To all my friends who are and who are not freaking out right now

Crisis is unpredictable and scary.
You cannot tell where all
the pieces will land,
and many of them are sharp

and heavy and need
constant flipping and turning over
to make them fit just so.
But with all the pieces

in motion, it is perhaps a good time
to grab one (or two)
and help it find a better
place and shape. Hey —

we know many pieces
have been tumbling in the air
long past time;
perhaps you forgot they were there,

or didn’t see
who had to hold and flip over
each one, jagged and heavy
years on end.

So, change your mind.
Be gentle. Be clear-eyed.
Catch, flip, round off,
place as if you are planting it

under the feet of your own, small child
who will wonder
about you
as time turns forward

and why you left everything
just so.
And she will only have these bare pieces
to tell her.

7 responses to “To all my friends who are and who are not freaking out right now”

  1. Thank you for the calm and considered tone, view, words. This dovetailed so well with a book I just finished (The Serviceberry by Robin Wall Kimmerer)—a reminder that we can do something, that our words and actions and attitudes can and will make a difference. And therefore we should speak and do and radiate (?) that attitude.

    Liked by 1 person

  2. Thank you for these words and the calm and considered tone. I love this idea of turning over and examining thoughts, actions, possibilities. A needed reminder for me that words, actions, attitudes can and will make a difference.

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