how is it possible
to be so deeply humbled
and elated, simultaneously
they seem so different
yet they live side-by-side
in my heart
to be called poet
to have my words
sung back to me
who am I to presume
to share the stage
with real poets
I am just me
a regular
ordinary person
walking through life
flawed, broken
yet oddly, whole
loving
and being loved
in return
teaching
learning
growing
questioning
reflecting
yearining
only recently
venturing into
the world outside myself
my pen
has long captured my heart’s
vibrations
in words
or at least
what resembles words
and to have
this outer
recognition
of what lies
beneath the surface
in the private space of my heart
is at once
a vulnerability
I’ve never known
and the moment
where my soul
touches all other souls
perhaps
in the end
that’s what poetry is
expressing the personal
which is never really just about us
to vibrate with other souls
Jennifer Gurney lives in Colorado where she teaches, paints, writes and hikes. Her poetry has appeared internationally in a wide variety of journals, two of her poems have won international contests and one was recently turned into a choral piece for a concert. Jennifer’s first book of poetry has been accepted for publication.