In memory of Diane K. Osborn
When the world seems to be falling apart,
When you are crouching in your closet
from the winds tearing off the roof of your home.
the waters rising from the rivers
the flames licking your ankles
marching in the street until
the sole removes from your shoe
and your hands are calloused
from holding up that sign.
You are eternally at rest.
There is a time to go off in the woods,
to dive into the ocean waves
to listen to the call of the Shama bird,
the night screeching of the barn owl,
to walk under a blanket of stars
so thick you can’t make out one constellation.
When you are stripped of your rights,
your dignity, and the agony is like a knife
trying to cut your soul in half, remember –
You are eternally at rest.
This is how we use our words,
how we love against hate,
how we know we are alive in between breaths,
This is how the truth arrives in an envelope
or on the wings of a white owl.
This is how when someone threatens
your family, your job, your income,
your healthcare, your life,
you know your life is not a plot. It is perfect.
You are eternally at rest.
<3