Saturday, October 31, 2020

Passive

there once was a man
who said nothing
he neither signed with his 
hands nor spoke
with his voice
and all who passed him
were shocked at his complacency
it is easier this way,
he thought.

there once was a woman
who never expressed herself
she neither wrote nor
gave space for her opinion
and all who met her
were dismayed at her passivity
it is better this way,
she thought.

there once was a crowd
who saw murders
and cowards
and hatred go viral
and spread across the land
and they signed nothing
and they said nothing
and they did nothing
until they chose to understand
and seek restitution
and tear down the statues
and build up compassion
and look clearly at themselves
are you that person ?
are the same ?
will this all repeat ?
or will we change ?

there once was a time
when I could not sit
elbow to elbow
with you, at the counter.
there once was an 
accepted norm
that women could not 
and should not, vote.
and we look upon these
ideas as outlandish and
discriminating and unfounded.
we shake our heads in anger
and ask HOW
could we have allowed this
to happen ?

but what about NOW ?
tell me, what about Now.

there once was a person
who DID something
and they poured out 
the power from their pen
and they advocated for the truth
at every chance they had to
and they to make a difference
and then they did.

~

RN

Friday, October 30, 2020

interrogation

removed of your mask
your cape
your cloak
your feathers
who are you
without your costume
who are you
without the choices
you make
who are you
without your beliefs
who are you ???

~

RN

Thursday, October 29, 2020

when the trees

when the lizard blinks,
i blink
when the cardinal cheeps,
i call
when the flowers shimmy
in the breeze
i feel them
and when the trees are cut down,
i fall.

~

RN

Saturday, October 24, 2020

wholeness

wholeness, he said,
was already contained
in the self, and
yet was not
"self."
but what if the wholeness
has been "we"
all along
unity over division
we are, instead of,
i am.

~

RN

Thursday, October 15, 2020

unattached

he said it was freedom
to be unburdened
by the past
to be unattached
to the present
and to not worry
about the future
and i am still
not sure what he meant
but feel glimpses 
of it, under my skin.

~

RN

Saturday, October 10, 2020

scarf

in a chillier season
my heart is 
warmed
by the thoughts of our
smiles over coffee
our stories between
books and our friendships
like a scarf stretched
over states
we can snuggle into.

~

RN

Friday, October 9, 2020

belief

no one can walk
on water
without stillness
belief
and friendship
and then
anything is possible.

~

RN

Wednesday, October 7, 2020

wave after wave

it's not a line
or an ending
or a cut-off,
it's a perspective
how you imagine
the future unfolding for
you, wave after
wave...

~

RN

Monday, October 5, 2020

doing the rings

rungs on the ladder
like doing the rings
jumping feelings
having
no sight
for the ground.

~

RN

Thursday, October 1, 2020

through fire

i did not want
to walk through
fire
but i did,
for you,
over and over
again.

~

RN