We watched clouds gather
Towering over us all
Menacing columns
Shelter from chaos
Hold tightly to those you love
As the storm rages
Tides will rise and fall
Through every challenge, seek light
Never doubt your strength
We had quite a few family members and friends in the path of Hurricane Harvey this weekend. I’ve sent up countless prayers and will continue doing so, but know that prayers aren’t enough unless we help out in material ways. I hate the feeling of helplessness such storms bring.
Sighs
By Leslie Noyes
Whisper on the wind
Exhale an aggravation
The universe hears
Barely audible
A cry of untold anguish
Stifled, but still felt
Her sighs have meaning
As conduits for her pain
He misreads them all
Surrendering to Love
By Leslie Noyes
Hate is thick out there
Marching through the city streets
Tearing us apart
Love is present, too
Quieter, yet pervasive
Calling for action
Now we have the choice
To which do we surrender?
I'll always choose love
Darkness falls away
Tentative fingers grasping
Holding on to sleep
Fleet flashes of dreams
Images shift unbidden
Sifting in corners
Sunlit glimpses tug
Luring unwary sleepers
Lapsing reverie 
First, unclog your mind
Rid yourself of weighty thoughts
Then simply exhale
Open up your heart
Invite the whole world inside
That's the best advice 
Now, leap fearlessly
Behold the wide world below
Yearning to embrace
The blows never came
Even though the winds raged in gusts
Threatening her peace
She sheltered alone
Away from the crashing waves
Still, she gasped for breath
What would she gamble?
Her scarred heart, her battered soul,
To challenge the wind?
Wings appear fragile
Yet carry an angel’s weight
To heaven and back.
Invisible winds,
Can their currents carry us
Away, far away?
Will my feet hold firm
On this shifting gauzy sky,
A wispy cloud’s whim?
Silenced
by Leslie Noyes
A voice extinguished
While crying out for justice
Is a voice doubled
Strike down our protests
We will rise stronger, smarter
Listen to silence.
He never struck her
But silenced her all the same
Actions resonate
The Winds
by Leslie Noyes
Can you see the winds?
Or merely the dust they move?
Motes dancing on air
Particulates swirl
Rising high on thermal waves
Swept beyond borders
Across the oceans
Your specks mingle with my own
Touching the same light
In Control by Leslie Noyes
See this old witness?
She has seen every cold move
Nothing moves her now.
Look past her beauty
Don’t be fooled by winsomeness
She shot the sheriff
Do not blinfold her
She deserves to see her end
Always in control.
Praying for Eyebrowz 