On Becoming Sharp

It feels nice to be back. This is a reminder to myself, but I hope other vulnerable people who are struggling right now find it helpful, too.

Photo by Manki Kim on Unsplash

My dear,
please know this:
your energy is sacred -
so don't allow anyone
to dim your shine.

And yes,
sometimes
we all need reminders:
that your attention,
that your effort,
matters.

So focus your power:
shape it to a point so fine
and hone it till it's sharper than
all the terrors closing in
around you.

Polish your soul
until it gleams,
so that everyone who glimpses you
can see
that your tempered gaze can slice
through earth,
through sky,
through sea,
through flame,
through all their poisoned words
and all of their deceptive games.

My dear,
you were made
for far greater things
than simply to comfort
those who are indifferent
to the harm they cause.

The system will not save you.
Institutions will not shelter you.
And I am sorry -
so sorry -
to say this, but
so many self-proclaimed allies
will never see your suffering,
will never see the way you bleed,
and no, they will not hear your cries
even as you scream.

My dear,
you were not made for this:
your ancestors did not live and die
to watch you waste your precious life
in agony and anguish.

They chose their battles carefully,
they sang and danced,
sowed seed and prayed,
and worked to birth a kinder world
with just one goal in mind:
they did it all for you -
so that your priceless soul
could thrive.

My dear,
if nothing else you know
feels true,
then please remember:
your anger, yes, is sacred,
but your labor is divine.

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