by IRENE FOWLER, Contributor

Whilst trying to forge ahead with our unique personal lives, as indeed we must, we are often weighted down with past baggage, hindered by present constraints, and fearful of future outcomes. In fact, the business of life and living, may feel like an impossible, daunting, Everest climb confronted by untrained, ill-equipped non-mountaineers. In other cases, we may feel lost-at-sea and perchance, catch a glimpse of a shoreline, only to discover it has disappeared like a mirage the nearer we get to it.

Our travails are varied. However, the common denominator is that we are all in search of solutions. In a peculiar way, we are all climbing the same mountain and we are all in the same needy boat.

Add to the conflicts and complexities, of one’s personal earthly sojourn and saga, are the events of the outside world. Today, we are still facing the head winds of a once in a century global pandemic. Added to humanity’s  challenges, are climate change and the spectre of fast-encroaching tyrannical authoritarianism.

With the run-up to the crucial US mid-term elections in full swing, the topmost concern of the majority of the American electorate, is the rapid erosion of democracy within the oldest democracy on the planet. The growing anxiety and turmoil, is such that democracy supersedes the state of the economy and burdensome inflation woes, as a dominating ballot issue. Since the Republican Party, the other half of America’s political duopoly,  have pitched their tent on the side of authoritarianism as their preferred choice/form of government, global democracy could not be in greater peril.

As we navigate the choppy, treacherous waters of human existence, as individuals, we can tap into a reservoir of inner-peace.

To read Irene’s new poem “Bird of Eden” click:

Bird of Eden

by Irene Fowler

The pathway leads to dreams
Alight with swans and stars
The maddening din no longer screams
In its place, meandering streams
Journey to the rainbow, yet afar
Banished are dark fears and blights
Blue skies become celestial sights
Lily-rose-jasmine, scented air
Paradise to gain, much to dare
Within grasp, all things just and fair
Revelling in Divine love’s thrill
Mount higher, yet higher still
On wings of might and love
Pure as the purest turtle dove
Nest delightful up above
Truth and peace now kiss
Joy unspeakable, heavenly bliss
Grace and beauty hereto unfold
Fly-fly-away, be ever bold
Bird of Eden, heart of gold.

© 2022 by Irene Fowler