On Living and Other Poems

By Lisa B. Friedland

On Living

I live next to a cemetery
But who’s living, who’s dead? 

Our way in the world is not only
catalyzed by sitting or lying down.

Maybe there’s a party in there! 
Laughter beyond the Heights

I wonder in my mind, what is quiet or still? 
Remember the flavor of change

You don’t need to wait for the sunrise
to sing

Inside the Moon

The full moon 
in my coffee cup, 
and the crescent moon inside the full.

Like we know what’s on.
Do we know what’s what?
Small snow reigning down from heaven

and I, asleep at the wheel
(asleep at the wheel? I thought I was awake!)
to the wonder and glory of all.

Become the Landscape

When you become the landscape,
you sit here quietly, peacefully, serenely, joyfully. 
Not a joy that’s a feeling,
like an emotion or something 
A peaceful joy
that’s in the pulse of the rivers and sinews 
The red and blue of veins
interchanging all over the place - happily. 

No Sense

I love things that don’t make sense
Like trees
Manhattan
And the woman in stilettos pushing the baby carriage.

Laid Down in the Aspens

Laid down in the aspens 
And I sing my song to sleep
My song, your song, a poet’s song.

Weeping at the ancient longing of this day
the comings and goings in the frock of night. Don’t fright.

There’s a tender bud there inside the darkness
inside the cool breeze

So maybe grow quieter. 
          It won’t change the height of freedom 
                                           or your toes’ caress of the sunlit moon.

Woven

My Life
is woven for me
Drop into the river
And floating floats you through
Feel the water or not
See the beauty or not
The choice you have is eyelids open or shut. 

I became an adult today

I became an adult today 
singing in the rain
finding the hay at my back
the wind at my front 
do we even know why we're here?
a cherry tree
an apple blossom 
a sky full of stars
ever so softly 
sing us
home

On this day

On this day,
Give it up to that which creates a blueberry and galaxies
 
Alright then, this minute
give in to that which makes sunflower petals and planet rings 
 
Okay, no problem. Just this moment. One moment.

If what’s keeping you up at night is your own nudity

If what’s keeping you up at night is your own nudity, 
forget it. It’s like trying to find a cake that doesn’t have cake, or a lemon that doesn’t have lemon.
Each night when the portal to heaven appears we lay down to receive it. And this lying down, an act of pure faith,
gets us to touch the heart pulse
that is never covered in linen or rags.

I found love at a JayZ concert

I found love at a JayZ concert
and God in a mosque, church or temple
But what about inside of me?
I find God in the ocean and the valley
In midtown and the stream
So what about, what about, inside of me?

Lisa B. Friedland is a poet, musician, composer, and writer. Based in Santa Fe, New Mexico, she finds her inspiration from nature, spirituality, culture and relationships.

Find out more at lisafriedlandmusic.com