Mythos & Marginalia

2015 – 2025: a decade of days

a daily breath

  • what mothers do

    It is not past tense.
         I have a mother.
            How can I say
    she is no longer
    with me
          when I feel her
    light
                 most days,
    but especially
                         today.
          It is more than 
    DNA.
                Everything
    I know about
             compassion,
      forgiveness, and 
                generosity,
    are
    learned behaviors.
                        I had a 
    wonderful teacher.
    Still I make 
    mistakes and they
    are my own.
    I believe 
                  she would
               understand.
                             It is 
     what mothers do.

    © 2016 j.g. lewis

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  • snail mail

    A note from afar, a note from
    a friend, something in the mail
    that’s not a bill, or a reminder,
    or a pizza menu.
    Correspondence. A surprise,
    something personal and
    appreciated. 
    Snail mail, you get less and less 
    in this age of instant. 
    Too many people are too busy 
    to drop a note to let you know 
    what’s going on.
    It takes time.
    Of course, an e-mail is immediate 
    but it does not have the same 
    effect as a letter, or it will get lost 
    in all that clutter and confusion 
    in your inbox. 
    Snail mail is an unexpected smile.
    Send a letter to someone today, 
    just because. It may take a while 
    to get there, but some words are 
    worth waiting for.

    © 2019 j.g. lewis

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  • trying

    I am trying.
    to look for colour
    in a black and white world
    where everything seems 
    grey, muted, tired, 
    or threadbare.
    I’m trying to be optimistic.
    Even the tulips are trying 
    to shed some light over 
    the cool, wet earth. 
    Even they have 
    taken time to bloom.
    Even I took my time 
    to notice.

    © 2020 j.g. lewis

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  • imperative

    Soft voices. Gentle expression. 
    Grief fastened to each whisper, 
    ever the sentiment.

    This is not the first time.

    Sympathy flows, reservoir of
    emotion. Kindness embraced.

    Soothing words 
    the placebo effect, for nothing 
    replaces what you know.

    Nothing exists now 
    to compare it to.

    This is not the last time.

    Ever the thought, ever 
    the imperative. Before, of course, 
    we had the time.

    © 2018 j.g. lewis

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  • global warning

    © 2021 j.g. lewis

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