centering prayer

late cold wednesday afternoon
it's lunar new year
my own new year?
circle of friends
shalom
and my restless mind

stained glass is holy?
suns gone down, but sky's alight
stained glass holy?
we are holy
we sanctify this place and space
this time
where am I?

in my past
struggling with my future and
returning to
shalom

then escaping into city streets
the night air
where suddenly my heart
and then my mind
return to stillness

© Leah Chang

song phrases

A whole bunch of phrases from some of the songs that frequently haunt me!

Simply Sung!

Summer in the City!
Who wouldn't love it?
I love your dirty water
Boston, you're my home.
Californian that I am
I've got a line on you, Boston
Way down by the river
Still my home
I love that dirty water
What does it take
To win your love for me?
You already have!
You're still my home,
Boston, my home

Hazy Summer Morning

Here's the fourth of my group of "Images." The freeway and the freedom day can be anywhere and almost everywhere for me.

IMAGES — Hazy Summer Morning

Rainbow haze filling the sky
Early, summer, morning,
on the freeway!
Moving into freedom day
one day apart from typical days
Into a day of freedom
golden mist burning off
afternoon following
later on, night
then just another day, new day
Buildings drift by, here and there
a little desert
a lot of sun
It's not too early now
Only nine A.M.!

©Leah Chang

Malibu East

Because I live in California, I frequently amaze people when I tell them about Malibu Beach in the inner city Dorchester neighborhood of Boston. But it's true, it's real and I love it! "Spirit in the Sky" is a song that was popular more than once. I remember hearing it on more than one "California Dreamin'" Malibu East afternoon. And about the Southeast Expressway—the Big Dig's supposed to be replacing it!

IMAGES — Malibu East

Dreamtime in my special spot
Watching the Southeast Expressway from
Malibu Beach, world apart
within the city
Right now: hot sun, hot sand, cool water!
Late afternoon in the city summer
Getting later,
I'm waiting...
'til the traffic wanes!
What a feeling! Peaceful!
What a day at work! Great day!
And the music on the radio?
Spirit in the Sky!
Gonna recommend you...

©copy; Leah Chang

Morning in Nahant

Nahant is a historical town on Boston's North Shore. Long ago I spent a summer working there as an au pair and on this November night I'm posting this "Image" on my poetry blog. Looks as if I mention the city a whole lot!

IMAGES — Morning in Nahant

Still I feel it!
Eight A.M., a Nahant summer morn
looking out at the beach
from the porch
Cool air, I'm wrapped in a sweater
Fog has settled over the beach
sand and water
sky and rocks but
It'll clear
Today the sun will sparkle down
On a world of expectation!
Later my sweater'll come off
instead into tank top and shorts
then onto the beach
This world's away from the city
I'll be back in the city, but not today
Tomorrow morning once more
I'll look out at the beach
from the porch

©Leah Chang

Summer in the CBD

Everyone who knows me and everyone I know knows I form a one-ness with the city, any city!

Everyone knows the city and I form a unity.

IMAGES — Summer in the CBD

That feel of the CBD!
heat feels good
crowds feel great
Downtown on a summer weekday
Whyever I'm here, I need to return
for the tantalizing skyscape
...or is it skyline?
Glorious flowers
sidewalks sizzling
under my
summer sandals
Making me forever a part of this part
of the city
Just for a while?

©Leah Chang

look back now

Tonight I'm posting this on one of my blogs. I wrote it just about two years ago and what I talk about in these words holds for right now, too.

look back now

look back now
way, far, back now
and dream for the life of you
this is a no-work zone
only for today
look ahead
just a few months ahead
what will you choose?
I'll opt for happiness
I'll ask for heaven
I'll journey there
alone if I must
together if I may
dream for the life of me?
and keep my cool
look back
and now
look ahead
look far ahead


©Leah Chang

Dry Rain

Today in San Diego it's finally, finally raining —in fact it's raining all up and down the California Coast! Although I wrote this a while ago as a mood poem rather than a weather poem, today's so extremely wet it'll work for weather as well...

DRY RAIN

It's a dry rain again
and a dry sleep, too
a half sleep
trying to welcome me

I need a welcoming sleep
a remembering rest

Listen to the stillness

It's still a dry sleep
in a dry rain
a quiet half sleep

I need a wakening sleep
A surprising sleep

©Leah Chang

trilogy

trilogy 1 —fog

country fog on an early summer morning
burnt off by a sunny sky
morning fog settling over the city
misting like a gentle rain
afternoon fog rolling up over the boulevard
into our town from the ocean
we're
walking now on the beach
through a ground fog

© Leah Chang

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trilogy 2 — rain

cloudbreak!
remembering places past
a festival of rain on the roof
and on the sidewalks too
sad and sorrowful rain in my heart
it's raining wistful memories
timetouchers touching times past
but morning light still breaks
us
into a day of nostalgia
lunch on main street
endless talk
street puddles
sunshower and
out to the stable to clean the stalls
then up in the organ gallery while the
music of sweelinck rings through all the room
rain is over now
it's night
the sky's full of stars
welcome to your world of dreams

© Leah Chang

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trilogy 3 — santa ana winds

they're back again unsettling the land
making their powerful presence felt
with dry heat
with fast winds
biking along the beach, free style
wind in my hair, free style
no work today
nothing but play, free style
high dry winds
driving me into paradise

© Leah Chang

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