Words of Promise

 

I'm back here again

in my window chair,

trying to grow my morning poems;

some words of promise

on sunlight yellow paper.

Always praying for

a shower of inspiration,

just a sprinkle of imagination,

an aspiring germination

to grow into creation.

With roots probing

into the fertile soil,

absorbing nourishment,

seeking a firm foundation

in the beloved earth.

© 2026 Richard Havenga

Photo Location: Home Library - Cannonsburg, Michigan

Breathe

 

My hope in writing,

is that the lines

in some of my poems

may breathe with insight.

Inhaling inspiration.

Exhaling satisfaction.

A discernable voice.

A distinctive vision.

© 2026 Richard Havenga

Photo Location: Rocky Mountain National Park - Colorado

A Gift to Yourself

 

There is more room to listen

when you choose to go outside.

There's an expansive space to contemplate.

Find your personal place to meditate.

It's easy to calm your own chatter,

to intentionally practice listening.

Ready to receive quiet inspiration.

A gift you can give yourself.

© 2024 Richard Havenga

Photo Locations:

1. Coronado Island - San Diego, California

2. Estero, Florida

3. Townsend Park - Kent County - Michigan

Access

Learn to recognize,
be aware of,
rely on,
the Holy Spirit within.

Learn to access
the creative energy
given
by our Creator God.

Learn to tap,
and expand,
the inspiration provided
by the Holy Spirit.

© 2024 Richard Havenga

Photo Location: LaJolla, California

Worthy

 

Harvesting these

seasons of the year,

the years of this life.

Standing at the edge of time,

watching the broad horizon,

grateful for abundant blessings.

Seeking deeper spiritual perception

by listening for the voice of God

in the wind, in the waves.

Praying for inspiration

from the Holy Spirit

to make these words

worthy to be read.

© 2024 Richard Havenga

Photo Locations:

1. Acadia, Michigan

2. & 3. Grand Haven State Park - Grand Haven, Michigan

Whispered Words

 

Walking slowly, stopping often,

under the green canopy

of these familiar woods.

I'm listening to the quiet.

Waiting for inspiration.

Absorbing secrets from the land.

Then a subtle breeze

begins to whisper words

I try to understand.

© 2023 Richard Havenga

Photo Location: Home Woods - Cannonsburg, Michigan

Thirteen Poets

 

I've blown the leaves,

pruned the shrubs, and

stacked the firewood.

Now the daylight

begins to fade.

After dinner, I will select

a book of poetry from the shelf,

and settle in for inspiration.

Now, how to choose

among my favorites:

Luci Shaw, Mary Oliver.

Dan Gerber, Ted Kooser.

David Whyte, David Lee.

Jane Kenyon, Naomi Shihab Nye.

William Stafford, Judith Minty.

Neruda, Rilke, Rumi.

And what poets

do you prefer,

dear reader?

© 2023 Richard Havenga

Photo Location: My Personal Library

Reaching for the Light

 

Carried by the current of creativity,

I search the inner landscape for inspiration.

Eager to enter new opportunities

for creative expression.

As these tendrils seek a higher position,

reaching for the light,

I offer this new invitation:

may you expand your love of the land. 

© 2022 Richard Havenga

Photo Location: Grattan Township - Kent County - Michigan

Watching Waiting Writing

 

I'm watching the long light of evening

spreading warmly across the clouds,

watching these words spreading warmly

across the long lines of this page.

Waiting for inspiration to arrive.

Working to reveal surrounding blessings.

Writing to share the miracles in nature.

Willing to live a life of profound attention.

Wanting just a little more time.

© 2022 Richard Havenga

Photo Location:

Big Crooked Lake - Kent County - Michigan

Comfort

 

I cannot explain it to you,

and I do not understand it myself,

but I am assured that the Holy Spirit

resides inscrutably inside my soul.

It's an intimate feeling of contentment;

a promise fulfilled.  

When I seek inspiration to write,

the Holy Spirit provides.

When I vow dedication to the work,

confirmation is received.

When I experience difficulty,

comfort is given.

© 2022 Richard Havenga

Taking Time

 

I wander the woods with wonder.

Taking my time, taking my poetry notebook.

Allowing my senses their freedom

to absorb, to accept this invitation.

I scrape dead leaves into a cushion,

and sit against a solid trunk of White Oak;

feeling the furrows and ridges of the bark

press into the muscles of my back.

Taking time to quiet my mind,

I let worldly thoughts settle into the soil.

Occupying this profound stillness,

I'm prepared for inspiration's embrace.

© 2021 Richard Havenga

Photo Locations:

1, 2, & 3. Home Woods - Cannonsburg, Michigan

Pentecost

"... they were gathered in one place, united in prayer." ~ Acts 2:1

Illumination
from the Holy Spirit
provides the light
by which we work.

Inhaled as inspiration,
changed from within,
released in a new form.

The breath becomes art.
The vision becomes mission:
The love must be lived.

© 2020 Richard Havenga

Photo Locations:

1. Pray, Montana

2. Home Woods - Cannonsburg, Michigan

3. Kent County - Michigan

A Container of Grace

As dusk dims
the day's light,
the evening wind sighs,
subsides.

My day has  been spent
watching,
and waiting,
and listening.

Collecting images.
Gathering words.
Trying always
to behold the Glory.

Combining:
the camera with the pen;
my eyes with imagination;
my mind with inspiration.

Waiting for this
container of grace
to be filled,
then poured out

onto this page,
so that my blessings
may be shared
with you.

© 2018 Richard Havenga

You may also enjoy: "Searching for Grace" ~ October 23, 2017

Photo Locations: 

1. Pickerel Lake Park - Fred Meijer Nature Preserve 

2. Home Woods - Cannonsburg, Michigan

3. Rogue River ~ Rockford, Michigan

4. Townsend Park - Kent County - Michigan

5. Home Woods - Cannonsburg, Michigan

6. St. Malo Catholic Church - Allenspark, Colorado

Still Listening

Clouds are clearing
as dusk darkens.

Stars, invisible in daylight,
renew their familiar geography.

Mystery is pulsing
through the universe.

The night wind whispers
through the trees.

Echoes from the past
embrace my heart and mind.

My soul is still listening
to the voice of God.

The Holy Spirit within
offers words of inspiration.

I've traveled many years to get here,
and still, I await the blessed hope.

© 2018 Richard Havenga

Photo Locations:

1. & 2. Catalina, Arizona

3. Home Woods - Cannonsburg, Michigan 

How These Words Became a Poem

They didn't form as slowly
as wood grain grows in trees.

They didn't appear instantly,
like a reflection on rippling water.

Some arrived while waiting
for late spring lilacs.

Others were surrounding me,
waiting to be recognized,
like the soft sound 
of summer breathing.

Ideas turned quietly
inside my head,
like our planet turns
silently in space.

Inspiration, 
craving expression,
came from God
speaking in silence,
like a candle flame. 

© 2016 Richard Havenga

Photo Locations:

1. Pickerel Lake Park - Kent County, Michigan

2. Home Garden - Cannonsburg, Michigan

3. South Dakota

4. NASA

5. Our Lady of Light Catholic Church - Estero, Florida

walk among the clouds

Clouds clinging to the earth.
Mountains creating rain showers.
I am standing in the sky,
walking among the clouds,
tasting the alpine winds,
waiting for inspiration.

© 2015 Richard Havenga

Photo Location:

Rocky Mountain National Park - Colorado 

God Whispers

Allow the eyes of your heart
to open with wonder
and see the gifts
that quietly surround you.

Let creative desire
wash over you
like the current 
surrounding boulders
in a cold mountain stream.

As you reach for the reverence
this moment is building toward,
let the silence surround you,
accepting words from that quiet voice;
the whispers from God.

Recognize the miraculous,
accept the Spirit's inspiration,
turn the voice into words;
write your own page of praise.

© 2015 Richard Havenga

Photo Locations:

1. Virgin River - "The Narrows" - Zion National Park, Utah 

2. Arkansas River - Buena Vista, Colorado

3. East River - Gothic, Colorado 

Within

Deep within you, dear reader,
can you feel that holy place;
a small sacristy, a little temple
illuminated from within?

Have you entered there lately,
to feel the warmth of the light
waiting to give you the gift
of inspiration?

Will it help you answer the desire,
accept the honor
to create beauty
in your world...

and find a suitable way
to recognize it,
to celebrate it,
to share it?

Now, your invitation:
Open the gift,
receive the light,
and grow in the way of grace.

© 2015 Richard Havenga

Photo Location:

Golden Gate Park - San Francisco, California