A neighbour invited me to her 70th birthday party recently. The invitation included a request to compose a poem and share it. I did not think I could do it for I had not written a poem for four or maybe five decades! Her words ‘bad poetry welcome’ gave me the courage to share what came through that morning. As a Gemini, it seems very helpful to understand this deeper layer to my impatience. So here is the poem:

On the way home from a short break
my husband asked me to wait with our heavy bags,
in the middle of busy Victoria station, to go buy a magazine.

I wasn’t happy to wait, I don’t like waiting!

I wanted to get home, my sanctuary
away from all the hustle and bustle,
forgetting my sanctuary was inside me
forgetting the memory of peace and stillness from the woods we had just walked
where the bees and butterflies reminded me how to make the daily busyness playful.

I wanted to get home, quickly
Grateful for the fast trains and planes

Is this how I have been living my life I wondered
Is this how I breathe – Quickly!

Not waiting for the breath to empty
before turning around to fill up again

Not waiting for the breath to come in fully
before turning around to empty again

Not waiting for inspiration to fill me up
for a poem to come through!

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