Breathe a River of Light
You are breath's shadow and a river
of light, a remnant of stars and moon
dancing, an expression of bliss housed
in a body, a confluence of cells that will
never come together in the same way again,
one thread in the great web that connects all things
raindrops and pipestone, a dream with memory,
something perfection can’t touch because
perfection doesn’t exist when you are
a joyfully made, messily chaotic
gorgeous thing.
That’s the kind of collision that gives me life. How about you? What beautiful collisions are you experiencing lately?
For those who like attending events, here’s the big list of upcoming stuff, which feels chaotic when I look at it in list form. But I’m certain all of these will be joyfully imperfect gatherings.
On Tuesday, February 28, 2023 from 7:00 pm-8:00 pm CST Live! from North Woods and Waters returns with the popular open-mic format featuring Thomas Wayne King as moderator with a host of storytellers (including me reading from Collisions of Earth and Sky 1) who’ll share their poetry, prose, music, and other artistry.
Live! from North Woods and Waters «Register at this link
On WEDNESDAY, MARCH 15 at 6 PM CT Ellie Roscher and I will be in conversation at Next Chapter Booksellers in St. Paul, MN. Join us for an evening of conversation about 12 Tiny Things and how each of our latest books rose from that joint project.
On Tuesday, March 21 at 7 PM CT, Join Meghan J. Ward and I via Moon Palace Books for a reading and conversation about Collisions of Earth and Sky and Meghan’s latest, Lights to Guide Me Home. This is a virtual event. Please register on Crowdcast here: https://www.crowdcast.io/e/heidi-barr-and-meghan-j-
And a little further out, I’ll be at Cream & Amber in Hopkins (with Emily Brisse!) on Sunday, April 23 at 3pm, and in Dubuque, Iowa at the Shalom Spirituality Center for an evening reading followed by a day of renewal on May 11-12. (more to come on that later!)
And now, here in Minnesota, we wait for the snow. Because according to the news forecast, anyone who leaves their house in the next three days may perish immediately.2
Joy will come
It’s [nearly] that time of year3,
of collective uncurling
days lengthening, sun strengthening–
Spring imminent on the horizon.
It seems all the world
is ready to rejoice,
lamenting a long winter.
(Are we talking about the weather?)
Cold and ice have their place
in the story of the world,
even now, even if rejoicing
seems hard to come by.
Joy will come, it's time is near
especially when winter
is not something to fear.
Winter and spring together are magic.
Maple sap only runs
when warm days keep
company with frozen nights.
If you’ve gotten your hands on a copy of Collisions, when you have a moment, leave a quick review on Amazon. Even if you didn’t buy it there (support your local bookshop!) Word is these reviews help more people find the book. Thank you in advance. (What a weird thing, asking for people to leave reviews. It always feels a little like asking people to please say nice things about you in a public way.) 🤷🤷♀️
It’s definitely important to use discernment and caution when dealing with winter weather, and it’s a dangerous time for those who are housing insecure. However, doesn’t it seem like weather forecasts have gotten rather apocalyptic in the last few years, even when they only call for a couple of inches? I mean, weather has gotten more extreme, to be sure, but I don’t think EVERY forecast that includes precipitation or wind needs a red banner of warning. 🤷🤷♀️🤷♂At any rate, we hunker down and wait to see what happens.
Almost…it is nearly March after all. Even with a blizzard brewing and -11 in the overnight projection, things are shifting toward spring.