Above and below

Why do I love so deeply

yet hold back at times

afraid of drowning

in such tempestual waters?

The surface of love

would seem to be so,

unsure, shifting with the wind,

the only order being chaos.

Yet beneath it all

is the great and mighty sea,

supporting, comforting,

holding every golden moment

safe and gentle.

Cool

within it depths

all is here.

Nothing is lost

to the surface storm

of time.

The illusion is all

when I live here

above love

not sinking down

into its welcoming embrace.

Above

there can be loss

confusion

and heartbreak.

Yet here

is where I must live

and love

laughing and crying

with the wind.

Dancing

and rejoicing

within times

seeming mastery.

A duality

of one

for one is part

of the other.

Life is love

and love is life.

There is no above or below

where all is one.

another perfect day...

____________________________________



________________________________



I wonder
how many perfect days
we could experience,
if only we let ourselves
relax and sink deeply
into the moment.

Is it about the event exactly
or is it that in those moments
we find a perfect connection
with who we really are?

David opens that door
for many of us.
He shows us a beauty
we all feel
deep within our hearts
but which is so many times
masked by fear and sorrow.

He laughs,
and smiles,
and bounces
his way
past our barracades
and lets the light shine
into our very souls.

I found a new family
the first time I experienced
David in concert.
And I found family again
Wed night in Anaheim.

We share
that common bond
of knowing but not knowing
why this angel of a boy
can touch us so deeply.

Truth
needs no explanation.
It merely is.
And the truth is
that David brings love.

He inspires me
to be open
to this miracle of life.
And he challenges me
to be a force for change
and peace in the world.

I was able to tell him
what his music
and example mean to me.
I told him
that he speaks
directly to my soul.

That soul connection
we all feel
not just with David
but with one another.

It is the greatest gift
we can offer.

And so I have
all I need today.
For I have a heart
and a soul
open and ready
to love.

A prayer of Thanksgiving...

_________________________________

_________________________


Dear God

The day is here
and once again I am asked
to put aside my fears
and to embrace this chance.

Help me Lord
to see the truth within me.
Quiet my fearful mind.
Let me focus not on death
but rather upon the continuous
beauty of life about me.

The sparrow.
The light
upon golden leaves
as the wind kisses softly
making a glittering dance
of communion.

No longer alone and afraid
these moments
connect me
to the truth
of who I am.

A part of everything.
Let me sink deeply Lord.
For I long
so much to float
in your Heavenly waters.

Suspended.
Supported.
Touching every smile
every moonbeam
with my innocence
and ancient wisdom.

Within me
lies salvation.
Yet there is no within
and so the truth must lie
everywhere about me.

In everyone
and everything.
I see it!
I smell it!
It fills me
with such sweet longing.

Standing
on the palace balcony.
I rise.
I float.
Not needing to understand.
Not wanting for answers.

For how can there be questions
where all is answered?

Take my heart Lord
in your keeping
as I walk
into this virgin day
full of possibilities
promises and miracles
expectation and acceptance.

Fill me
with patience
surround me
with gratitude.
Lest I fall asleep
again.

I walk out
the awakened one
a part of the world
remembered
the world of your kingdom
the world called
love.

Amen.

Connecting...

____________________________________________

__________________________________




Dear God,

I take this breath
in your service.
Fill me with your fire.
Light me from within.
So that your radiance
shines forth before me.
I am ready
to spread your light
through forgiveness and understanding.
I am ready
to show your love
through acceptance and tolerance.
I am ready
to be your servant
through commitment and focus.
Lead me Lord.
Sing to me
the songs of Heaven.
Show me
the true path before me.
Allow forgiveness
to first be given unto myself.
For I am on this journey
with my brothers and sisters.
Put your love first in my mind.
Let me not be tempted
by selfish thoughts
of fearful separation.
But let me see truly
the angel
behind every face.
Let me see
the burning soul
behind every teardrop.
Let me see
the timelessness
in every smile.
I open before you.
Fill me deeply
so that I might empty myself
out onto the world.
Let love
be my only song.
Let understanding and wisdom
be my guides
as I go out
into another perfectly
glorious day.
Your gift to us.
The present.
Hallelujah!
Amen

the power of prayer...

