Drawn To The Sea

Vision: 3rd February 2019

Visiting Jesus, a vision in my mind
Only recently back then, did I find
His true identity revealed at last
Connecting many dots of my past

I’d visited just once since that day
‘Stained Glass Poems’ explains the way
Now I wanted more confirmation
And a hopefully some inspiration

Giving no thought to where we’d meet
We were walking by the sea, barefeet
I felt at ease and wondered why
I didn’t feel in awe or at all shy

With no words He then told me how
The time was right, I’m ready now
My vibration raised, now we’d talk
With more significance, as we walk

I asked why so many people, like me
Are drawn so often to be at the sea
Looking out at the beautiful scene
He told of hidden depths, unseen

The vast expanse, a precious part
Of Mother Earth, right from the start
Water, so essential to all living health
Magnificent oceans.. abundant wealth

Teeming with life of every size
Largest mammal or too small for eyes
Unfathomable, mysterious, tides that turn
From whales and dolphins we can learn

Pulsating waves forever flow
Balance, give and take, they show
Wisdom evident and pure beauty
Fresh and alive, our vibrant sea

Land and sea, two domains
Duality on our Earth remains
Senses enlivened when we are near
The air is different, is so clear

Winds of the sea blow away
Doubts and fears, as we stay
Near the shore, there to be
With the elements, in harmony

A powerful magnet with the sun
People flock to relax, be at One
With these mighty attributes of Earth
A sense of wonder and true worth

A chance for people to get away
Clear their minds and be at play
No matter what age, most will be
Happy and content when by the sea

Trina Graves – 9th May 2020

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About This Poem

As a child and into adulthood I never went to the seaside very often. Living quite a distance from the sea it would only be something to do for a holiday, which were few and far between! However, over the past ten years or so I have felt ‘drawn to the sea,’ which grows ever stronger as the years pass!

The photo below (taken several years ago) is of West Wittering, UK. This is one of my favourite beaches (so far) it has a wonderful shallow sea and soft sandy walk. The four closest people are my son and three of my grandchildren.

Just incase you are new to my ‘Vision’ poems I have a page where they are all listed in date order. The first one, Insight tells of how it all began – and is still so profound to me! – and A Birthday Revelation tells of me discovering it was Jesus I had been ‘meeting’ since 1999.

The ‘visit’ in this poem was different than previously because I was given three different visions that would become four poems: My Footprints In Sand, Footprints Of Light and On Or Off The Train (to be added) – along with this one.

Namaste

West Wittering, UK

The Garden

The garden is created
Beautiful in simplicity
With the purest of flowers
And a baby, sapling tree

The temporary gardeners
Nurture with great care
Developing the garden
With the love they share

But busy with life
Tasks to do, no end
Some weeds will grow
They can’t always tend

The tree is always growing
Rooting deep in the Earth
It’s core strength develops
To branch out in self-worth

Seasons come and go
Years pass quickly by
The gardeners relinquish
For the owner to try

With supervision at first
The owner will learn
Where to place attention
And what is of concern

Much advice is given
And many seeds added too
By visitors to the garden
As they walk through

Tended often, or not at all
The garden will always grow
Flowers planted or self-seeded
Some develop fast, others slow

Most owners don’t weed at all
For many, many years
Until they come to realize
It’s developed all their fears

Venturing into their garden
Overgrown, some parts dense
Thistles, vines, thorns, weeds
The scale of the task.. immense!

Pulling on one single vine
Can reach far and wide
It was strangling many plants
They would have all died

An abundance of thistles
Prickly bushes causing injury
Overpowering all simple flowers
No light of day could they see

Starting in a corner
Pulling weeds, just a few
Brings a sense of relief
Clarity begins to seep through

Working in the garden
Clearing, no longer a chore
The owner now perceives
Simple beauty known before

Maybe clearing a path
Adding a seat in the sun
Enjoying the peace
Meditation begun

Opening the garden
To the Spiritual Reality
Communion with God
Ever there to simply be

Trina Graves – 18th August 2020

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About This Poem

Although this poem was never intended to be about this year, I do feel that it is relevant as we have all had – and are still having – time to ‘tend our gardens’ in the physical, mental and spiritual aspects, with the shutting down of our old way of life.

