Lewis & Beckman-Filbert – February 2012

Holly Suzanne Beckman-Filbert and Eleanor Lewis traded art and writing. Holly shared this painting with Eleanor:

In response, Eleanor wrote this poem:

waiting

are you still
waiting? why are you
waiting, believing it
is all just
out of reach? can you
see it? name it? but how
it darts away
while you heave from
the exertion of no-
thing. listen. we are
eyeless, everything is
under water, blind with
waiting, surely
you know this? it’s only
a story empty
of pages, the sound of
glass about to
break.

* * * * *

Eleanor shared this poem with Holly:

Morning

When you find the lump
you can almost hear the angels.
Your hands cold, or numb,
refuse earthly temperature.
The light turns queer,

and though you look in
the mirror, you are facing
your grandmother, who
embraces you; her wings
bump against the bathroom door.

The water seems to sing
against skin: It’s settled;
there should be no fear.
You walk into this
stoic, prepare words for loved ones,
the bedside scene clear.

This is how that other world
intersects our day­‐to‐day;
reveals itself, lifts
up the blind. You know
what you must do –
the recipe of prayer
taking care of body
and mind.

In response, Holly painted this, “Impressions of Consciousness “: