Winter Evening Walking Meditation

candy1812/AdobeStock

POETRY

“Winter Evening Walking Meditation” was written during my time volunteering as a server for a silent meditation retreat, working to nurture a less selfish, more empathetic, and more patient mindset. It is also about being reminded of the impermanence of nature and finding appreciation and beauty in that transience rather than distracting oneself from that (at times) uncomfortable reality with extraneous stimulation.

Walking down a winding path,

The moon is full, pregnant and bright.

The winter breeze softens my heart,

I sit with myself this frosty night.

The geese call greetings across the lake.

Fog rolls gently, the bell hangs low.

Gleaming, as the path I take.

Silent, as its banks of snow.

Venus sings a radiant song,

Shadows the moon with tendrils long.

Breathing clouds at every turn,

We hold what wisdom we must learn.

Finding peace within the touch

Of mind’s finger finding its way,

Grateful for more than as much

As I am able to patiently stay.

The moonlight casts a net of dreams,

And the lake still simmering steams.

The footprints on ahead for now

The morning will have changed somehow.

Dr Fonseca is a fellow in consultation-liaison psychiatry at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, MN. Their current fellowship includes a special focus on transgender medicine and reproductive psychiatry. Within APA, they are the current APA Diversity Leadership and SAMHSA Fellowship chair, attending Board of Trustee meetings, and serving on the Council on Medical Education and Lifelong Learning liaising to the Council on Advocacy and Government Relations. They are also a current ACLP Webb Fellow, serving on the Medical Student Education Subcommittee.