Writings by Members
Haiku poem from Gary Bickel
Nuran, sweet presence.
A twinkling smile, and gentle…
Friendliness itself.
(In memory of Nuran Miller, April 03)
A Memorial Service for Peter Rabenold was held under the care of Patuxent Friends Meeting on Saturday, March 17, 2007.
Peter experienced a major turning point in his life in 1980, when he found a spiritual home with the Religious Society of Friends. He placed an advertisement in the local newspaper asking, “Are there any Quakers left in Southern Maryland?” Receiving responses from a small number of Friends, he became a founding member of the Patuxent Friends Meeting. Through the years, Peter proved to be a much-loved elder of the meeting. He encouraged Friends to explore and share the progress of their spiritual journeys. He expressed his own spiritual journey through his journal and hundreds of haiku poems that he left in the care of Friends. Peter was also active in the wider Quaker community, contributing time, energy and resources to the Quaker Universalist Fellowship and the Quaker United Nations Office, among others.
Peter's family and many more of us, whose lives were touched by his, will miss him. Peter’s life spoke well.
Peter, unspoiled mind.
Wholly one with the Spirit's
Gracious, loving heart.
Chris Teater, 2007 in memory of Peter
The spirit connects Even when two are apart. They ride the same wave. (June 05) |
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Girl skips to granma's (April 05) |
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| Sunbeams descending Mineral bubbles rising Floating Ecstacy. (Feb 05) |
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 Can a religion Based on love have boundaries When love flows freely? (Jan 05) |
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| By their icy coats The trees sparkle and reveal Their divine light. (Dec 04) |
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| Thanks for the sharing Of love and peace to come. From this gathering. (Nov 04) |
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| Geese over my house Wedging sky in southward flight. Honking autumn joy. (Oct 04) |
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| The Spirit connects Even when two are apart. They ride the same wave. (July 04) |
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| If one’s words are not Gentle and kind, one might find One has to eat them. (Apr 04) |
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| Bright red flower blooms Welcome me to a new day And start me out right. (Mar 04) |
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| No written words can Match a rainbow or the sound Of the wind in the trees. (Jan 04) |
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| To follow your heart But not leave your mind behind Sounds like good advice. (Dec 03) |
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| At least once a year Let us give thanks and love to Our fellow creatures. (Dec 03) |
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| The Spirit’s like a seed That grows in the dark within Then blooms in the light. (Nov 03) |
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| Life is a trust to Use well, enjoy, then give back When the time comes round. (Oct 03) |
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| As the sun is in The fragrance of a flower, God is within me. (Oct 03) |
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| When there is a Light Within you, your whole life has Luminosity. (Sept 03) |
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| It’s no small thing to Be at peace in a torn world And to live in love. (Aug 03) |
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| Let us share and hold In the Light another’s joys As well as sorrows. (July 03) |
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| Persuaded at last, A hummingbird tries and likes Our gay red feeder (May 03) |
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| Can a war be just That kills the innocent young Old, sick and infirm? (Apr 03) |
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| Lover of flowers And boxwood. Gentle and wise. Cherished soul partner. (In memory of Nuran Miller, February 03) |
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| What a joy to see Bright color emerge each year From a bulb so drab. (Feb 03) |
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| Out of the silence We can hear the harmony To which we can dance. (Feb 03) |
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| When all’s said and done At each year’s end we remain United by love. (Jan 03) |
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| Some Friends believe in The beyond which is within. That is their focus. (Jan 03) |
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| Midst the threats of war The trees bring their messages Of peace and beauty. (Dec 02) |
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| How can you be at Peace with all when you can’t Hear your own crying? (Dec 02) |
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| Peace from mad sniper And through three silent peace walks Is so comforting. (Nov 02) |
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| It is a wise man Who see himself in the all And the all in him. (Nov 02) |
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| Water, air, earth, fire And all living beings are Part of creation. (Oct 02) |
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| If you wish to soar, (Find the truth of your life), you Must sprout your own wings. (Oct 02) |
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| Clean water, life source For the whole of creation, Has to be conserved. (Sept 02) |
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| Could it be that those Who are closest to nature Are closest to God. (Sept 02) |
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| Illness could not dim The light from Gordon’s great art And his good nature. (July 02) (In memory of Gordon Jansson.) |
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| What a sight to see-- A yellow moon under a Pink cloud as dawn breaks. (July 02) |
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| Near my balcony A bluebird sings plaintively For a female mate. (July 02) |
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| Help given others Is much more than for payback, It’s for passing on. (June 02) |
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| Music and color More than inadequate words Describe the Divine. (April 02) |
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| May our seed within Become a blossom and the Blossom become fruit. (April 02) |
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| It is difficult To speak truth to power when Truth may not be clear. (March 02) |
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| Sometimes the Spirit Moves us gently and sometimes It shoves us rudely. (March 02) |
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| Peace means preserving Life, not taking it, for all Of life is sacred. (February 02) |
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| All faiths are windows Through which the Light passes both Inward and outward. (February 02) |
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| Peace may end conflict But needs positive caring Attention to last. (January 02) |
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| Like her lively wit, Mary’s fire in the belly Could never be quenched. (January 02) (Mary Jansson, who passed away just after Christmas, 2001, was a spiritual force in our circle of Friends. We will continue to hold her spirit in our hearts and be better for her lasting influence. Peter offered the preceding Haiku in her memory.) |
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| Midst thorns the cactus Splurges its gorgeous blossoms And allays our fears. |
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| An eye for an eye And a tooth for a tooth beget Blindness and hunger. |
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| To cure poverty, Hunger, disease and despair, I pledge my support. |
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| Man’s will to power Leads more to terror and war Than to love and peace. |
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| For Friends the term "Light" Whether inner or outer, Means "enlightenment." |
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| Whether it's perceived As from within or without The Light is one whole |
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| A jolly good laugh Can be the closest distance Between two persons. |
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| No matter how strong Human power may become Nature will prevail. |
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| How precious it is To find a F/friend who shares your Spiritual path. |
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| Seeking and finding Truth from whatever source is So spirit-filling. |
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| Mystics of all faiths Have simply sought unity With reality. |
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| Wise old sayings are there for us to savor and feed our hungry souls. |
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| How enlightening is spiritual wisdom from ageless mystics. |
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| Can we be at peace while not compassionate toward All living creatures? |
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| What has more value Than clean air, clean water, and Clean soil we live from? |
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| A second flower like Iris now graces our delighted meeting. |
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| Discrimination is anti—love of neighbor taught by Jesus Christ. |
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| Warfare to counter terrorism may also bring terror and death. |
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| When discouraged and reaching the end of your rope tie a knot and swing. |
From Ben Gorton-Williams (Age 10)
Quiet, careful, and nice
Unusually peaceful
Always people from
Korea to North America
Each has different thoughts.
Remember to come to meeting.
410-394-1233