Beware of the thoughts that compare
Like quicksand they trick us
to sink in despair

When facing creative resistance
And freezing with thoughts of rejection
Step into the path of persistence
And out of the trap of perfection

Happy is
not just for after you win
Happy is
how to begin

Beneath
the inner stories we allow
Await
the inner glories of the now

Built upon the losses
of all we tried and failed
The loss turned into learning
and that’s how we prevailed

I’ve made the mistake
and suffered the price
Now let the guilt go
or pay for it twice

Persist through the droughts
Move forward and know
Where dry desert ends
Green grasses grow

Looking back at the loss
While wearing the bruise
Am I victim or hero
…with my actions I choose

Either conform
into what you can see
Or transform
into what you can be

Feedback is a diamond
freshly from the earth
Hard to see the sparkle
in that state
Yet polish off the edges…

Grasping for love
propels it away
Giving with love
attracts it to stay

I walk through art-filled halls
of what has come before
dreaming of the future
in my heart
Then, I turn and climb the stairs…

This forest is enchanted
with a million shades of green
and in the small are galaxies
of endless wondering