Be Gentle

February 12, 2020 4 Comments

At IISC we believe that collaboration is possible if we focus on results, process, and relationships. We also understand that it’s hard to collaborate and do the work of racial equity if we pressure ourselves to work and “do” at a pace that depletes us and keeps us from experiencing our humanness and connection with each other. I offer this poem in that spirit to all our friends and visitors.

Be Gentle

Be gentle on yourself

Like lapping waters drifting to your toes

A kitten’s cuddle at your calves

The nestled warmth of glowing ember

 

We are stretching too hard

Too thin

Breaking spirits

Twisting lives

 

Northeast dwellers haunted by those that arrived at Plymouth rock

Who created an epicenter of work til you drop

And colonize til you drop

And enslave until you profit

Working working working themselves

Working working working stolen people

on stolen land

 

This we have inherited

A ceaseless mantra in our head that

More needs more

More needs to be created

And more needs to be sustained

 

And we get sick

And we yell at each other

And train our kids and workers to emulate the same

Hurting our hearts

Our earth

And our births

 

We need not look far for models to reclaim our humanity

The way we treated earth as wondrous toddlers

The circles of the Wampanoags and First Nations

Rituals and spirituals of Africans

Buddhists and indigenous religions

Peace makers

Healers

And lovers

 

To simply breathe

Walk slowly with intention

Hold each other in times of conflict in circle

Sing songs of cherishment and liberation

Listen until someone is truly finished

Share meals and libations

Till and protect our earth together

And fearlessly love

 

We are enough

Right now

Right here

 

To silence the frenetic finger on the text and keyboard

To engage in single task to explore our natural focus

To walk slowly

To lie down for rest and nap

To embrace a friend, child, elder or lover

To take stock of our mind and body

To eat well

Think well

And make brighter decisions

 

So we can turn around

And notice

this

beautiful world.