Pine Forest, by Gabriela Mistral
Meditation
A pine forest may be a lurking darkness or a realm of quiet comfort. The grandeur of the pine forest is its apparent immobility. The tree will not bend down to greet us, but equally surely the tree is fixed in place. This poem by Gabriela Mistral is a walk in the pine forest, a journey into the unknown which is nonetheless a reassurance of eternal afternoons. How is it possible to feel both vulnerable and unassailable? What threatens us may yet be the gentle arms that bear us forward in love. Can what is unfamiliar be a source of strength? Can a wound be a blessed spring? What shift of perspective allows us to see the forest instead of the trees? Let us go now into the forest.
Todd Breyfogle, Denver, Colorado
