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—————————————————————-Why can’t we try it my way?
https://www.tiktok.com/t/ZP8FMATrh/
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AN EVENING WITH NIKKI GIOVANNI
https://youtu.be/Gh8KNsKziNI?si=KY9wM8mk_4sFsuvr
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God is the original spoken word artist
I’m just trying to recapitulate what that may mean in a modern way for some including myself to see
So a stanza of mine, set to rhyme, is followed by Isaiah 7:14 later repeated in Matthew 1:23
I’m a humble poet calling out to the awe inspiring Divine
Contemporary creativity that others may hear and further Believe
As you can IMAGINE I’m not the only One
I merely love the One who sat with the woman by the well.
Therefore the Lord himself will give you a sign. Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel.
As the song asks in verse three
Come the Rod of Jesse to free
in this case me a poet with a mic
for we’re already free enough to see
Elijah A.K.A. J.T.B.
paved the way to save by JC
and JJZ to disperse verse you might like
The word Emmanuel with an “E” comes from the Greek yet you’re liable to find it in the Bible also spelled with an “I”
Taken from two Hebrew words
“Immanu” with us to discuss
and “El” meaning God on high.
God is near us, with us, and within us coming to the ends of ourselves God is ever ready to begin us again
At the end of the slippery slope, our rope and our hope God is relentless to win us back to themselves.
Regardless which wheel of fortune vowel you start Emmanuel with on the shelves.
A story to believe in a world of deception
A relationship to love forever anticipating
A faith to hold from the world’s inception
A place to belong in the patiently waiting
Building longer tables where the sparks appear more elusive
From the first bell until when the final trumpet has sounded
Pure love casts away fear in being Wildly inclusive
While maintaining the discipline to be Firmly grounded
When we feel we are in lonely exile
when we feel scattered, battered, shattered and lost
You’ve already gone the extra mile
Showing us we matter enough
to have paid the ultimate cost
For the peace that is beyond comprehension
which arrives with sweet knowing
that we may both hear and answer the call
For the release we are fond of with intention survives when Collectively growing
Giving and receiving, living and breathing All means all
Across the silent night hope has spoken this
December reminds us to wait and regain care
When it feels like we’re born into brokenness
We remember it isn’t our fate to remain there
You gave a name to each star to guide us by night to find
until we see the darkness and the cold gone
By loving you with all our heart, all our soul and all our mind
You give weary bones the strength to hold on
Beloved God you are setting the stage for lighting the whole world
You light each candle flame flickering in the darkness refusing to be blown out
Hope for the broken since the first words were spoken your plan is unfurled
With all our might calling you by name that we may be shown how
♾️♾️♾️♾️
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Inspired by Isaiah 7:14, Isaiah 8:8-10, Matthew 1:23 and 22:37, 1 John 4:18, the Christmas Song “O Come, O Come Emmanuel, conversations with Pastors Connie Friend and Dr. Rebecca Brown and even John Lennon’s Imagine sprinkled in for some holiday spice.
Written for Christmas Eve service at the Rock Church Sparks on 12/24/24 by the current City of Reno Poet Laureate at the time. Thank you to my Lord and Savior Jesus the Christ for the opportunity. To him be the Glory forever and ever, but I’ll gladly accept the joy.
In Love,
Jesse James Ziegler
(For my friend Ashlyn)
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Epigraph:
meraki
(v.) to do something with soul, creativity or love; to leave a part of yourself in your work.
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A schematic of sorts
or a basic blueprint
for how we live fiercely in, by, for
and with each other
In spite of anxiety’s alarm ringing
and a stressed schedule singing,
bringing an answer to the question
What is love?
In…
Truth, authenticity, tenacity, valor, justice, integrity, depth of character, honor, discipline and levity.
By…
trusting gifts we’ve been given are best shared with others
noticing people equally in their frailty and vulnerability as we do in their acclaim and success. Perhaps even more so.
helping as best we can how we can when we can without drawing attention to it.
having faith it will receive the attention
it’s meant to.
realizing there isn’t going to be
another one of these
to come around
so we need
to do our own thing
as we’re called to be
for we
are the only one of us
the world will ever see
For…
the ones who can’t speak
we speak
the ones who can’t stand
we stand
the ones who can’t dance
we dance
the ones who can’t share
we share
the ones who can’t believe
we believe
the sake of love
the purpose of faith
each other
ourselves
the earth we leave to our children
the lives we leave behind until we meet again
With…
everything we have
everything we are
the best of intentions
compassion
our friends in mind
the spirit of Christmas every day of the year
love for chosen family
love for extended family
love for our neighbors
the realization everyone is our neighbor
faith that light casts out darkness
assurances that we matter to each other
a sense of belonging in the vastness
the certainty that you are irreplaceable
the hope that you always take the time to notice this
the power to inhabit space in others lives
the promise you hold space in my heart
In, By, For and With each other…
ever and always
how we love first
how we live fiercely
how we leave forever to those with the power to decide such things
and trust that now is enough
to do and be all we are meant to
now is sufficient
now is kind
now is beautiful
I now hereby pronounce you worthy
I now hereby declare you hold fast to eternal value
I now hereby proclaim you are an integral part of all existence
the essence of existence itself
in, by, for and with each other
What is love?
