After Emily Dickinson’s ‘hope is a thing with feathers’
“Yet, neer, in extremity,
it asked a crumb- of Me”
We pray with open palms and steady tongues
I say i have no idea what i want
but when i sit at the prayer mat,
both the tears and tongue will not stop.
I say I do not like living
and then i walk on the sidewalk,
and then i smile at strangers,
and then I tell my sister a story
and then i ask my mother if she needs help
Lets do that next time,
see you soon
I’ll add that to my list
I say I don’t feel beautiful
then I catch myself in the mirror
my brother’s smile looks back at me
and i love myself a little
I say life is meaningless and then
i try to make my friends laugh,
I listen to the birds
and whisper to the walls
i say there is no joy
and then i draw hearts on fogged up windows
ad then i watch the sky turn blue at sunrise
im learning to love
just because i can
i run
i say i am tired
and then i get out of bed,
even if just to stretch my limbs.
I’ll breathe a sigh
and try to sniff flowers and carve initials onto trees
I say I feel hopeless
and then
i hope, and hope
and hope.
