The Muse

A wonderful birthday wish from my adored Muse.

My dearest Poet,

Words trickle. Starting. Stopping. Halting. Gathering strength and speed. Dozens of tiny streams of thought try to break away, twisting and bubbling through desert sands. Starting to swirl, coalesce, they move purposefully. Flow. Words.

Today as I think about your birthday, I think about words, soaring fantastic flights into tropical paradises. Powerful histories handed down generations. Sparkling humorous streams that flash like the way your hands move when you’re telling them, whole body moving with intensity and dance.

Today as I think about your birthday, I think about food. Inviting aromas that curl around the edges of your front door, surprising combinations of savory, sweet, and spicy that delight and amaze. A clean white plate is a canvas where you paint your culinary art, each slice and sliver placed with the intention that melds perfectly on the palate.

Today as I think about your birthday, I think about music and dancing. The greeting echo of drumming, faintly heard on your doorstep. Tantalizing rhythms that make hands tap, heads bob, hips start to turn and move without permission. The way you smile all the way down to your toes as you dance across the living room and into the embrace of the kitchen aromas.

Today as I think about your birthday, I think about love. The way it grows. The way it changes. The way it blooms. The way it warms. The way it tugs. The way it teaches. The way it inspires. The way it frees. The way it soars.

Today as I think about your birthday, I think about stories. The stories you’ve told me, in your words and food and art and dance and love. The stories I’ve told you, in many the same fashions. The stories I notice weaving into my life, both with intention and without realizing. The way writing creatively about stories and lives makes me think of you weaving word tapestries that leave awe in their wake.

Today as I think about your birthday, I think about magic and the sacred. How you touch deep currents in the world, bring them closer to the surface. The way you hold a mirror to self-discovery and shine light into forgotten nooks. The constantly growing and evolving spirit rooted in confidence that things can be unknown, but still understood and integrated. Life is worth living to bring happiness.

Today as I think about your birthday, I celebrate the gift of your presence in my life. The way that even far apart, I feel like my life, and the world is a better place for knowing you’re in it.

Dear Mariel, I wish you another beautiful year of celebrations and joy, of dancing and music, of words and food and magic, of changing the world one positive step at a time. May your endeavors and the people you love bring beauty and happiness to your life in this year! Thank you for bringing beauty and joy to mine.

Warm caramel hugs, champagne bubbles of delight, passion fruit teasing smiles, and love,

The Muse

October 1, 2014