Magnolia Blossoms and Rain

Branches heavy with magnolia blossoms and rain
bowed to the wet green earth 
as if in worship

The way we carry each other's burdens
not always able to see what is helpful 
and what is furthering harm

What is a lifeline
and what is enabling 
cycles and spirals of self-sabotage

The way a word can evoke a thousand 
stories and a single story 
can save a life

The crack of thunder that made me jump
whole body reflex 
take cover

You can cover the past 
but until you speak the truth 
you will never heal

How do we learn to give ourselves 
what we so desperately wanted 
from our mothers and fathers

And what of being the mothers
the fathers, trying to see in advance 
what our children will say we missed

The very nature of blind spots 
is that we don't know they're there 
until we know they're there

Best then to move slowly 
listening to the body, letting the blossoms
pull us towards the ground

The roots anchor us in the earth 
and some kind of sky sheltering us 
from being anything but kind to ourselves

as we grow