POETRY: Why I Write

I write from deep in my gut, from the root

that tethers me to the Earth.

I write to open my eyes and my heart.

I write to greet my Self; to access the

stifled, silenced me. The deeper, quieter,

truer Self than the one who shows up

to punch the clock every day.

I write to soothe my confusion

from the world, from the people in my life,

from circumstances I cannot control or explain.

I write to command my surface Self to take a back seat,

be quiet, watch, and listen.

I write to regulate and integrate; to disengage from distraction,

stress, grief, misperception, confusion.

I write to slip back into the ever flowing,

seamless stream of the Universe. In writing, I abandon

paddles, fins, rafts, buoys . . . yes, I remember

to float and be carried along by the stream

of my greater Knowing.

I write to strengthen and refresh my connection to my Self,

to the Earth, and to recall that—from whence I came

is also that which will heal me.

I write to share the joy of a bright blue summer sky,

the bliss of a fresh, warm breeze lifting my hair,

stroking my cheek, the quiet susurration of leaves above, full of

birdsong lullabies, confirming what I know in my heart to be true—

All is well.

I write to be perfectly, unapologetically, and utterly myself.