The Struggle of Understanding
The struggle of understanding
Why, for what reason, who benefits, and more why
So often minds are clouded with questions
Seeking answers that hide in plain sight
Open your eyes, your ears, and your mind
Watch the world without trying to correct it
Or control it in any way, shape, or form
Let the land speak in its own slow grammar
A language that has been around forever
Therin lies the truths that were always there
The whisperings of the ancient trees
Not by metaphor, or announcements, but by presence
They’ve risen because rising is their way
Every inch of height shaped by what resisted it
Not what they resisted
True growth is not a victory dance
But the quiet negotiation between what you want
And what the world allows
That true strength is your bonus
As strength forms in that invisible tension
Moving water, streams, rivers, even the falling rain
Purposefully with direction, but never with rigidity
Water accepts the stone, the twisted limb, the narrow canyon
Yet still finds a way forward
Life is not blocked, only redirected from time to time
When the path changes shape, follow the new path
Often it leads to a place you could not have imagined
Look to the heights, the mountains speak in their booming voice
Endurance is not dramatic, it simply is the will to remain
They are carved by weather, yet never defined by it
What shows on the surface is nothing compared to beneath
Stability comes from standing fast, holding space
Even when everything around you seems to say otherwise
The sky teaches impermanence in so many ways
Clouds gather, dissolve, return in new forms
Never once apologizing for their change
In fact, never even speaking about it
Identity, like the weather, is not a fixed sculpture
Understand seasonal change does not reinvent you
Nor does it betray who you are inside
Small things too, speak their life lessons
Moss thrives in dim, overlooked places
Lichen shows the meaning of partnership
Each seed speaks of endings and beginnings
Energy exchanging and cycles evolving
Often at the same moment, but wearing different faces
And slowly, you begin to understand
Life is not a problem to solve, a race to be won,
But a great and glorious landscape to inhabit
You are meant to bend, to put down roots, to shed, and to rise
Time will shape you, reshape you, and do it again
For that is the lesson of nature
Shaped by time, by pressure, by light, by darkness
And by the quiet insistence to continue
Additional Reading
R.J. (Ralph) Schwartz is an American poet, author, website owner, and online publisher. His writing spans several poetry collections—ranging from spiritual and romantic to fear-driven explorations—and even extends into science fiction. Notable works include:
- Normal Was the First Casualty – A Collection of Dystopian Poetry
- Hope – Inspirational and Spiritual Poetry
- Things That Go Bump in the Night – Poetry of Fear and Fright
- The Lover’s Thread – Poetry for Couples
- Poetry of the Human Condition – The Ups and Downs of Modern Living
- The Secrets of the Moon (a sci-fi novel co-authored with his son Sebastian J. Schwartz)
Schwartz’s work is described as purposefully wordy, richly descriptive, and thematically grounded in nature, romance, antiquity, and forgotten histories. He writes regularly on platforms he manages, including The Creative Exiles, a collaborative venue for writers, and The Gypsy Thread, which delves into offbeat histories, pagan lore, and poetry.
- The Gunfight at the O.K. Corral - May 11, 2026
- The Spring Collection - May 8, 2026
- Faces Without Names - May 6, 2026