_______________________________________

__________________________________________

When I write
it is as if
there is a song
already written
within me
and all I need
do is stop
be calm
listen
and let it
sing through
and out of me
onto the paper.

When I write
there is a connection
like fire and water
flowing through me
warming me
until I am
aglo
with the passion
of existence
reaching out
my heart
and breath
and soul
to the love
which comes through
and out of me.

When I write
I hear
the song
of Heaven
I feel
the angels
around me
and I know
that I am safe
and loved
and a part
of something
bigger
than anything
I could ever
imagine.

When I write
I am home.

_____________________________________

Dear God

I thank you
for this divine
breath.
It moves so deeply
through me.
An instrument
of compassion.
As it fills me
so too fill my heart.
That I might
empty Your love
onto the world.
Let every breath
be my gift.
For I am here
in your service.

Amen

__________________________

Finding life between the heartbeats.

_______________________________________________



_______________________________________________

Writing and music
and laughter and sorrow.
Christmas and celebration
and birth and death.
Life is showing its seasons.
Here in October
I am given the gift of Christmas
from David A. a bit early.
It reminds me of the birth
at a time when I am mourning
the loss of a life.

I am so thankful
for every experience in my life.
They all color
the palet of my heart.

___________________________________________________________________

Pause

I have found
that it is only
when I am forced
to stop and ask
for help
that the answers
come to me.

They are there
resting
in the space
between
expectation
and regret.

As of late
life has opened
a way to
stillness.
Grief
can open the door
as can joy
and laughter.

So as I grieve
I also feel
my heart opening
and ready
for the miracle
given to me
whenever
I pause
and surrender.

____________________________________________________________________

This is the answer I received when I asked for help.

Being
Robert Montgomery



Don’t think. Just be.
All pain comes from thinking.
It separates us from life
placing experience in the mind
rather than the soul-body-mind.
Life here must be shared.

Yet spirit rules
even where it has no wish to.
It will always yield to the mind
for the spirit has no agenda.
It exists outside of time.
It has no use of fear.

The mind must rule to survive.
Such is its delusion.
A prisoner of time and space.
Fear is its greatest ally.
For this sword keeps us earthbound.
Here we can lose, be hurt, and die.

Even religion has given itself
to the mind’s control.
How else could we have imagined
a punishing God
or a hell of retribution?
The mind creating a God in its image.

We truly worship a false idol.
We bow down to the laws of loss and decay.
We praise judgement and damnation.
Never before has the wood of the cross been so strong.
Humanity nailed to a realm of fear.

Yet spirit resides here.
It sparkles within everything.
Unconcerned with the laws
of space and time.
True freedom- free dominion.

The challenge
is to cherish the mind
yet not to exalt it.
If befriended, it can do us no harm.
“Love your enemies, and they are enemies no longer.”

Give yourself the gift of stillness.
as often as is possible throughout the day.
Take a moment
one heartbeat to connect
with the truth of spirit within you.

In this way
you will begin to lay a foundation
of timelessness within time.
Creating a bridge over which you cross
from moment to moment.

With discipline and faith
you will begin to see
that your true life
exists within these moments
between the heartbeats.

You have felt them
so many times before
yet didn’t understand.

Caught in the beauty
of a golden sunrise,
suspended in the innocent laughter
of happy children,
transfixed by the magic
of a Christmas tree.

These are the moments
outside of time
where the soul reveals its secrets.

Not going anywhere
yet resting
in the Holy connection
between thought.

The mind then becomes the friend
which guides us back to the bridge.
Not thinking.
Just being.

the wheel turns...

_______________________________________________

___________________________________________________

A few days ago
I was sitting
on my bed
with my dog
and I thought
to myself
remember this
moment
because it is
perfect
and it will
not last.

It is that
understanding
that nothing
lasts forever
which allows
us to move
forward
and outward
into more
life.