You are.
Go now, and be true to yourself.
The Other Side
We are each a matched set
with a stranger across the world
who looks just like us
but different somehow
we may speak different languages
attend different gatherings
and play in different parks
Yet our work will bear a striking resemblance if we were even given the chance
to compare the two
Our expressions are similar enough
even our mothers would be given pause
and our mannerisms would be eerily familiar
When we lose a sock in the dryer
it arrives in their laundry basket
when we hold our right hand up to the sun
their left feels slightly warmer
when we close our eyes at night
they open theirs in the morning
Dancing partners
across the universe
who’ve learned the steps
to each other’s routine
without ever knowing
the words to each other’s favorite songs
who have memorized the number of steps
from the bed to the front door
and the number of minutes
from the driveway to the favorite restaurant
Without ever knowing the whole truth
yet knowing something is missing
feeling like they’ve forgotten something
along the way
Waiting Room
I arrive for the interview early
The receptionist asks me to sit
as there is another applicant
in the chair across the room
The receptionist hints it will be a while
as the person ahead
of the person ahead of me
just went in
To pass the time they begin to ask
about my hopes and dreams
my fears and shortcomings
my strengths and weaknesses
my favorite movies and music
my least favorite color
the last time I felt sad
A bit uneasy internally
I maintain my poise on the surface
while replying to the receptionist
who keeps looking at the other applicant
and smiling
They are clutching their resume
staring at the ceiling
silent as a response to a lame excuse
The receptionist asks the other applicant
if they are ready
they violently shake their head NO
“Well then,
I guess you’re up” gesturing to the only other door with a tilted smile in my direction
I take the opportunity to get the other applicant’s attention and ask
“Are you sure?”
They look down from they ceiling at me
and nod YES.
“I’m sure.”
They and the receptionist are now both
gesturing to the office door.
I close my eyes as I grab the handle.
I gently turn the knob and close the door behind me.
I feel a slight breeze across my lids
and in bewilderment I open my eyes
to realize I’m outside.
I hear the knob turn behind me.
It is the receptionist and the other applicant
standing shoulder to shoulder.
The one who was silent the entire time
says “You’re hired.”
The one who asked all of the questions
asks one more
“When can you start?”
The waiting room was the interview.
Apparently I was exactly who they were hoping to find.
I start tomorrow.
True Colors Poetry
December 4th, 2024
Warm Up Writing Exercise
Poet’s Choice:
Option #1: Write a poem in response to the line “I never thought I’d end up here.”
Option #2: Write a poem that both starts and ends with the word “goodbye”
Option #3: Write a poem that either starts or ends with someone (or something) saying “Please, don’t do it.”
December 2nd, 2024
https://poets.org/text/thirteen-ways-looking-poems-about-birds
https://poemanalysis.com/poems-about/birds/
BIRD RELATED QUOTES
https://www.brainyquote.com/topics/bird-quotes
PERCY BYSSHE SHELLEY
To a Skylark
https://www.poetryfoundation.org/poems/45146/to-a-skylark
EMILY DICKINSON
“Hope” is the thing with feathers
https://www.poetryfoundation.org/poems/42889/hope-is-the-thing-with-feathers-314
WALLACE STEVENS
Thirteen Ways of Looking at a Blackbird
https://www.poetryfoundation.org/poems/45236/thirteen-ways-of-looking-at-a-blackbird
MAYA ANGELOU
Caged Bird
https://www.poetryfoundation.org/poems/48989/caged-bird
PAUL LAURENCE DUNBAR
Sympathy
https://www.poetryfoundation.org/poems/46459/sympathy-56d22658afbc0
JOHN KEATS
Ode to a Nightingale
https://www.poetryfoundation.org/poems/44479/ode-to-a-nightingale
We May Call
If a mother named song
and a father named prayer
had a baby
we may call that child a poem
and they would agree
So as Mother Earth and Father Time
reconcile the destruction and cultivation
of their inhabitants
we may call that reconciliation poetry
we may call the redemptive forces
at play in the universe our own
to embody
we may call on each other
when we are tired and angry
for assistance in the process of renewal
we may call on the indwelling spirit
when we are saddened and overwhelmed
for sanctuary and respite
we may call upon the light we find
to shine upon the path to restoration
we may call out to the skies
in despair and frustration
hearing only silence in response
not because our cries aren’t heard
rather love wears a different watch
on its wrist than we do
and is constantly at work
behind the scenes
sifting needs and wants
we may call it a betrayal
that we lack proper explanation,
understanding or closure
to the persistent questions
we possess
and the problems which haunt
our dreams
Yet love calls out
hoping to reshape our views of betrayal
or abandonment
as what we may call the unfolding mystery
of it all
from the source which has seen
the sands of time
and the winds of change
reshape the earth itself
and the stars above
to form us from their dust
we may call that trust
we may call that faith
we may call that love
and they would agree
https://www.newyorker.com/culture/essay/the-gaza-we-leave-behind
https://www.npr.org/2024/10/15/nx-s1-5153581/gaza-israel-palestinian-poet-mosab-abu-toha
https://www.democracynow.org/2024/10/25/mosab_abu_toha_poems
SIDEWAYS EIGHT PROJECTS 