Into the Woods

When did it happen?
when the pain grew too dense
Where did it happen?
among the Northern Red Oak, Sugar Maple, and Eastern White Pine
No. Tell Me. Where did it happen?
in the bowl of the sacrum where new life is born
What’s your heart doing now?
still beating, circulating in freedom 

I really love how the prompts from Poetry Outdoors tend to speak to the very moment that I find myself in. For example, this poem writes to the experience of putting together the manuscript of my first poetry chapbook, and the archetypal theme of the dark forest that traces throughout. I know it may be some time before it enters the larger world (submission wait-times, etc.) but regardless of that, its creation has proclaimed a story to myself that I had not even realized I had written. When I came to the end of it, my heart was soaring with freedom and joy at the truth that sang from my own words. I did not even know that could happen!

This upcoming week, I will be away from Substack a bit, as I embark on my first writer’s residency at Looking Glass Arts. I was honored to be among the three chosen for this year’s Goldfinch Residency. I intend to take the time to connect with the beautiful land around me and to listen to the messages they have to tell me, and of course, to write.