Today
I lost
a friend
and the grief
is like water
flowing through
and around me
and just as
that moment
of perfect
peace
I knew would
flow through
and past me
so too
will this.

It is
the gift
of surrender
when we
have
no other
options
when the pain
is too much
and God
is our only
salvation.

Tonight
I will be
one with
my grief
allowing it
to flow down
and through me
cleansing me
leaving me
fresh
and ready
for the return
of peace

It is
the heartbeat
of humanity
I feel tonight
playing out
the dance
of life.

_______________________________________



___________________________________________

For my friend Jack

I wonder
about time
and this life
running before me
like a river
wild and free
powerful
and unpredictable
asking how
can it mean anything
when every day
melts
into yesterday
revealing
tomorrow's dreams
as today's adventure.

my heart
has embraced
so many shining
breaths
of eternity
tearing me
open
and leaving me
raw
and broken
open
to the next embrace
crying
for the loss
of innocence
praying
for the wheel
to stop.

yet how
can sunlight
be held
in a fist of panic
how can a laugh
linger longer
even as the next breeze
takes it away
leaving only echoes
of happiness
memories unreliable
misty and vague
as time rolls on
the illusion
that I move through
this epic story.

glimpses
of beauty
heartbeats
of perfection
a gentle glance
a knowing smile
these are the threads
which weave
the tapestry I wear
about me
warming me now
on this clear cool
autumn eve
a cloak of memory
promise
of a warrior's dance
in humble wonder
of this miracle
called life.

ready to be an instrument...

______________________________________________

______________________________________

Held
Robert Montgomery


Gentle morning...
I am calm
and focused...
Remembering
the lessons
I have been
reminded of.

Ready to be
an instrument
of God's
healing
on Earth.

The day sings
the song of waking...
Birds in joyous chorus
to the Heavens
above.

I drink
from the font
of eternal Truth...
the water
the sweetest...
coolest
and thirst
quenching.

Who can find
any agenda here
but God's?

His hands...
hold us.
His arms...
wrap about us.
His voice...
leads us...

Back
to what
we would
remember.

Here
in this
moment
of eternity.

I stand
once again
at Heaven's
door.

Asking...
for instruction.
Asking...
for guidance.
Asking...
for acceptance.

And I know
that all
is given
the moment
I am
willing
to remember.

Opening the Window

______________________________________

_______________________________________

I had a brief moment in college
when I thought,
"I am going to write poetry."
and so I did.

I bought a journal
and I sat down to write
and out came a voice
I had never heard before.

It was the voice
which was always there
in my times of joy
and of sorrow.

It was the voice
of the morning mist
and the caress
of the afternoon breeze.

When I stopped
to listen
I could so clearly hear
the beauty of life.

Heartbreakingly
simple really
all I needed to do
was ask.

We all have
a poet within
waiting for us
to give it permission
to speak.

This is one of the few pieces
I wrote back in 1985
when I let the window open
and gave myself the opportunity
to sing with my heart.

I read it
25 years later
and it is as if
I wrote it yesterday.

___________________________________

_______________________________________

the day has come
Robert Montgomery

a private morning
I rise to starlight
flecks of light
clinging to the last moments
of night.

Air renewed
cool. crisp
lying ready
for the use of new day.

Where is the sun?
this yellow giant
who fires the world
in ageless splendor.

Mighty ruler
sleeping still
I set out,
in anticipation
of his glorious assent.

Innocence,
purity
simple solitude
the street so barren
yet soon to be trodden
by foot and bike
its cargo now slumbering
behind shades of gray

and I alone
sharing silence
a private time

orange, yellow
the coloring of dawn
spread quickly behind mountains
hiding

it reaches outwards
brighter, brighter
until all is drenched
golden, glowing

the day has come...


