately, to find only the essential facts of life, and see if I could learn what it had to teach – and not to, when I came to die, discover that I had not lived”.
Spring is the season when all the leaves breath a new life, and we feel happy. Your poem reminds me of the Shelley poem “If Winter comes, can Spring be far behind? Those who are close to nature find all the happiness and they don’t need to go to materialistic world to find happiness…God must have taken a lot of time to create nature because the beauty lies in abundance…Those who become close to nature, nature gifts them with a lot of knowledge, intelligence, wisdom, spirituality, kindness & creativity. When I became close to nature, I was reminded of the maxim that: “those with true genius so often learn from nature, whilst the intelligent learn from books….