Tucked in the back is a gathering of chairs waiting for poets.  Up front, tourists browse amid what the owners call “a living museum”, hand painted replicas of the historical buildings of old San Juan, originals paintings and soul searching poetry.  This is The Poet’s Passage.

Actually its the 2nd location, newly opened, right next to a Starbucks off of the Plaza de Armas.  The original, opened in 2008,is a couple of blocks from the Catedral de San Juan Bautista (built in 1521, it is one of San Juan’s oldest structures and houses the remains of Ponce de Leon.)

On my recent trip to Puerto Rico, I fell in love with both of their locations and purchased a beautiful print by Nico Thommosin and one of Lady Lee Andrews’ poems.

I wanted to share with you the poem:

Let Me Think of Life

Let me think of life

for a moment

while I breath.

Let me know inside

There’s a space

where I believe

A space with a reason

That can not be seen

without the truth

forseeing the evidence

Between the lines

Of time and youth

Let me rest within

And hear the sounds

of being whole

Let me bring my body

To the level of my soul.

Manifest my strength

Reaffirm the source

Define my own awareness

As skill takes on its course.

In the realm of the Divine

One sees what must be sought

and will control the mind

when pain invades the thought.

Lady Lee Andrews

Bringing home artwork from a trip is a great way to stay reconnected to the creative outlet of travel.  Every time I read this poem I will remember the joy of walking the cobblestoned streets of Old San Juan, marveling at the old Spanish colonial buildings, the smell of fried plantains wafting down the alley ways and the street cats sprawled in spots of sunshine.

Check out The Poet’s Passage to learn more about their art and poetry.