Summer Solstice

How to Feel the Sap Rising

(a poem for summer)

by Christine Valters Paintner
(and some pictures by me)

Walk as slowly as possible,

all the while imagining

yourself moving through

pools of honey and dancing with

snails, turtles, and caterpillars.

Turn your body in a clockwise direction

to inspire your dreams to flow upward.

Imagine the trees are your own

wise ancestors offering their emerald

leaves to you as a sacred text.

Lay yourself down across earth

and stones.  Feel the vibration of

dirt and moss, sparking a tiny

(or tremendous)

revolution in your heart

with their own great longing.

Close your eyes and forget this

border of skin.  Imagine the

breeze blowing through your hair

is the breath of the forest and

your own breath joined, rising and

falling in ancient rhythms.

Open your eyes again and see it

is true, that there is no "me" and "tree"

but only One great pulsing of life,

one sap which nourishes and

enlivens all, one great nectar

bestowing trust and wonder.

Open your eyes and see that there

are no more words like beautiful,

and ugly, good and bad,

but only the shimmering presence of your

own attention to life.

Only one great miracle unfolding and

only one sacred word which is

yes.