Poetry – Day 30

April 30, 2026 / still a dreamer / 2 Comments

Today is the last day of National Poetry Month. We leave quietly with a poem by Mary Oliver.

Photo: Leeloo The First/Pexels

Today

Today I’m flying low and I’m
not saying a word
I’m letting all the voodoos of ambition sleep.

The world goes on as it must,
the bees in the garden rumbling a little,
the fish leaping, the gnats getting eaten.
And so forth.

But I’m taking the day off.
Quiet as a feather.
I hardly move though really I’m traveling
a terrific distance.

Stillness. One of the doors
into the temple.

Mary Oliver, 2012

Why Do I Share Books with You?

April 29, 2026April 30, 2026 / still a dreamer / 4 Comments

Basically, because getting new books is exciting for me, and Still A Dreamer is about sharing things that I find worthwhile and valuable. Books – and reading – hold a place of importance in my life, and I just went to a huge book sale!

Maybe because I hope to inspire you, and you are ready for some great suggestions. (in my opinion, of course.)

In the top photo, are 6 books I found and purchased from my carefully curated list of 34 books. Celeste Ng’s book is not the original from my list, but a worthwhile swap.

In the photo above are some extras I found – 3 by authors I know and like, a fictional biography enthusiastically recommended to me by a young woman at the sale, and one for a friend.

The total haul? $22.00. You can’t beat that if you’re a reader.

The love of reading was engendered in me from a very, very young age, around 1 or 2 years old, for which I am deeply grateful. I quickly found that books were magic – they took you places you’d never imagined, taught you all your little mind could grasp with joy. Books laid down the path for a lifetime of curiosity, enjoyment, learning, and inspiration in so many ways.

See anything you like? I hope I’ve offered some interesting possibilities. BTW, if you have kids, and they see you reading, you’re already an inspiration for them to develop a lifelong habit of doing the same .

If you are not currently an active reader, or feel it’s too late to learn, find the book that will get your mind lit up and jump in. It’s never too late.

p.s. The day after the book sale, not having found the few “must-haves” on my list, I decided to buy 6 more on Thrift Books. I think I’m set for quite a while now! Stay tuned ….

Poetry – Day 22

April 22, 2026April 30, 2026 / still a dreamer / 5 Comments

National Poetry Month continues, and this poem honors Rainer Maria Rilke.

Photo: Vincent Delsuc/Pexels

INITIATION

Whoever you are, go out into the evening,
leaving your room, of which you know each bit;
your house is the last before the infinite,
whoever you are.
Then with your eyes that wearily
scarce lift themselves from the worn-out door-stone
slowly you raise a shadowy black tree
and fix it on the sky: slender, alone.
And you have made the world (and it shall grow
and ripen as a word, unspoken, still).
When you have grasped its meaning with your will,
then tenderly your eyes will let it go …

~ Rainer Maria Rilke, 1906

Poetry – Day 12

April 12, 2026April 17, 2026 / still a dreamer / Leave a comment

April is National Poetry Month; the second poem posted. I am so moved by the way some people are able to share their feelings through words so simply, yet words which linger so intently in my heart, as if I had invited them in to stay.

I Am Offering This Poem

I am offering this poem to you,
since I have nothing else to give.
Keep it like a warm coat
when winter comes to cover you,
or like a pair of thick socks
the cold cannot bite through,

I love you,

I have nothing else to give you,
so it is a pot full of yellow corn
to warm your belly in winter,
it is a scarf for your head, to wear
over your hair, to tie up around your face,

I love you,

Keep it, treasure this as you would
if you were lost, needing direction,
in the wilderness life becomes when mature;
and in the corner of your drawer,
tucked away like a cabin or hogan
in dense trees, come knocking,
and I will answer, give you directions,
and let you warm yourself by this fire,
rest by this fire, and make you feel safe

I love you,

It’s all I have to give,
and all anyone needs to live,
and to go on living inside,
when the world outside
no longer cares if you live or die;
remember,

I love you.

–Jimmy Santiago Baca

Please read about this poet, Jimmy Santiago Baca, to learn about his background and the life that inspired his writing.

Photo by Order Luck/Pexels – @outxforder