Author: leejanetaylor

Lee is a poet, psychologist, wife and mother of three children (and one spaniel). Themes in her writing include wellness and coping, nature and domesticity, memory and creativity from the perspective of chronic-illness.

Love Blooms

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In our house love is shaped by folds

a proliferation of origami in spring cherries

blossoms on walls

love is drawn in small blue cups

stamps of affection float in foam 

atop carefully wrought delicate textures

it is spelled in gestures 

timed by close watching eyes olive green

with deft reach out by warm arms

after sharp words fly, miss and circle round

balanced in the elegant proofing of a formula

X = (1+ 1) 3 Y + (1+2)  

where Y is the pattern of a favourite song

music being an equation played 

the solution already known

love blooms, coloured by little hands 

won’t hold still long for word sculpting  

tendrils creep into wilds out gates we will

always leave open.

Spring is in full swing in the Southern Hemisphere. It is wonderful to finally feel some sunshine on bare unmasked faces here in the Sth Island of Aotearoa, NZ. I hope everyone in this part of the world is taking some time to enjoy the blossoms and blooms – both literal and metaphorical!

Take care x

Photo by Artyom Kulikov on Unsplash

The Company of Trees

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Days like these the facelessness of trees

is all I want – to see the crowd fade 

eyes that roll in sockets, jaws that jabber

complicated symmetries of brows and noses

can all fade into the doesn’t matter.

I only want to talk

with the faceless heads of trees

– the way they hold up proud

against skies green manes flare on blue

delicate lace of arboreal tentacles

let to drift in wind. Their bodies are

solidity all the time standing their ground 

in consecrated symbiosis with this earth here

a relationship tended in leafy sacrament

season after season. There is wisdom

in the faceless ways of trees – somedays

their company,

is all I want or need.

Reading Suggestions

Do you too prefer the company of trees today? If you are stuck indoors but need some nurturance of mother nature – poetry has your back! Mindful reading of nature poetry is a great way to reconnect with the great outdoors. Open a window, pop on some forest or ocean sounds – and relax into some wordful nature! Here are some reading ideas to get your wilderness exploration started:

Classics: Emily Dickinson – in between romancing death and philosophising about grief, it seems Dickinson also spent a lot of time in the woods and her garden. She wrote many nature poems with wit and depth such as “There’s a Certain Slant of Light”, and “Nature is What We See”. It is “old worldly” but she keeps it crisp. Ted Hughes “The Hawk in the Rain” is a brilliantly moody poem. Mary Oliver’s long career of nature poetry (many books from 1960’s to present times) is all inspired by her daily walks in the wilderness. It is lovely gentle reading great for a sick day – I’m fond of “The Swan”. Sylvia Plath’s “The Moon and the Yew Tree” is hauntingly beautiful (and very sad). D.H. Lawrence’s collection “Birds, Beasts, and Flowers” delivers as the title promises. Modern and informal compared to his earlier works. “Snake”, the tortoise poems, and “Hummingbird” are wonderfully observant. Mary Webb was writing nature poetry at the turn of last century but it’s very accessible – it reads as classic and insightful rather than old fashioned. I love “Presences”.

Local Contemporaries: Dinah Hawkens recent book “Sea-Light”, David Eggleton known for punchy snapshots of NZ culture also gives gorgeous portraits of NZ scenery i.e. “Southern Embroidery”, “The Harbour”.

There are some great anthologies of nature poems by a variety of authors. The ones I have seen tend to be focussed on classic authors. Perhaps reflecting that nature themes were out of literary fashion in modern times. That seems to be changing with the relevance of climate change, as well as a contemporary desire to reconnect to nature.

If you have been reading some nature poetry, I would love to hear your recommendations – especially for poetry blogs.

Next “Staircase” post, I will be giving some tips on journal writing for self-care.

Lee x

Ps – apologies if you received an earlier unfinished edit of this post (interface difficulties!).

Go for a Walk (without leaving home)

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We all know regular exercise is crucial to maintaining wellness. Did you know studies have shown regular exercise is as effective as anti-depressant medication at improving mild depression? Of course, walking improves fitness and joint /muscle mobility. A walk also provides variety in sensory stimulation, helping you to change mind set. Fresh air and sunshine directly help regulate mood. And importantly, a walk also allows you the instinctive feel-good vibes of connecting to nature.

So, what to do when you can’t get out? Maybe symptoms of illness are limiting mobility, or you are home with sick children or relatives. In isolation, or stuck in an office building and feeling stressed. The following are steps for getting some of the benefits of a walk, without going out.

