Responding to the World

"How are you responding to what is going on in the world?" they asked.

Unwilling to collude with the unspoken equation of "the world" with the US political theater,

I answered:

I am responding to the world by singing praises to the mountains each morning
by noticing the way the wind shifts and swirls through the valley that homes me

I am responding to the world by digging my fingers into the soil pulling a dandelion root,
by whispering my thanks as I lay it out to dry for medicine

I am responding to the world by breathing in the fragrance of the old rose that climbs out from behind the boxwood,
by inviting its molecules to mingle with mine

I am responding to the world by listening to the symphony of water as it tumbles into my bucket,
by carrying it sloshing, to the animals thirsty for nourishment

I am responding to the world by offering a prayer to the wood nettles as I snap their stems,
by harvesting them as food for my body while honoring the life we intimately share.

How are you responding to what is going on in the world?