Nov 1985

Footnote: I wrote this piece after a morning run. It was a glorious run indeed.

the river calls

Trust
Robert Montgomery


Awakened
to the day
Yesterday ringing
through my head.
Will I make the most
of these gifts?
Every heartbeat
heaven sent...
drumming out a call
to action.
Calming a mind
which plays the tapes:
"You must do this!"
"You should do that!"
Regret and guilt
are the motivation
of a world still sleeping.
I listen
to the song within...
a river
taking me
through chaos
to paradise...
homecoming.
And here
we all meet
again
for the touching
of souls
is eternal...
a flame unwavering
in the fiercest storm.

Heaven and Earth...living in both worlds.

_________________________________________

________________________________________________

Much of my writing
speaks to homecoming.
It speaks to the call
our souls hear
above and beyond
this physical life.

When I feel most at peace
I lose my connection
to time and space
and am just
simply present.

We are spirit
trying to live
within a physical
realm.

And so we are faced
with the paradox
of life and death,
heaven and earth,
love and fear.

We are constantly
pulled between
the extremes of life
trying to find
a balance between.

I am not sure
we will ever
achieve balance
for to find balance
you must be thrown off of it
from time to time.

For me
life is like the tides,
like the seasons,
like the breath.

It is always
changing
and renewing.
It is a gift
of rebirth
in every moment.

I know
that joy
will pass
and so to
will sorrow.

It is this dance
between the spirit
and the physical
which is life.

________________________________________________

________________________________________________

Above and Below
Robert Montgomery

Why do I love so deeply
yet hold back at times
afraid of drowning
in such tempestual waters?

The surface of love
would seem to be so,
unsure, shifting with the wind,
the only order being chaos.

Yet beneath it all
is the great and mighty sea,
supporting, comforting,
holding every golden moment
safe and gentle.

Cool
within it depths
all is here.
Nothing is lost
to the surface storm
of time.

The illusion is all
when I live here
above love
not sinking down
into its welcoming embrace.

Above
there can be loss
confusion
and heartbreak.

Yet here
is where I must live
and love
laughing and crying
with the wind.

Dancing
and rejoicing
within times
seeming mastery.

A duality
of one
for one is part
of the other.

Life is of love
and love is life.
There is no above or below
where all is one.

Radiant...

______________________________________________

________________________________________


wheel
Robert Montgomery


do I live on a line?
or is it a wheel?
here to there
or all from a center?
radiating.

to walk a line
leaves me
unstable...
neither here nor there
past, future
all moving...
no connection.

the wheel gives me
a center
and as I turn
past, present, future
all connect
like ripples
in a still summer lake.


I live on a wheel.

Pictures from life...

_____________________________________

______________________________________

______________________________________

__________________________________________

_________________________________________

_________________________________________

_________________________________________

Why?

_____________________________________

__________________________________


Because
Robert Montgomery


freedom
free dominion
the domain
of the free
freedom

I am writing because ...
I know that there is something ...
wanting for a voice within me...
always there ...
waiting to be released...
patient and insistent...
furious and gentle...
builder and destroyer...
it is the me of the ages...
this pallet
richly stained ...
by the eruption of Life...
too long away...
I linger here...
timeless moment...
sure to be swallowed...
again in times delusion....
the focus obscured...
until the crystal...
shines clear again...
and I wonder...
have I been away?...
so much like a dream...
these times away...
that I scarcely notice...
the flow...
until I am away again...
and then it is the longing...
to return...
which aches within me...
irregular heart...
yearning to beat...
with the drums of Heaven...

I am writing because...
this key has been given me...
I know what it opens...
I see the garden before me...
so many friends...
blessed kindred...
beckon me home...
I write to remember...
the key in my hand...
I write to share...
this ecstasy...
of acceptance...
and total knowing...
returning to that...
which was never forgotten...
by the heart...
beating its ancient call...
to the truth...
virgin within us...
and as I write...
I am here..
amidst Heaven's sigh...
peaceful union...
connecting me...
golden thread...
stretching into eternity...
I write to share...
I write to create...
I write to sing ...
the song of homecoming...
to all who would hear.

the memory of peace...

