Nanci Barnes
The Poetry of Rumi

Joyful for no reason,
I want to see beyond this existence.
You open your lips, laughing.
I think of a design for that opening.


The Substance you Taste - Hafiz

The sky wheel turns us into dawn
And fills creation again with color

Let it be our weakness, this thirst-love
For the world, the sun coming up
Like red-gold being poured!

The potter's wheel moves,
And shapes change quickly.

Let the jar I am becoming
Turn into your wine cup.
Fill me with your love
For being awake.

I'm no hypocrite renunciate.
Call me this delicious substance
You taste when you create new beauty.

Be strong - all beings!!
Work here inside time,
Where we fail, catch hold
Again and climb


The Poetry of Rumi

Today, like every other day, we wake up empty
And frightened. Don't open the door to the study and begin reading
Take down and instrument

Let the beauty we love be what we do.
There are hundreds of ways to kneel and kiss the ground.