Peach, Limestone, and Green: Letters and Poems Through Loss and Grief

By Jerry R. O'Neill

This book is a collection of letters and poems written for care of the soul in loss and grief.

From the first to the last page, Jerry ONeills book attests to the way in which powerful words and silences give way to a hidden presence of a deepest, most tender knowing. This collection brings together deeply personal yet universal letters and poems that grab and hold our heart and attention right from the start. On a spiritual as well as visceral level, Jerry ONeill eloquently explores the essence of time, memory, loss, love, friendship, hope, and faith. Amidst the searing pain of loss, the author both embraces and resists sources of comfort and consistently shows just how alive he is to inner promptings and external stimuli, to the music and shades of lifes strangely paradoxical mix of sorrow and joy. Jerry ONeills book can provide solace and hope for readers in their own times of darkness.

~Geri Giebel Chavis

Poetry Therapist

Reading Jerry ONeills Peach, Limestone and Green I hear soulfulness. These letters and poems are replete with it a word opens to something sacred, something more. There is the daily struggle and dance between hard reality and transcendent mystery. In this bone honest journey through grief and growth, you will discover what it means to survive loss, and then, thrive, with a heart that is open to grace.

~John Fox

author of Poetic Medicine: The Healing Art of Poem-Making

• Language: English
• Publisher: WestBow Press
• Release date: Jun 5, 2015
• ISBN: 9781490882406

Jerry R. O'Neill

Jerry R. O’Neill earned two master’s degrees from Wartburg Seminary, and a Doctorate in Ministry from Luther Seminary. Certified in transforming spirituality at Seattle University, he offers individual and small group spiritual care and guidance, music ministry, poetry readings, and workshops for spiritual growth and fruitfulness in later-life. Jerry lives with his wife and their dogs on Whidbey Island, Washington, and on the Lower Columbia River in Hammond, Oregon.

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Copyright © 2015 Jerry R. O’Neill.

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be used or reproduced by any means, graphic, electronic, or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, taping or by any information storage retrieval system without the written permission of the publisher except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews.

WestBow Press

A Division of Thomas Nelson & Zondervan

1663 Liberty Drive

Bloomington, IN 47403

www.westbowpress.com

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Because of the dynamic nature of the Internet, any web addresses or links contained in this book may have changed since publication and may no longer be valid. The views expressed in this work are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of the publisher, and the publisher hereby disclaims any responsibility for them.

Any people depicted in stock imagery provided by Thinkstock are models, and such images are being used for illustrative purposes only.

Certain stock imagery © Thinkstock.

ISBN: 978-1-4908-8239-0 (sc)

ISBN: 978-1-4908-8240-6 (e)

Library of Congress Control Number: 2015908646

WestBow Press rev. date: 06/04/2015

Contents

Foreword

Preface

Peach

Letters

Letter # 1

Letter # 2

Letter # 3

Letter # 4

Letter # 5

Letter # 6

Letter # 7

Letter # 8

Letter # 9

Letter # 10

Poems

Born!

Sarah

Call of the Orchard

Another Orchard

Walk in the Orchard

Sister Wisdom

Safe in the Rain

Tender Knowing

Absorbed

Sacred Silence

Ordained Beams Shining

Stony Ridge

Erie

Flow River Flow

Invited to Dance

Eyeful Ear

Again

Gleam

Held

Heart of God’s Apple

By walking

First Kiss

A Wedding

In the Warm Face of Sunrise

Limestone

Letters

Letter # 11

Letter # 12

Letter # 13

Letter # 14

Letter # 15

Letter # 16

Letter # 17

Letter # 18

Poems

Dubuque

Limestone Road

Limestone

Tiny Sprig

My Shadow Crow

Spirit of Home

Socked In

November 1st

Melancholy Gift

At Table with Grief

Through Purple Door

New Year

Light of Night

Night Rain

Faint Heart Beat

A Stone

Phone Call

How Am I Not?

In Dead of Night

Surprised by Silence

Lighthouse Litany

In Numb of Winter

Love Embodied

In the Moment

Yearning

What if?

Friendship

Bare and Still

Unknowing

Celtic Cross

Fearsome Canyon

Crack in the Door

Even on Shortest of Days

On this September 11th

One White Rose

Pining for Church

Green

Letters

Letter # 19

Letter # 20

Letter # 21

Letter # 22

Letter # 23

Letter # 24

Poems

Fresh Green Leaves

Now Comes the Poet

Sacred Cedar

Visitor

By a Sea of Grace

The Dreamer in Me Asks

New Wings

Dawn of Pentecost

Evergreen Island

Outside Worship

Her Smile

All Saints’ Sunday

Wave of Brightening

Wet Whidbey Dawn

Holmes Harbor

Sound of Trains

Thanksgiving

Katie Next Door

Sensing Her Nearness

Whidbey Green

Blessed Assurance

Acknowledgements

Our grief

is a journey

that knows its way

***

A book is a path of words

which takes the heart

in new directions.

John O’Donohue

Foreword

Jerry O’Neill is a friend, a colleague, and a fellow traveler on this spiritual journey we call life. Through his letters and his poetry, Jerry faces many of the struggles and joys that he has collected along the way. Through his writing he learned to see life with new eyes and in a newer dimension. From the cold, harsh reality of tragic grief forced upon him and the harness of a stone to the sweet taste of a sunrise and the dawn of a new life, Jerry carries us through his path and helps us to see life in a new way.

It was my privilege to officiate at Jerry and Carol’s wedding a few months ago. It was a joy to witness Jerry’s growth through his grief to the point where he was able to share his life and love again. As I watched them distribute Communion to their friends and family, I realized the healing power and growth that can come through grief. May you also know this power and may this little book of wisdom aid you in this walk.

Through your reading of his journey may you come to discover the tender heart and healing balm that lies within this man and expressed through his writing as he travels from Peach, to Limestone, to the Green that we share.

Chaplain Dave Bieniek

Hospice of Whidbey General Hospital

Whidbey Island, WA

March 17, 2015

Preface

Morning has arrived and once again blessed by quiet time for devotions I take a walk with Mellie through the towering green Cedar and Douglas Spruce here on Whidbey Island. For the past five years I have been on a contemplative journey through loss and grief, time and again discovering beauty in both bright and dark places, most surprised at the tasty fruit melancholy brings.

The letters and poems included in this book have not been written for literary merit but as a spiritual exercise. With my heart broke wide open by the sudden death of my wife, I have leaned into and followed the promptings of grief. Gazing over inner and outer landscapes I have searched my origins, let go of old realities, and made room for new life to emerge. Peach, limestone and green have been the metaphors that have shaped this collection and helped me express the creativity and