Many of my poems have been about, or mention, how a baby and child are shaped by the experiences and vibrations that surround them in the vitally important first seven years. ( Assimilation )

How our lives are shaped from our childhood was one of my first interests as I began my Spiritual path, and it has continued to be an important aspect for me to write on. As I am sure many older people would agree, – if I knew then (when I had young children to nurture) what I know now, I would certainly have done many things differently.

So, now I share my words in the hope that they will fall into the hands of any parents to ponder, and maybe make some changes that will enrich their children’s lives, and their own in the process.

I believe it is also important to know that it is never too late to tend to our own gardens, clearing away the weeds that have developed over the years. And, remember that the sweetest fragrance comes for the flowers of forgiveness, gratitude and love. Our parents (or caregivers) were tending our early gardens with the seeds sown in their own gardens.

Namaste

Joey (2013)

2020: Apex Of Duality

Right now keeping positive, as much as possible, is a priority for everyone. Being stressed suppresses the immune system, and with the revelations that are now coming forth it will be very easy to caught up in the high drama of it all. With this in mind, I have compiled a page of links to my poems that are relevant at this time:

About the pandemic
Affirmations to keep focused on God within
LightWorker poems
Wisdom for 2020
Sympathy poems for comfort 

There is also a slideshow of some of the poems with quotes from others too.

The Tree In Me

My roots stem from my family
Deeply embedded in Mother Earth
Strongly supporting my presence
That fed my earlier self-worth.
My roots are also a mighty link
Mostly unseen, as underground
I am connected to all of life
Growing in Spirit, as more depth is found.

My trunk is very evident
The physical body is what you see
Developed in my strength of roots
But solidness is only a part of me.
With each passing year I grow
The cycle of life, always in a ring
Changes with each new season
Summer, Autumn, Winter, Spring.

My branches grew as a child
Count how many there are
All the ways I reached out
Wanting to learn and go far.
Supported by my trunk body
Also nurtured by my roots
My mind branches developed
All starting from little shoots.

My branches extended to twigs
As I ventured out more to explore
In the numerous directions
Always wanting to do more.
The twists and turns of life
Shape the twigs I create
Am I willing to grow more
Or do I hesitate?

My branches and twigs went out
Into this magnificent world
For all the things I’ve said and done
Another expanding leaf uncurled.
Abundantly representing me
As I ‘photosynthesize’
Transmitting and transforming
Always right before your eyes!

You may notice a few knots
Or whirls patterning my bark
Some experiences deeply felt
Impacted and left their mark.
My bark is my protection
Covering, so you cannot see
My layers of growth underneath
As I developed into the real me.

My blossom, pure and gentle
Delicately full of perfection
Comes when I am focused
And guided by Highest intention.
For me blossom represents
My Soul, Spirit, Inner Core
It’s profound physical beauty
A sign of there always being more.

My flower or fruit shows
Who I really came here to be
Colours, fragrance, food of life
Gracefully given from my tree.
Other life forms are nurtured
When I flower and fruit
As I open to the Divine
Still deeply Earthed at my root.

I let go and I give
To all nature my seed
To grow and develop
Wherever there is a need.
Next season, or years away
With love, I will write
I give my seeds of truth
To grow in God’s Light.

……………………….

I’ve survived the storms
That are present in all life
Steadfast as a tree
Throughout worry and strife.
For my roots are so strong
Gripping tightly, down deep
Holding me safe and sound
In the faith of God I keep.

The wind my howl
And blow through my leaves
I know I’ve lost a few
As it’s presence weaves,
In and out of my life
There’s always some turmoil
I am flexible and easily bend
Focusing on the goodness in soil.

The Heavens often open
And rains come falling down
Drenching my life
From my roots to crown.
But without water
They’d be no life at all
So I cherish this blessing
Whenever it does fall.

