Where once tidal waves lived
Calm waters slowly lap the shore
I wanted to destroy cities
To ensure my own destruction
I wanted to drown the whole world
So I couldn’t hear my own thoughts
But the cities held strong against me
My energy began to wane with the moon
And my waves absorbed the heat of the sun
And the screams in my head
Started to sound more like laughter
And fear began to give way to understanding
Until I felt a part of the world again
Until purpose smoothed me into glass
And I could be the gentle lap
The cities came to visit
To calm their own tidal waves
HASTYWORDS 
One of my favorite Zen stories comes to mind:
Great Waves
In the early days of the Meiji era there lived a well-known wrestler called O-nami, Great Waves.
O-nami was immensely strong and knew the art of wrestling. In his private bouts he defeated even his teacher, but in public he was so bashful that his own pupils threw him.
O- nami felt he should go to a Zen master for help. Hakuju, a wandering teacher, was stopping in a little temple nearby, so O-nami went to see him and told him of his trouble.
‘Great Waves is your name,’ the teacher advised,’ so stay in this temple tonight. Imagine that you are those billows. You are no longer a wrestler who is afraid. You are those huge waves sweeping everything before them, swallowing all in their path. Do this and you will be the greatest wrestler in the land.’
The teacher retired. O-nami sat in meditation trying to imagine himself as waves. He thought of many different things. Then gradually he turned more and more to the feelings of the waves. As the night advanced the waves became larger and larger. They swept away the flowers in their vases. Even the Buddha in the shrine was inundated. Before dawn the temple
was nothing but the ebb and flow of an immense sea.
In the morning the teacher found O-nami meditating, a faint smile on his face. He patted the wrestlers shoulder. ‘Now nothing can disturb you.’ he said. ‘You are the waves. You will sweep everything before you.’
The same day O-nami entered the wrestling contests and won. After that, no one in Japan was able to defeat him
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Reblogged this on cabbagesandkings524 and commented:
HASTY = Waves
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That city acts, as a, counter to the storm you’re, experiencing, it acts as, a, comparison basis, to remind you, to, keep calm, and, sometimes, it works, sometimes, it doesn’t, when it doesn’t, you just, let it all, loose, shouldn’t hold it in, as it’s not, good for you to, but, do make sure, that you get the city evacuated first, before, your, tsunami crash down, otherwise, there will be, casualties…
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You must be a beach person. I’d love to know the story behind this poem. What prompted it?
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I love the ocean but live in Oklahoma. No ocean = 🙁 the poem is about learning to control my emotions. Learning to ground. Severe anxiety lead to 6 months of no sleep and that led to a suicidal depression. During the final month before diagnosis I was the tidal wave. After medication ,good sleep, and a few years of therapy I started my journey toward calm waters. ❤️
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I’m not sure what prompted it other than I feel like I’ve come a very long way 🌸
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Wow, that’s got to be inspiring to others who have anxiety and depression. I’m glad you’re doing better!
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I think this is my favorite of your’s so far.
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🌸🌸🌸🌸
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