_______________________________________________

_____________________________________________

Remembering Peace
Robert Montgomery

Oh peace…
when I remember you
life slows to a heartbeat.

Breath…
feeding my soul
smiling through me.

You give me
such blissful
surrender.

Deep,
gentle,
ancient rest.

Time forgotten
as illusion floats away
on the surface
of your eternal comfort.

“I rest in God”
here where meaning
is meaningless.

Oh peace
feed me the mana
for which I hunger.

Sweet homecoming
of stillness.

adrift
yet connected
through the gift
of your tranquil waters.


________________________________________________

Breath of Heaven

____________________________________________

_______________________________________

Sentinel
Robert Montgomery


Why is unity so fleeting?
To touch the face of God completes us.
As is every cell, every breath, every thought,
rests safely in His loving embrace.

So natural it seems to remain here
in the bosom of acceptance.
All of life's mysteries revealed.
Wonder and gratitude flowing.

What pulls me away?
Watching from outside the window.
A beggar at the feast.
My invitation in my hand.

I see clearly the doors guardian.
Armored sentinel, fears companion.
Its face hidden behind
layers of denial and regret.

Easy to fear the unknown.
Easy to forget my Savior's promise.
Here in the icy illusion
which is my chosen reality.

Yet in a breath of Heaven
my God reaches out to me yet again.
I can see the guardian's face
and clearly it is my own.

His armor of separation falls away
in one glittering remembrance.
"Welcome" is his message.
Acceptance and understanding are His promises.

I have always been here.
Honored guest at the feast.
My brothers and sisters about me.
Singing the chorus of salvation.

rising with the dawn...

______________________________________________________

___________________________________________


Daybreak
Robert Montgomery


Quiet mind.
Don’t think.
Just feel this breath
moving up
and through.
Gentle peace
rising and falling
bringing smiles
of release
and blissful surrender.

All talked out.
Excused away
yet here again.
Always here
asking
waiting
releasing
promising.

At the beginning.
If I could only
live in the dawn.
I am at my best
at daybreak.
My mind clear.
My heart focused.
Distraction yet to touch
my Holy mind.

How to live here
yet not be of here?

finding the teacher within...

__________________________________

____________________________________

Autumn Morn
Robert Montgomery


I am so filled
with the joy of living
my heart singing out
on this cool autumn morn.
My heart belongs
to every child.

The vision still lingers
in theirs minds.
Memories
of a Heaven...
flashes of Utopian
perfection.

They battle
the dampening
by the world
of thought.
The wisdom
of the physical.

"What you see is truth."
not what you feel within.

I seek to reveal
their beauty...
the untouched elegance
of their souls.

To teach
is to demonstrate
and so this is my journey
as well.
The children teaching me
as I teach them.

Their wisdom
ancient
in its simplicity.
Their innocent questions
shaking the world
to its foundations.

Opening
to the dream
living it
with every breath
creating family
amongst strangers.

We look
into the deep
stillness
of each others souls
and see
ourselves.

And so we become
one again...
We unite
in understanding...
all of us
children.

All of us playing
as on an endless
summer day
drinking in
the brilliant warmth
of home.

another day begins...

___________________

________________


elixir
Robert Montgomery


already
and finally
today
where are you really?
anywhere?
is there really anywhere
to go?

for how to move
when you
are always
here?

Questions...
as I begin
yet another day
full of possibility
and mystery.

One would think
that people
could not wait
for the dawn
in excitement
for the promise
of tomorrow.

We live
such patterned
existence's...
routine moving us
through familiar steps.

and so we fall
asleep
to the wonder
of the breath
of the glory of light
sound
and feeling.

every moment
uniquely
crafted
never the same
yet all part
of the tapestry.

I drink
this moment...
sparkling elixir
of heaven.

It expands
within me
warming this vessel
to God's
purpose.

Happiness
rises within me
up
from my toes
and out
of my head.

His gift...
to me.
He wants
so very much
for me to learn
through joy.

and so
with His trust
in my heart
I step out
into another
day.

thanking a friend...Namaste

______________________________________

__________________________________________