The Light of the sun
In all of its Heavenly glory
Brings growth and upliftment
Essential to my own story
Sun, another giver of life
Shining brightly, and so clear
Eliminating all forms of darkness
For God’s Light is always near

There have been some droughts
But I survived them too
When I blocked the flow
Parched, but I always knew,
Balance would prevail
And I would be stronger
Energy would rain on me
If I patiently waited longer.

The cycles of life
Sometimes lay bare
No leaves on my tree
Dormant, I don’t share.
And them comes the snow
Uniqueness in every drop
Delicate purity its truth
Messages from Spirit never stop.

Sharp and hard frosts
On a cold winters morn
Can make me shiver
And feel a little forlorn.
But if I look closely
Making beauty my intent
The picture it paints
On my tree is Heaven sent.

My truly greatest part
Most people do not see
My Spirit radiates
As I rise up like a tree.
To the Heavens I reach
Branching out into the unknown
We are linked, we are all One
With the trees I have grown.

Trina Graves – 3rd April 2019

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About This Poem

I have always been drawn to trees, but it wasn’t until 2010, when I began to take photographs of nature, that my deepest respect and admiration for their wonderous beauty began to really grow. I have noticed over the past few years that as the seasons change, I seem to grow more and more in awe of their magnificence.

For many years I have had a list of poem ideas and titles so that when I feel like writing something it’s easy to find a subject. Trees have been on that list since it first began, but apart from making some notes several years ago, I never got around to it.

On the day I wrote this poem, I had just completed another one and leaving it for awhile before reading through, I put the kettle on for a cuppa. While waiting for it to boil I looked out of my kitchen window and noticed how extremely windy it was outside. I have two trees in my garden, but I can also see other trees in neighbours gardens, especially as at the bottom of my garden the houses opposite are on a much higher level, so their trees are at a high level too. The branches on all of the trees were swaying as the wind blew them around, and as I was watching the words ‘The Tree In Me’ came to me, and I instantly knew it was now the time to write my tree poem and to use this title. 

I began straight away (after making coffee, of course!) by writing a few notes on the physical parts of a tree that I wanted to cover: roots, trunk etc.. and then of the elements that can have an affect: sun, frost etc.. The poem just flowed easily from there.

An intriguing aspect for me is that my name begins with ‘Tree,’ although written as ‘Tri.’ Strangely, I never even noticed this until my artist friend painted a tree on my 50th birthday card and spelled my name ‘Tree-na’ as she knew of my love of trees. So, I really do have a ‘Tree In Me!’ 🙂

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Adopt The Pace Of Nature – Her Secret Is Patience

Title Quote: Ralph Waldo Emerson

Nature’s secrets are incredibly inspiring and bountiful
Life lessons are learnt that are not taught in school
Walking in Mother Nature, God’s natural Kingdom
With Awareness, will bring you insightful wisdom

Her efflorescence beauty is shown everywhere
Even in the depth of winter when much lies bare
There’s always splendour and miracles to view
When with your Soul Eyes, you choose to look through

In winter when all the leaves fall from a tree
The intricate branches are visible for scrutiny
Extending onwards and upwards into the sky
As we expand our consciousness up so high

Then spring arrives to enliven and lighten our days
Nature manifests its perfection in numerous ways
Beautifully delicate, pure blossoms flourish for a while
Showing us to appreciate NOW, then let go with a smile

Summer bestows nature’s miraculous abundance
Flowers overwhelming beauty give more evidence
Of the variety of life, it’s shapes, colours and size
Everyone is just perfect in God’s All-Knowing Eyes

Summer turns to autumn, or as some say fall
Change is in the air and nature heeds the call
Leaves burst into colour, then wither and die
As do all human beings, including you and I

The cycle is complete, a year has come and gone
Nature will eternally repeat it’s wondrous song
Teaching us through Awareness, year after year
If we are Open to it’s wisdom and ready to hear

All this is provided at a sure and steady pace
Nature is perfect, there’s never a need to race
Everything is accomplished, in a time of her own
Nature’s secret is Patience, to us she has shown

Trina Graves – 4th December 2016

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About This Poem

As I have mentioned on some of my other posts, I was rather blind to the awesomeness of nature until I began to follow the teachings of Abraham-Hicks. I was awakened to its magnificence on a simple walk to get some photographs to use for quotes on my website (Spiritual Quotes To Live By) and have been amazed at the sights and lessons taught by nature ever since.

