You would have been 102 today
and I wonder what you would say
now that all that was hiding us
has fallen away.
I imagine you now as bare as the
trees outside my window. Despite
our tumble through the years,
I miss you.
For some reason, I keep returning
to the moment you dropped your
cane in the driveway and kissed
my neck.
It’s all I ever wanted. Yet, it took
fifty years to unfold, the slowest
flower I have known on earth.
A Question to Walk With: In conversation with a friend or loved one, describe the slowest flower you have known in your life.
This is from my book of poems, The Half-Life of Angels.
Mark will be offering retreats and a few special journeys in 2024. Below are some of his offerings:
April 26–28: Saying Yes to Life: From Brokenness to Tenderness, reading and weekend retreat, The Sophia Institute, Charleston, SC, or call 843–720–8528
https://thesophiainstitute.org/events/saying-yes-to-life-from-brokenness-to-tenderness/?occurrence=2024-04-26
May 6: Drinking from the River of Light, Talk on the Creative Process, The Gilmore Festival, Kalamazoo Public Library Central Branch, VanDeusen Room | 2 pm
https://www.thegilmore.org/event/mark-nepo/
May 18–24, 2024 The Gift of Deepening and the Radiance in All Things, a weeklong retreat on a river cruise in France hosted by Global Journeys
https://globalj.org/the-gift-od-deepening-overview/
June 28–30: Falling Down and Getting Up: Discovering Your Inner Resilience and Strength, weekend retreat, Omega Institute, Rhinebeck, NY
http://tinyurl.com/5n79swbd
Aug 16–18: You Don’t Have to Do It Alone: The Net of Friendship, weekend retreat, Mercy By the Sea, 167 Neck Rd, Madison
https://www.mercybythesea.org/events/
Sept 16–21, 2024 You Don’t Have to Do It Alone: The Power of Friendship, a Mastery Week Retreat at the Modern Elder Academy in Santa Fe, Mexico, .
https://www.meawisdom.com/workshop/the-power-of-friendship-with-mark-nepo
Sept 29 1pm PT/4pm ET: Mark Nepo in Conversation with Brooke Warner — You Don’t Have to Do It Alone, ticketed event hosted by Book Passage
https://www.bookpassage.com/event/mark-nepo-brooke-warner-you-dont-have-do-it-alone-online-event
Nov 1–3: Harmony Hill Retreat Center, You Don’t Have to Do It Alone: The Net of Friendship weekend retreat, Union WA, Contact Harmony Hill for info:
https://www.harmonyhill.org/contact-connections/
Dec 8–14, Saying Yes to Life: The One Life We’re Given, a weeklong retreat in Costa Rica, hosted by Global Journeys
https://globalj.org/mark-nepo-costa-rica-overview/
