{ L E O N I E . W I S E }

wow. thanks. to all of you who ordered a copy of the book.

i sold out of the first print run (20 copies) in three days.

THREE. DAYS.

i am humbled. flabbergasted. spinning.

and just a little worried. whatiftheydon’tlikeitwhenitturnsup?

and… for anyone who would still like to buy a copy – or 2 or 3…. – i have listed another 20 in my etsy store.

from my cracked-wide-open heart to all of yours, thanks just doesn’t seem big enough.

arohanui
x

it’s not about being published;
though that does bring some degree of satisfaction,
feathering my ego’s nest with soft white down.

it’s not a desire to be noticed;
all this visibility often makes me want to hide, sneak away
and pretend it’s someone else that does this.

it’s not about what you think of it,
though i’m glad if it speaks to you, or if you recognise
some of your life in the words.

it is about the overwhelming urge to write, write, write
thoughts scamper about, teasing my pen, mocking my hand
for not being able to keep up.

it’s about the feeling of expressing in short form
a feeling, a snapshot,
a life being lived outside of the page.

© 2010. leonie wise

just cos i’m goin’ thru shit times doesn’t mean i need rescuin’
do you ever stop to think that hugging might make you feel better
but that i just want to be left the fuck alone to deal with this
and that i need to make my way out in my own sweet time?

please stay though, just don’t fucking touch me
whatever i’m feelin’ is likely to discharge
giving us both a shock and breakin’ my concentration
just sit there okay? hold me. but only with your eyes & heart
and not in any kinda physical way.

and don’t say you understand. because how could you?
you’re not me. like i’m not you, so kick me if i ever say
“oh honey, i know how you feel” because how can i?
you have your shit. i have mine. we connect. but our shit doesn’t overlap…

yeah, it might seem like the same shit sometimes (and possibly it is)
but thinking one of us can fix the other is so totally bullshit and all ego.
i can’t fix you any more than you can fix me.
and what if it’s not something that needs fixin’ anyway?

so yeah, stay. i’m just workin’ through my stuff.
it might not look pretty from the outside
but trust me, it makes everything better
and more beautiful. i just have to live through it.

© 2010 leonie wise

my first collection of poetry is finished and available for purchase.

am i surprised? more than you could ever know…

now, i’m off to celebrate with a nice cold glass of new zealand pinot gris

poet’s road. found by accident on the way to somewhere else.

haiku(ish) fun
he’s won all the toys
but got no-one to play with
hollow victory

a pair of lovely shoes. left outside by a wheelie bin, hackney.

tea & cake. an excellent combination

lovely sugar lumps

food & travel (& photography). three of my loves.

tea rooms, stoke newington. quite good actually. polaroid sx-70, 600 film (i think)

my real name is leoniewise
yesterday my name was plague of the bewildered poet
today my name is cherry-blossom laughter falling
tomorrow my name will be smell of freshly polished silverware
my secret name is glittering mermaid lazing in a clawfoot bath
you can call me heavy warm treacle, pollinating the air with my humming

okay, your turn…
what’s your name today?
what can i call you…?

i am the wind screaming across the canterbury plains
i am the untranslatable language of dolphins
i am undiscovered life-forms at the bottom of the ocean
i am the last cookie in the jar
i am all those words you wish you’d never spoken aloud
i am the arms of time, pulling us all a little closer to death
i am in two places at the same time
i am the five pound note that went through the wash in a pocket of your jeans
i am one left shoe and it’s accompanying shoe-lace
i am the blanket draped over your legs for warmth
i am the sun kissing your face
i am the unexplored places in the universe
i am understanding
i am all the books yet to be published
i am the memorial to all we have lost
i am the cotton-wool-soft feel of your lips touching mine
i am the pathway, worn by travellers
i am jumbled the sentence
i am ; used incorrectly
i am nonsense rhymes read aloud to a confused audience
i am the feeling you get when you skip instead of walking
i am the poet with writer’s block
i am the pre-dawn fisherman
i am burnt toast
i am the arms of your lover
i am a poem waiting to be read
i am what’s waiting on the other side of the silence
i am a borrowed library book
i am lost

“i want to write about faith”
i hear
your
earnest words
repeatedly
in my mind…
burrowing
into the hardened
parts of me -
reminding me
of an urgent
conversation
we are destined
to have,
as soon
as i stop
and
allow
it to happen.

this day
is
my heart:
beating
in time
with yours;
where faith
washes over me,
like
sparkling
winter sunshine
glistens
on the wet grass.

this faith
is
my faith:
the bellbirds call
as dawn breaks;
the ocean waves
crashing
endlessly
upon the shoreline,
these hands
folded
in prayer.

this faith
is
my faith:
unspoken words;
wisdom
of the ages
living
through me,
ribbons
of light
caressing
the darkness.

this life
is
my faith:
a place
without walls;
with
deep grooves
of
kindness
and welcoming
spaces
beckoning me
from
beyond
the threshold.

© 2009 leonie faith wise

between the folds

she bravely scrapes dust from her hard outer shell,
showing celadon layers of softness and grace,
between comforting folds live both laughter & sorrow,
bonded together as inseparable friends.
she’s come a long way to be here in this moment,
and her journey’s a long way from reaching it’s end…
the friendships she gathers down wandering pathways
add shine to this garment she wears of her life.
she is learning that stillness is as essential as action;
that silence belongs here as much as the words,
every death to the old speaks a new YES to life,
fuels the fires of desire for living her truth.
deep in the folds, there’s a wellspring, a knowing, and
she’s learning to let go, and trust in the process -
deep in the folds is where healing commences,
her own sacred medicine the best balm for her soul.

© 2009 leonie faith wise

(inspired by my life, this community , and these words)

{ for darlene’s december views }