Son of the Earth: Poems by Chris Hoffman

By Chris Hoffman

Also by Chris Hoffman

On the Way (poetry)

Chris Hoffman voices an essential message for our time and he does so in a profound and beautiful way. I live in a demanding noisy world but suddenly found myself stopping and closing my eyes and going beyond the words to the truth that lies behind them. There are not many authors who silence me so that I make the time to dive below the surface of my life to see what mystery lies in the depths. Relish this sumptuous meal but eat slowly dear friend for it is full of the finest ingredients.
– John Brierley author of the Camino Guides:
Practical and Mystical Manuals for the Modern Day Pilgrim

REALIZATION POINT (poetry)

A rich volume of poetry about life's flourishing. — Roshi Joan Halifax

I especially enjoy the tone of the poems in Chris Hoffman's book, the union of his voice with the details and individual lives of his surroundings.” — Pattiann Rogers

Cairns (poetry)

Every page of Cairns conveys the sacral, as revealed by the indwelling spirit of deserts, glacial fjords, kittiwakes, bald eagles, bears, and pine forests. — Reg Saner, poet and essayist, winner of the Colorado Book Award

I take this book on the road with me, read the poems around sunrise and sunset, and feel both comforted and refreshed as I wander into wild places. — Stephen R. Jones, author of The Last Prairie and The Peterson Field Guide to the North American Prairie

THE HOOP AND THE TREE
(psychology/spirituality/native wisdom)

Integrating modern psychology and the world's wisdom traditions, The Hoop and the Tree describes the deep structure of psychological and spiritual wholeness and shows how understanding and embodying that structure can help us lead lives of balance and fulfillment.

"This 20th anniversary expanded edition is even more beautiful and enlightening than the original."
- Anita Sanchez PhD, author of The Four Sacred Gifts

• Language: English
• Publisher: iUniverse
• Release date: May 18, 2022
• ISBN: 9781663239952

Chris Hoffman

Chris Hoffman is an ecopsychologist and poet with a background in organization development (applied group psychology) and counseling. Chris is the author of The Hoop and the Tree: A Compass for Finding a Deeper Relationship with All Life (ecopsychology/spirituality), now in its 20th anniversary revised edition, expanded with a key new chapter: “The Hoop and the Tree for Healing and Transformation.” Chris’ poetry has appeared in his three books: Cairns, Realization Point, and On the Way and also in national publications including Appalachia, The Christian Science Monitor, The Climbing Art, Sea Kayaker, Spiritus, Sufi Journal, and The Chrysalis Reader, as well as in the anthologies The Soul Unearthed and EarthLight: Spiritual Wisdom for an Ecological Age and So Many Voices. He enjoys performing his poetry both solo and in music and dance collaborations. As an organization development consultant and licensed professional counselor, Chris has worked in a variety of clinical and organizational settings, including consulting with a Fortune 500 energy company (from union level to executive), counseling at mental health agencies, and teaching ecopsychology at Naropa University. He holds a BA from Yale University, a Master’s degree from Northeastern University, and an MBA from University of Colorado. Now retired, Chris currently devotes most of his time to writing and to volunteer work for social justice and a livable climate. Chris is a long-time practitioner of Zen and T’ai Chi and has studied traditional psycho-spiritual healing methods and sacred dance. His wilderness experience includes backpacking, mountaineering, sea kayaking, and river running. He and his wife live in Boulder, Colorado. They have one adult son. Website: www.hoopandtree.org

Book preview

Copyright © 2022 Chris Hoffman.

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 author except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews.

iUniverse

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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 Getty Images are models, and such images are being used for illustrative purposes only.

Certain stock imagery © Getty Images.

ISBN: 978-1-6632-3994-5 (sc)

ISBN: 978-1-6632-3995-2 (e)

Library of Congress Control Number: 2022909201

iUniverse rev. date: 05/18/2022

Contents

Emptying the Kitchen Compost Bucket on New Year’s Day

Waterfall, Sounding

Earth Sutra

Chakra Incantation

Sitting by the Lakeside Cottage

Beginning Meditation

A Flight of Wings

Walking into the Foothills in Autumn

Ode to My Work Gloves

On Pilgrimage

Advice from the Last Loon

The American Pika

Kintsugi

The Net

We Have This Day

The Old Language

Spiritual Landscape

There’s a Place

I Take My Pulse

In the One-room Hut

What Could Be Better

Touching

The Pandemic

The Spirit Blanket

The Counselors of the Heart

Cicadas

Drifting to Sleep

Wampum

Drinking Tea Together

For My Wife

Standing on the Deck of the Ferry

From Parents to Children

My Son in the World

Hush Now

The Eye of the Universe

Hay for Monet

Between Two Trees

Interlude: Pebbles

Howdy, Pardner

Deep Song

Sitting in the Cathedral

Breath

My Invisible Self

Go Down

What Appears to Be So

Two Moons

I Surrender

Crossing Over

A Single Molecule

As a Gift

Taking Flight

Snow

Night by the Ocean

The Cave of Unknowing

It’s a Funny Thing

Blessingway

Wandering

Wind River Wilderness

Getting Down to Work

Acknowledgments

About the Author

May this work be of benefit to all beings

All these ages, back to the misty dawn,

the poets and sages have been saying but one thing.

Our job is to find its truth in our own words.

The function of poetry

is to midwife the soul.

Emptying the Kitchen Compost

Bucket on New Year’s Day

Blue translucent sky today and sun,

no wind but abundant cold.

As my boots go munching across yesterday’s snowfall,

my torso tilts slightly to the left,

counterbalancing the heavy, lidded, five-gallon

plastic bucket in my right hand.

A cornucopia of slops

plops into the big bin beside the garden—

rotting plate scrapings, banana peels, wadded tea bags—

reminders of weeks of fine food and companionship,

whose odor now is an earthy, almost-pleasant putrid,

far distant on the fragrance spectrum

from that of baking bread.

Our leavings now are ready for worms and microbes to enjoy

while making soil in which to grow fresh meals.

I add a comfortable