We polish our stones
Quietly absorbed in our work
We enter into a stubborn grief
The taste bitter on our tongue
Unaware of what we have become
Perhaps we have failed
Perhaps we have triumphed
It is difficult to understand
She leans into me
Tiny breaths whispering on my shoulder
Sweet as honey
We need to choose the best stone
The stone which tells our story
Our fingers are brittle from the scrubbing
But the smoothness makes the pain taste sweet
The stones shine with silver and blue
Just like the sea
Just like our constant movement
We take a sip of water
Let it settle
Place the stones at our feet and rest our head
We are glad to have them
They make us shine.
Sometimes when you are in the thick of the hardest part of something, it's tough to remember why you started in the first place. I like the hopefulness of standing back to admire all the shining and polishing that had been going on so that the pain that went into getting them that way seems like a fair trade.
ReplyDeleteI love this poem within a poem:
ReplyDelete“She leans into me
Tiny breaths whispering on my shoulder
Sweet as honey”
It makes me think of snuggling with my little ones. <3
All the polishing the pain so it can shine brightly. There is hope in this poem and the love of a close friend.
ReplyDeleteIt is always a delight to read and imagine the scene of your poems where Alice is involved (I assume it is Alice your constant companion here who has been your support in so many of your posts).
ReplyDeletePlace the stones at our feet and rest our head
ReplyDeleteWe are glad to have them
They make us shine
There's certainly lots of satisfaction that it brought to make one 'shine' with happiness, Jae!
Hank
The quiet sharing of a task brings us together, even in grief, and you have evoked this in your poem, Jae. Alice usually lightens the situation, as she does here with her:
ReplyDelete‘Tiny breaths whispering on my shoulder
Sweet as honey’
and I assume that it’s Alice who suggests choosing ‘The stone which tells our story’.
I also like the thought that the shining stones’ ‘smoothness makes the pain taste sweet’.
Love.
ReplyDeleteI love this. We must choose the best stone, which brings us pain but its smoothness makes the pain taste so sweet. Wow.
ReplyDeleteI wonder if the shine will ever save us... but among the stones we can find an anchor.
ReplyDelete"our fingers are brittle from the scrubbing but the smoothness makes the pain taste sweet" ... metaphor for living. Super write!
ReplyDeleteA stone for a story! A stone that may tell the whole story! May it be found!
ReplyDeleteI was about to quote the same bit Helen quoted. Such wonderful (and true) words. Some rewards are definitely worth any agony they might involve.
ReplyDeleteThe stones shine with silver and blue
ReplyDeleteJust like the sea
Just like our constant movement - oh how I love this part!
I like the idea of choosing one's own stone that will tell the story. That indeed is a worthy quest.
ReplyDeleteThis is absolutely beautiful.
ReplyDelete"We need to choose the best stone
ReplyDeleteThe stone which tells our story"
I like the idea of stones telling our stories. Stones for remembrance, stones to guide us. Thank you, Jae
When all the hard work turns into something beautiful, the search for the perfect stone and polishing it to a thing of beauty. I'm reminded of gem stones and how they come from the ground raw and are cut and polished into something beautiful.
ReplyDeleteSo beautiful, my friend....polishing the stones......the stone that tells my story has the word "Peace" written on it............
ReplyDeleteGorgeous. Mesmerizing. So much to contemplate. I like the simplicity of a stone telling one's story, however complex. And the loving handling of life's inevitable uncertainties. Really a lovely poem start to finish.
ReplyDeleteI absolutely love this!❤️ Especially; "The stones shine with silver and blue/Just like the sea/Just like our constant movement/We take a sip of water/Let it settle."❤️
ReplyDeleteThis is gorgeous..Yes, if we are to carry stone may they be of our choosing.
ReplyDeleteA compelling and layered extended metaphor, beautifully set up with that enthralling opening line: 'We polish our stones'.
ReplyDeleteBeautiful images and metaphors ... but I'd beware of anything which makes pain taste sweet.
ReplyDeletePolishing stones IS a thing where I once lived.. Petoskey stones - and it is very meditative.
ReplyDelete