These things I know to be true

To my beautiful sons
I hope these words find you
When you are most in need

And I am not there to 

Guide and comfort you

That their truth provides light

When the dusk obscures your path

Of these things I am sure
Love is not enough without honesty
Dreams are sacred
Regret is a slow poison
Trust in yourself is a practice
Happiness must be shared and never hoarded

Life is now so live it

I will forever be with you

Further contemplation on the odu Osa Ogunda ( Osa Kuleya )

I do not journal
The thoughts and ideas
That have taken roost
In my head
Instead I paint poems
Of birds in flight
Soaring across the
Expanse of my
Imagination
High above the trees
Observing the routines of men
The clothing changes
But the faces remain the same
Across centuries
Still struggling with
Life’s biggest questions
Slowing inching towards
Enlightenment
Even if it never comes
Only the raven knows
The secrets
Enlightenment does not exist
Time is the mind killer
Life is now
Live
Free

Listen to this while reading: 

Contemplation on the Odu Ogbe Oturupon ( Ogbe Tumako )

The depravity that can grow in the 

Human soul

Is often matched by the ability to

Dissociate from it
Thankfully
It is also matched by our

Capacity for love and kindness
What defines us as

Human

Is our ability to

Choose

To listen to while reading/contemplating:  

A new contemplation on the Odu Ofun Meji

We are all
Manifestations of our shifting perspective
Gathering data along the way
Changing priorities like
Clothes with the turning leaves
Nomadic shape shifters
Moving through time
To parts known and unknown
I will never be who I was
I can not know who I will become
Until one day
All that is left
Is a memory
In the minds of
Others
Flickering
As it too
Fades into
Eternity

Written to "The wanderer" by Max Richter

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-lmCgFA-GQs

Further contemplation on the odu Iwori Ogunda

I looked for god in books
But did not find it
I looked for god in people
But it was not there
I looked for god in stones
But they lay motionless
I looked for god in ceremonies 
But I could not see it
God eluded me
At every turn lay another
Dead end
Another unfulfilled 
Promise
Empty and without 
Answers
I sat alone
To watch the setting sun
Waiting for the darkness
To envelope me
As I looked into the universe 
Darkness gave way to a
Sea of sparkling lights
Dancing across the sky
It was only then
Confronted with the 
Insignificance of my existence 
That I was able to
Find God
It did not give me meaning
Or show my superiority 
Those are a fool’s vanity
I was left with a feeling of wonder 

Bathing in the sheer
Elegance
Of the infinite 
This is the
Divine
God is not a being
But the fact that we exist at all
In a universe of infinite possibility
I am in awe 
That I am
Here
That you are too
Is truly
Beautiful 

Inspired by Max Richter's "on the nature of daylight" https://youtu.be/b_YHE4Sx-08?si=1oWvqcDLFUvhYtG_ I recommend listening to the whole song. 

Contemplation on the Odu Iwori Obara

I can not
See you anymore
But I can
Still draw your heart
From memory
Lines on a page
Form shapes that
Remind me of you
Thoughts float
Off sheets of paper
Sticking to the inside of
My eyes
So that every time I
Close them
The essence of you
Becomes the

Backdrop of my

Existence

Contemplation on the odu Okanran Oshe ( Okana she )

It is the burden of
Working for another
To Carry the weight
Of their insecurities
Always at the mercy
Of shifting emotions
A benevolent dictatorship
Painted with a subtle
Veneer of democracy
Slowly but surely
Subduing all dissent
Leading to conformity
In thought and finally
Resignation
Excited workers become
Sycophantic drones
Quelling even the most
Creative minds until
The next crop of bees
Has entered the fold
And the cycle begins
Anew

Written while listening to: Pastoral by Christian Löffler