S2 E7: “Not What” by Mary Jo Malo

Posted byRebecca BuddPosted inPoetry in the Evening, Reading RoomTags:, , ,

Welcome to Poetry in the Evening.  

I am on a nature walk along the Vancouver Seawall with a poem by Mary Jo Malo.  

Please join me in reciting “Not What” by poet, Mary Jo Malo.

Not What

Who spoke into being
lily, sparrow,
redwood tree
and galaxies?

Who lavishes light
upon our eyes
and deepens shadow
for rest at night?

Who cries out wisdom,
the way of love?
Who liberates 
the heart with law?

Who calls each one
by our secret name
that none but Him
has ever heard?

Who is and has
the first and last? 
Not what, but who.
Undying Word


Mary Jo Malo

Seeking For Happiness By Ella Wheeler Wilcox – Rebecca's Reading Room

S2 E13: Seeking For Happiness By Ella Wheeler Wilcox     Seeking for happiness we must go slowly;          The road leads not down avenues of haste;     But often gently winds through by ways lowly,          Whose hidden pleasures are serene and chaste     Seeking for happiness we must take heed     Of simple joys that are not found in speed.     Eager for noon-time's large effulgent splendour,          Too oft we miss the beauty of the dawn,     Which tiptoes by us, evanescent, tender,          Its pure delights unrecognised till gone.     Seeking for happiness we needs must care     For all the little things that make life fair.     Dreaming of future pleasures and achievements          We must not let to-day starve at our door;     Nor wait till after losses and bereavements          Before we count the riches in our store.     Seeking for happiness we must prize this –     Not what will be, or was, but that which IS.     In simple pathways hand in hand with duty          (With faith and love, too, ever at her side),     May happiness be met in all her beauty          The while we search for her both far and wide.     Seeking for happiness we find the way     Doing the things we ought to do each day. Photography and poetry recitation by Rebecca Budd Music by Gavin Luke “All That You Will Be” #EpidemicSound https://www.epidemicsound.com/track/PbIHP0zsMX/ Location:  Simon Fraser University, Burnaby Campus

Published by Rebecca Budd

Blogger, Visual Storyteller, Podcaster, Traveler and Life-long Learner

9 thoughts on “S2 E7: “Not What” by Mary Jo Malo”

  2. Thank you for the lovely surprise, Rebecca. I’m honored to be among your selected authors. For some reason I hadn’t seen your Reading Room blog but am delighted now to be a follower. Hugs+++

    Liked by 1 person

    1. Rebecca’s Reading Room is a new project that has been in the back of my mind for several years. As you know I have been reading poetry out loud and wanted to a space to bring them altogether. Poetry is a gift to the world. Thank you for your poetry which has added depth to my experience and understanding..

      Liked by 1 person

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