Today my first born turns 18 and I share an old poem of simple advice written some time ago.

What I would share

You cannot always be generous,
sometimes there are things that you are not ready to share,
things you must for a time hold on to.
There are times when you feel the insecurity of scarcity
and cannot believe in abundance.
You cannot always be generous,
but please,
don’t be mean.

You cannot always be genuine,
sometimes you do not know yourself, your mind,
you fear the light is too bright for your true colors,
the cards too clearly staked against you.
Your courage lets you down,
you cannot always be genuine,
but please,
don’t be false.

You cannot always be kind,
sometimes you feel repelled, repulsed,
sometimes you have to turn away, turn your back and walk.
Sometimes your soul is small and scared,
you haven’t any strength to spare.
You cannot always be kind,
but please,
don’t be cruel.

Dhaka 2013

Mid monsoon

From immobilized traffic, observe the angle of falling rain,
slow spread of green across buildings,
puddles, lakes, trees, algae, potholes, weeds,
mold, moss, leaves.

Dhaka in mid monsoon,
as always –
but more than ever
a battle between growth and decay.

Dhaka 2014

This week’s poem tries to capture my current and slightly ongoing experience of jet lag…

Jet lag

Changing reality for reality,
lonely passenger on hours that pass in the night.
Dull ache of fuzzy-edged sleep,
sand-laced sight.
Pounding heartbeats wake for fight or flight.
Hours too slow, too fast,
internal clockwork creaking to adjust
to faces, places,
out of context dreams,
confusing here with there,
now with then.

Shake out your pillow and your limbs,
step into morning light.
A day or two and we’re fit to fight.

Dhaka, 2014

As my annual summer holiday draws to an end I look back on weeks of family time as warm and intense as the Danish summer sun. This weeks poem dwells on those feelings.

Family

.

Habitual headaches,
recurring responsibilities,
chronic arguments,
sibling rivalries
and childish roles you can’t avoid.

All those complications.
How much easier
to be unbound,
to live without attachment,

yet, as we cheerfully
hug farewell, in tears and laughter,
as sister, mother, daughter,
I know a life without ties
is as sad as a life without freedom.

Nyborg, Denmark 2014

Mit første digt på dansk, inspireret af min kloge mand.

My first ever danish poem – inspired by the wise words of my husband.

At sove

Når man sover
sover man godt.
Hvis man har sovet godt
har man rigtig sovet.
Hvis man har sovet darligt
har man ikke sovet
nok.
Så skal man sove mere,
og sørge for at sove
godt.

Nyborg 2014

.
Sleeping

When you sleep
you sleep well.
If you have slept well
you’ve slept
enough.
If you’ve slept poorly
you haven’t slept
enough.
Then you have to sleep more,
and make sure to sleep
well.

Nyborg 2014