hurting

May 18

It hurts to hurt.
It hurts to see others
hurting. It hurts to know
there is so little I can do
to help others, except
try to be strong
for those I care for.
I care more.
I couldn’t care less.
It hurts to care.
If I say I try
to care for myself, it is
not meant to sound selfish;
it means I know
I must be strong
so that I can care for
those I love.
I love a lot.
I am capable of more.
It hurts to know I might
not be capable of enough.
It hurts to hurt.

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j.g. lewis

original content and images ©j.g. lewis

a decade of days…

2025 is an anthology of thoughts du jour, unsolicited advice, messages of peace, philosophy, poetry, and photographs from the past decade of Mythos & Marginalia. In unchronological order, the years not as important as the dates, each post a reminder (if only to myself) that I do indeed write every damn day.

May 16

sense of wonder

When it rains
it pours,
unexpectedly. While
nourishing flowers and
washing away the filth
and debris
of seasons past, a storm
can also offer a new
sense of wonder.
There’s a scent to the air
after the rain,
following
a deluge of personal pain.
You may find rainbows,
and you will certainly
find puddles.
Keep looking up, but
watch where you step.

© 2016 j.g. lewis

Leave a comment: sense of wonder
May 13

find peace

May you find
patience
in others
peace
in your soul
and
comfort
when
there is
so much to
think of
and so little
time
to make it
make sense

© 2016 j.g. lewis

Leave a comment: find peace
May 11

clarity

I keep a little notebook tucked in the front pocket of my packsack. Actually, I have a selection of small notebooks in a selection of bags, and a couple of spare pads on my desk.
While I keep a daily journal — and always have a notebook on the go for reminders, poems and observations — the pocket-sized scratch pads are there should I come across a random thought, idea, or phrase that needs to be written down.
Everything needs a place to go.
I write every damn day. Sometimes it involves hours of composing (or editing) at my computer, other times it is playful poetry in a park. Often times it is sitting in a coffee shop; as it is today, where I am lamenting my neglect in packing my pencil case.
Like the small notebook in the front pocket of my packsack, I always keep a spare pencil (or pencil stub) with every bag in my possession; you never want to be without a pencil.
You never know when something needs to be written down.
Part of my process, my practice, or my purpose, is taking notes. Notes become poems, essays, chapters, letters, or simply remain notes on the nonsense we all encounter.
For me, writing provides time to make sense of the madness.
Writing, for me, provides clarity.
Does it become any clearer if you take the time to write it down?

© 2022 j.g. lewis

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May 18

hurting

It hurts to hurt.
It hurts to see others
hurting. It hurts to know
there is so little I can do
to help others, except
try to be strong
for those I care for.
I care more.
I couldn’t care less.
It hurts to care.
If I say I try
to care for myself, it is
not meant to sound selfish;
it means I know
I must be strong
so that I can care for
those I love.
I love a lot.
I am capable of more.
It hurts to know I might
not be capable of enough.
It hurts to hurt.

© 2021 j.g.lewis

Leave a comment: hurting
May 15

certainty

we litigate our sorrows

mediate happiness

negotiate contentment

barter wisdom for unsuspecting logic

did we stop

looking

for the trust

for the certainty

in what we know

what we carry

veiled imperfections

spiteful recollection

accepted resentment

the perseverance of inadequacies

as we keep

close

to the truth

to the familiar

to what we know

what we carry

compromised ethics

unwritten guarantees

pathetic promises

admit what you have lived through

© 2019 j.g. lewis

Leave a comment: certainty
May 12

what moves you

There is always a reason,
there always was.

A motivation, the initial
inspiration, an explanation,
interest, enthusiasm or a
passion (even obsession):
what moves you?

It is a drive. But why?

More than the where or
the when, the why began
the all-consuming interest.

We all have our reasons.
We all have our wonders.
We all have our why.

Remember the why.
It is still within you.

© 2023 j.g. lewis

Leave a comment: what moves you