Layers of life
Roots become tree
Leaves sprout
The promise of life
Blossoms fragrance the air
Fruit bursts forth
Abundant
Nourishing
Sweet, delicious flesh
Leaves fall, feeding the earth
Bare branches spent
Let in the light
Season after season
Nature’s purpose known
From one soul, many gifts
Effortless
The beauty is in the offering
This poem came from an exercise I did recently for a writing class. It’s hard to say that I wrote this poem; it just sort of flowed out of me. Even more surprising was the message that came to me after the poem was finished with me.
Ease the fuck up!
The words came out of nowhere. Though it seemed a bit at odds with the tone and character of the poem, I instantly knew the message was true. And I laughed.
At some point, or maybe many points, we question our purpose in life. I have. I still do. I’ve spent a lot of time contemplating my purpose since I abandoned the B&B business idea. I’ve wondered what can I, what should I do with my life now before it’s too late.
Before it’s too late.
That statement is fraught with lack and grasping. As if nothing I have done before now has been purposeful and that I am running out of time.
That poem was sent to remind me that our life is our purpose. The gifts we bestow to the world around us may change with the seasons but we are always in service. It’s also a reminder that small actions have big implications. Implications we can’t begin to know or understand.
Do you find yourself struggling, resisting, grasping? I see it a lot these days among friends and strangers, at social gatherings and on social media. In these uncertain times, so many feel the need to act, to do something … anything. They are feeling the need to make a difference. But it feels like desperation, and nothing good ever came from a place of desperation.
What if you just eased the fuck up and trusted that whatever you’re doing, even not doing, is enough—at any given moment, on any given day—and that you’re perfect? Period.
Try that. I am.