By its very nature, a poem invites us to slow down and pay attention. When we approach a poet’s purposeful choice of words–and the pauses between them–with intention, curiosity, and openness, meaning emerges. Sometimes we are engulfed and impacted by a poem’s felt truth. Other times a poem will take its time with us, and we find that its meaning unfolds in layers and unsuspecting moments, leaving us touched in unexpected ways.

The poets in this collection inspire us to treasure the breath, celebrate nature’s abundance, and appreciate all the miraculous everyday gifts that surround us. With this collection we invite you to savor slowing down, even if only for a few precious moments. Make a practice of entering with reverence the space that each of these poems creates. Arrive fully into the invitation. Open all of your senses. Enjoy!

A doe stands still in the middle of a grass pathway framed by green trees and foliage

Right Here
by Dane Anthony
Stop moving. Stand in
one place – this place.
Breathe slowly; in, then out. Repeat.

Repeat again. Let your
shoulders sink and relax. Unclench…
Read the full poem

A pine tree backlit by the rising sun with a pine forest, mountaintops and blue sky in the background

The Cure for It All
by Julia Fehrenbacher
Go gently today, don’t hurry
or think about the next thing. Walk
with the quiet trees, can you believe
how brave they are—how kind? Model your life
after theirs. Blow kisses
at yourself in the mirror…
Read the full poem

View of a dark blue ocean with waves across the center.

Ocean Love
by Carolyn Chilton Casas
Let me not forget to notice
all the seasons of the ocean
with an awe-filled soul—
equally winter’s pounding surf
and summer’s gentle swells.
Every bay a changing alchemy…
Read the full poem

Wheat field glowing in golden sunlight

Let Us Gather in a Flourishing Way
by Juan Felipe Herrera
Let us gather in a flourishing way
with sunluz grains abriendo los cantos
que cargamos cada día
en el young pasto nuestro cuerpo
para regalar y dar feliz perlas pearls
of corn flowing árboles de vida en las cuatro esquinas…
Read the full poem

a wooden hourglass sits in the sand with blue sand slowly trickling from top to bottom

In the Middle
by Barbara Crooker
of a life that’s as complicated as everyone else’s,
struggling for balance, juggling time.
The mantle clock that was my grandfather’s
has stopped at 9:20; we haven’t had time
to get it repaired. The brass pendulum is still,
the chimes don’t ring. One day you look out the window…
Read the full poem

A cluster of peaches ripening on a peach tree

From Blossoms
by Li-Young Lee
From blossoms comes
this brown paper bag of peaches
we bought from the boy
at the bend in the road where we turned toward
signs painted Peaches…
Read the full poem

fisherman at the end of the day in the yellow sunset light

Watching the Rower
by Andrea Potos
Oh to find that still surface,
the glide of silk and silence,
sun lit along the oars,
the mind in the arms, threading
the seams of each moment.
Read the full poem

reeds in the water beneath a brilliant orange blue and purple sunset sky

A Lazy Day
by Paul Laurence Dunbar
The trees bend down along the stream,
Where anchored swings my tiny boat.
The day is one to drowse and dream
And list the thrush’s throttling note.
When music from his bosom bleeds
Among the river’s rustling reeds…
Read the full poem

forest mist amongst silhouetted trees with orange and yellow leaves

Woods
by Noelle Oxenhandler
I wish to grow dumber,
to slip deep into woods that grow blinder
with each step I take,
until the fingers let go of their numbers
and the hands are finally ignorant as paws.
Unable to count the petals…
Read the full poem

bright yellow lemons ripening on a tree

Ode to Lemons
by Michelle Courtney Berry
Today,
the sun-glazed
bag of lemons
adorning the white counter
became
in my imagination…
Read the full poem

lake framed by golden leaves

Sabbaths 1998, VII
by Wendell Berry
There is a place you can go
where you are quiet,
a place of water and the light

on the water. Trees are there,
leaves, and the light…
Read the full poem

The Once Invisible Garden
by Laura Foley
How did I come to be
this particular version of me,
and not some other, this morning
of purple delphiniums blooming,
like royalty—destined
to meet these three dogs…
Read the full poem

Morning Poem
by Todd Davis
Blackberries hang in the darkest
creases of the trellis, each dimpled
to bursting. The black-eyed Susans
are mostly black, their yellow tresses
already rotted. Goldfinches wander
the air, meditate upon the cone flower’s…
Read the full poem

Reflection Questions

  • What opens up when you make yourself fully available to an experience?
  • How might you invite more savoring into your days?
  • Where, or when, can you create a bit of space to truly slow down?

We invite you to share your reflections in the comments.

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Presence
Collections Poetry