  • Connecting to Nature:
  • Poetry can help!
  • Spend some time reading nature poetry. There are some great collections at the bookstore and library. Rich botanical imagery and depth of contemplation about nature in poetry can leave you feeling like you have just wandered through a forest!
  • If you have a garden – read nature poetry there!
  • Spend time in your garden really paying attention to the plants. You could sketch one or write a detailed description to help you connect. It doesn’t have to be a clever drawing or a poem. The point is to notice detail to enhance connection (the point is the process not the end product).
  • If you don’t have a garden – move a pot plant to near your sitting spot, and be friendly, “Hello peace lilly, how are you today? You’re looking lush!”. If you don’t have a pot plant – now is a good time to get one! You can even have one delivered with your groceries.
  • Fitness:
  • This is a frustrating situation. If you notice self-critical or hopeless thoughts, try to respond to these kindly. For example, tell yourself “this is out of my hands for now” or “this is temporary” or “fitness goals can wait, I can cope with this”.
  • Focus on what you can do.
  • If you are able, do something active within your house or yard. A few laps of your living room and some gentle stretches can be surprisingly beneficial. A small amount of movement is often just what is needed to feel looser and calmer.
  • If you have children, join them in some active indoor play. Or play with a pet! Get silly!
  • Crank up the volume on some music that makes you feel good. Go on – have a wiggle!
  • If you have a chronic illness, listen to your body and don’t push. Alternate activity with rest.
  • Sensory Variety:
  • Make yourself a comfortable spot to sit somewhere unusual. Get creative! Be like a kid and make a cushion “nest” or hut under a table or in a quiet nook. Or just use a chair away from your bed /couch. Variety is refreshing and undoes some of the “cabin fever” effect.
  • Chill /Sun:
  • Seat yourself in sunshine for 10-20 minutes. Either outside or through a window. Be extra careful with skin care if you haven’t been going out often. Sunshine stimulates positive mood.
  • If you can’t be outside, open a door /window near you for as long as comfortable. Even in winter it is worth rugging up for the benefit of fresh air.
  • Splash your face and hands with cold water or give yourself a cold blast at the end of your shower. You may be surprised how pleasant this can be. Like a run through a sprinkler when you were a child, a little cold shock is a fun thrill.
  • Fresh cool air and cold water have health benefits for your skin, and will improve your alertness. It is a wake up call to your nervous system, and possibly your immune system. There is some evidence of benefit for mood, anxiety and other issues. You will notice how much more you enjoy a warm towel or blanket afterwards, as well feeling refreshed.

These steps work best if you pick the ones that suit you and work them in together as part of a daily routine.

Next “Staircase to your Sky House” I will provide some recommendations of nature poetry. If you have been stressed and/or indoors a lot, I hope you enjoy trying some of the above!

Take care x

Photo by Igor Son on Unsplash

Celtic Skies

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The sky is indifferent, the sky is kind

always reaching in, uninvited

with long white

cloudy fingers prising

open planks of sternum, one by one

chest rivets pop and sigh – 

taste the silver and the blue

tints run, inking through time

eyes feather soft and wide

to gulls glide, natures guards

mount impartial in this space –

the sacred in between 

stratosphere and ground

where

cumulus and stratus oversee proud

and free

as druids once served.

Sky House Manifesto

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Poetry and Calm

Poetry is (and should be!) so many things – abstract art, sociopolitical critique, a voice of the marginalised, humour, satire, a call to arms. A gem to wear under your skin. A vessel for dreams and dark magics.

My aim is to publish some of my poems here that support reflective thinking and calm. I will also be posting some reading recommendations, as well as relevant self-care tips*. In particular, around the use of mindful reading and writing to promote calm and wellness “steps to the front door of your own sky-house”.

Like any writer my poems will walk where they are want to go. Many germinate in the dark corners and dusty margins of life, in tunnels underground. I nurture them towards the light – because we all need more hope in our lives. Of course, hope is not pretending everything is well. Hope is staring head-on into the centre of darkness, finding a faint star, and holding focus on that promise of light.

while illness contains me, poetry sustains me

Poetry can be used effectively as a stimulus for a more mindful approach in our thinking and communicating. This is more than a psychological band-aid. This is a kind of replenishing self-care we all require in some form, in order to persevere with whatever battles we join – environmental, satirical or otherwise.

Reading recommendations and other feedback are warmly welcomed.

* These are informed by my psychology training and years of clinical experience as a therapist, as well as by my own experience of chronic illness.

The new way home

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Climbing the lane together

September suppertime snuff

out of light children soon scatter 

aggregate under foot rough

and reassuring on the steep way home.

Taste of shank and IPA lingers, oozes 

a stolidity welcome to thighs and calves 

tested in the press on up. Home – 

is somewhere new now stashes a fizz 

of disquiet about its comforts

glances measure the feel of seeing

‘is this ours’ and ‘are we its’ ask eyes, 

furtive. Reaching the peak of the rise 

a startle – unexpected dazzle 

planets, moon, stars

rob blind breaths and hearts 

in ink blots thoughts bloom

– Minoans and Myceneans

populating Greek Islands with dreams

of Olympus each night in astral robes

celestials bent close, beautiful and ruthless 

– childhood holidays at beaches 

bonfires and sand driftwood seats 

night sky ceilings dwarfing oceans

potatoes blanketed in foil, us 

in rugs, in salt and smoke all.

Arrive home to Wednesday evening

someplace new and strange and familiar

where people and dogs walk calm 

through skies beguiled with eyes 

open and legs strengthen fast

to tougher ground. At home amongst paths 

of distant heroes and near stars 

that blossom in darkness

and fork back, towards sandcastles.