Fine good raw true {a poem}

Fine, you say.
But you are raw.
Good, you say,
and grateful, too.
But your reserves
are low
so even an ordinary
teenage tiff
sends you
over the edge
where so many truths
huddle together
as if to keep
each other
warm.

If you wonder
why you’re a live wire
consider the conditions -
Covid to climate change
chronic capitalism
ism ism ism ism
a country
where speed
is a way of life

Catch a break
Catch your breath
Birthrights become luxuries
and on the inside so many
are raging and tired
rather than nourished and flourishing

Tonight you saw a video
a woman was saying
she was tired of the world
and wanted to turn
it off
like a show on Netflix
It made you nod and also sad

Also spring
is here
open windows and skin
exposed to fresh air
green shoots poking up
through last year’s leaves

All glory glory hope and hallelujah
running to a fast beat
surprising yourself
that the rest paid off
and here you are
strong somehow

Mind body spirit soul
Your own wisdom
comes as a surprise
as does how flummoxed
you get
where you don’t know the way
forward
What comes naturally
holding space for others
becomes a blank
when it happens
at your own table

Slowly you pull yourself
back from the dangling precipice
(Breathe)
Find the words
Not everything needs to be solved
fixed resolved or even understood
Sometimes the best you can get
is when you end up
laughing over ice cream
and not seeing each other’s
point of view
agreeing to not figure it out
at least not tonight

Poetry, prayer, protest, protection
praxis, practice, privilege, primary
colors back to back
back to basics
what are the basics
what is essential

Fine good raw true
When it’s all too much
you long for space
and simplicity
these come in bouts
and little bursts
let these count

No such thing as perfect
No such thing as right
and wrong
(Or is there?)

Tomorrow maybe
you’ll write a lovesong
(Or maybe you just did)