The Eyes Of Source

Title Quote: Abraham-Hicks

Nature is so awesome
Its beauty is beyond compare
It’s everything natural around us
Always willing of itself to share

From a tiny little seed
A mighty tree can grow
From such small beginnings
Strength and beauty it can show

With Love and Appreciation in your heart
Just take a look around you and see
The abundance of natures forms
Its silent miracle is the key

Open your heart, and open your eyes
To the wonders all around
Nature’s always there, waiting patiently
Until the Eyes Of Source you have found

Beauty and perfection can be seen
In the smallest, simplest flower
Just living, growing, adapting, changing, being
Its message can bring such power

Love is what you really are
It’s the truest abundance of wealth
Looking at the world through The Eyes Of Source
You are being your true self

Trina Graves – July 2012

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About This Poem

Looking ‘Through The Eyes Of Source’ is one of my favourite quotes from Abraham-Hicks as it gives an easy reminder of the ultimate perception of everything we see. 

As you can see, I wrote this poem in 2012, but years later when I was going through my poems to add them to my website (Spiritual Quotes To Live By) I decided not to use this one but instead to write another using the same quote.  At that time I had recently gone for a walk locally and been so awestruck with the simple beauty surrounding me and one tree in particular had literally brought tears to my eyes! so writing the newer version was easy to do: Through The Eyes Of Source is one of my favourites of my poems as for me it brings back the memory of that walk. 

Although this poem was originally called Through The Eyes Of Source, I have edited the title to differentiate between the two poems.

The Best Time To Plant A Tree

Title Quote: Unknown

The best time to plant a tree
Is twenty years ago
To give it the essential time
To develop, bloom and grow

Of course, this isn’t relevant
If you are still a youth
But, I’m sure you can see
This plain and simple truth

Trees are vital to our life
Here on this planet Earth
But do we really appreciate
Our trees, for all their worth?

Some say, if trees gave wi-fi
We would all be planting more
Instead, they give us oxygen
Life’s breath, crucial to our core

Trees sustain our life
We’re inherently entwined
Why do we chop them down
When other sources we can find?

Every child would benefit from
Planting a tree when they are small
Gaining more than just ‘green fingers’
Through the years as both grow tall

So, if you have not planted a tree
Years ago for time to allow
It’s growth and needed life-force
The second best time is NOW

Trina Graves – 18th February 2016

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About This Poem

The full quote, from an unknown source, is:

The Best Time To Plant A Tree Is Twenty Years Ago
The Second Best Time Is Now

Even though I never really appreciated the miracle and wonderment of nature until I was much older, I have always loved trees. Many of my childhood memories are tree related: enjoying the blossoms on a lilac tree in our garden, often standing under and smelling an evergreen tree (not sure what sort) in the playground at primary school and making out shapes and pictures in the tree skyline from our kitchen window. 

From that early noticing of blossom, spring became my favourite time of year. In my adult years as I moved home, I was never a zealous gardener, but I always planted a few trees in each garden. In my older years as my love of nature developed, trees were obviously a focus of my attention and I become mesmerized in their awesomeness.

I’ve noticed that the things I did as a child I still do, along with new habits of hugging, touching, praising, giving thanks, taking photos and just basking in the majestic beauty of the trees I encounter.

Update
Another poem relating to trees: The Tree In Me

Emma (daughter) with Jessica, Seth & Lucy (grandchildren) 2007

Everything That Has A Beginning Has An End

Title Quote: Buddha

We all love enchanting, captivating stories
From very young children to the old
Reading stories uses our imagination
We’re engrossed in how they will unfold
Books can be just a few short pages
Or go on for a whole series that offer more
But all stories have a beginning and an end
The pleasure they make is what we read them for

Films and TV series capture our attention
As we sink into and establish the plot
Our senses are bombarded with emotions
Through characters, music and the scenery shot
A film lasts for a short time, only an hour or two
A complete series can go on for a year or more
But all films and series have a beginning and an end
The emotions evoked are what we watch them for

Some people enjoy enhancing nature
Planting various seeds into a flower-pot
They nurture and appreciate the beauty
Whether a lavender bush or forget-me-not
Flowers develop wondrous hues and fragrance
Scattering their elegance in gardens and more
But all flowers have a beginning and an end
Their pure beauty is what we grow them for

One of nature’s incredible, bountiful joys
Is the variety of trees that grow everywhere
Their magnificence and majestic presence
Is enhanced with the lessons they share
Strength, flexibility, change, importance of roots
They give us oxygen and so much more
But all trees have a beginning and an end
Vital life-enhancement is what we need them for

Over our lives most of us share some time
With a pet who becomes a family friend
It doesn’t matter what the animal type
It’s the faithful love that they can send
Companionship, loyalty, non-judgement
Whatever we share, they give so much more
But all animals have a beginning and an end
Their companionship is what we adore them for

And so we come to the point of these words
The hardest experience one day we all must face
When our nearest and dearest loved ones pass
Will we be able to abide it with good grace?

The simple, pure beauty of our family and friends
We enrich our lives together, with the pleasures we make
Our love and companionship is vital life-enhancement
As the emotions evoked bring our Hearts and Souls Awake

“Everything That Has A Beginning Has An End
Make Your Peace With That And All Will Be Well”
The Buddha’s words are an essential principle of life
To enable us when the time comes to say: ‘Farewell’

Trina Graves – 21st November 2016

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About This Poem   

This was one of my poems that surprised me with how it ended. I started in my usual way (praying and asking for guidance) and then wrote a list of the topics to cover. Each verse flowed quite easily and I knew it was going to be a sympathy poem it was obviously going to move on to dying. But the ‘surprise’ was in how the ending of each verse came together for the penultimate verse.

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Where Is God?

God is in the flowers
God is in the trees
God is in the butterflies
And the birds and bees

God is in the sunshine
God is in the storm
God is in the snow and frost
That makes you wrap up warm

God is in the good
God is in the bad
God is in what makes you happy
And what makes you sad

God is everywhere you look
And everywhere you go
God is your best friend always
Because God loves you so

Trina Graves – 19th May 2000

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About This Poem

On a sunny May morning in 2000, I was staring out of the window on a bus travelling through the countryside of Oxfordshire, just appreciating the beautiful views, and these words just came into my head. I knew the simple words were for children and I would one day share them. Previous to this I had only ever written two things and they were not poems, so this was unusual for me. When I arrived at work, I was thinking about the poem and the first customer to walk into the photography shop was a man wearing a very large cross around his neck. I took this as a sign telling me the words were truly inspired from spirit. When I returned home later that day, I had no problem remembering the words to write out.

The concept that God was in the ‘bad’ was relatively new to me, only coming across it not long before in the book ‘Conversations With God’ by Neale Donald Walsch. I had found his books very enlightening and thought provoking, this concept was one I was learning to digest. Previous to this I always believed (as taught) there were two sides: good and bad, or, God and devil. But, at that time I didn’t really think about it and just put the poem away. 

Over the years I gained greater understanding through the Law Of Attraction, mainly as taught by Abraham-Hicks, and found out that God truly is in ALL things. There is no source of evil or bad, it’s just that we are in the habit of blocking the ever-present flow of goodness. How much we allow or block affects our degree of perceived love or fear. Even in the darkest of times and in the people who may be seen as evil, there is always a spark of light buried within.

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The Amen Of Nature Is Always A Flower

Title Quote: Oliver Wendell Holmes

At the bus stop, passing time in my solitary thoughts
My gaze rested upon some nearby empty ground
There was nothing much at all to see, it seemed
Some grass, soil and stones, were all my eyes found

Nothing changed over those cold winter months
As each week I waited patiently and surveyed
When rain fell soaking the earth, I noticed
Muddy puddles developed, where children played

As the days began to get a little longer
They became brighter and warmer too
I began to notice a change on the ground
Signs of life were starting to break through

The weeks went by as Spring finally arrived
Some days of rain, but mostly warm and bright
Various shades of green shoots covered the ground
Although different, united in seeking the light

Showers of petals from nearby blossoming trees
Cascaded upon me as I gazed at the ground
Gone now the blankness of winter past
Abundant foliage and flowering buds I found

I’ll never forget that summer day I arrived
My senses were blasted by the sheer power
Of an awesome scene of vibrant colour and beauty
The Amen of nature is always a flower

Trina Graves – 31st January 2015

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About This Poem

This was the first time I wrote a poem for my blog.  On that day, after writing my thoughts on the quote, my thoughts wandered to when I lived in a village that had a long walk to the bus stop and the idea of this poem came to me.  When I write in ‘first person’ it is almost always a true part of my life, this poem is one of the exceptions, but it is based on my experiences.

While looking back through my previous blogs, in December 2016, I came across this poem and thought it would be a good idea – and an interesting challenge – to change the way I did my blog, so I began to write inspirational poems for each quote, rather than my thoughts on the quote or photograph. 

 

The Tree That Spoke

Oh, the things I have felt
For over a hundred years
From bountiful joys of nature
To the sorrow of human tears

When I was first planted here
There wasn’t much else around
A field of grass, some trees like me
A few upright stones on the ground

As I grew tall and strong
Yielding as each season passed
The people came and went
Always mournful and downcast

My wisdom grew with time
As my roots delved into the Earth
I also connected to the sun above
All-That-Is pronounced my worth

The ever-flowing abundant life
Birds, foliage, butterflies, bees
Most people never-ever noticed
Oh, please! BEHOLD us trees

We are the inherent Guardians of Earth
Filtering and providing more than they see
The original network, our roots underground
We may seem static, but we are truly free

The empty field that once surrounded my youth
Is now filled with hundreds of stones
Becoming more ornate over the years
But still, just mark the position of bones

I absorb the waves of sadness that flow
From the people visiting a stone
If they let me, I can help them
For we are One and never alone

I sense the Spirit of their loved one
They block the energy by thinking them gone
My leaves whisper the truth on the breeze
‘They are beside you, they do live on’

Trina Graves – 6th July 2018

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About This Poem

From the age of six until I married, my family would spend the summer Sunday afternoons in various villages throughout the Oxfordshire countryside. My father belonged to a cricket club, so we all went along to enjoy and afternoon out. While the men played cricket, the woman chatted and the children played. My mum also liked to take a walk around the villages, especially to visit their church and grounds. I didn’t realize it back then, of course, but this was to develop into something I would enjoy doing for the rest of my life. 

I now love to visit old churches and graveyards, especially to see the beautiful trees that are always present in these tranquil grounds. So, when I began to take nature photographs to compile my photo-quotes this was obviously a wonderful source for me.

Last week I had to take my car to have some work done, nearby there was a graveyard (no church though) that I had not visited before, so I decided to go and hang out there while I waited. It was a beautiful sunny day and after walking around – taking lots of photos – I sat in the shade to bask in the glorious view of trees.

Personally, I believe graves are an old tradition that in our more enlightened times are no longer needed. But, I respect that others can find comfort in visiting their loved ones marker. I do not find them at all depressing because I choose to think of all the love that has been brought to the site, for hundreds of years!

So, as I sat there, just across from me was this tall tree surrounded by gravestones. I thought about what it has viewed over the years and decided to write a poem, luckily I had pen and paper with me. And this is what I wrote.  

The view from where I sat to write this poem

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