prose

What do six month roots look like?

A list:

Seeing more livestock than people in your average day

Baby plants and garlic bulbs in the now frozen ground, burrowed in for their long winter’s rest

noticing distinct lines in the seasons from hot, dry summer to windy, colorful fall, to snow covered mountains anticipating an ever darkening winter.

watching and syncing to the moon and sun cycles, knowing which stars to look for as seasons pass from one to the next

A deep appreciation, for all of these things that I neglected to notice living in the city

Daily and weekly rhythms, caregiving and kid activities that attempt to ground me

A dog that relentlessly pushes me to walk at least 5 miles a day, for her health as much as my own

Three little kitties that follow us around the yard with their little mew mews and their playful spirits, their tiny paw prints in the snow

A neighborhood bald eagle perched in one of our old trees, as well as two hooting owls in the next

A lingering Quiet and being comfortable being with myself, this must be peace

Cooking nourishing food nearly every night of the week, the removal of convenience replaced with hearty preparedness, knowing that there will always be more than enough

That feeling of coming home, whether from a day spent errand running in the city or from the long sense of drifting we experienced before landing in this place, we are here, right where we are meant to be, in this moment and with these people. And that is contentedness.

Portal

Noticing
A sparkly thin space that appears out of nowhere
Not all are able to see
Many will simply walk by
One must be paying close attention
Curiosity 
A spirit still alive in some, 
Lying dormant in others,
waiting for their moment to wake from a long slumber
Where do the awake and alive get to gather?
To Gather = Together
Speaking of things that sound like gibberish
Spirit this, curious that, the world in birthing pains to a new generation
The only way through is through
Some will turn back, pretend this was all a dream
Wrapped up in a denial blanket, deliciousness on the edge of smothering
Those that choose to bravely venture forward 
Choose to do so with the knowing that we don’t actually know a thing
Trusting that we have all we need for this journey
Into new places
New realms
New possibilities 

Yes, it requires a dying of the old,
But the new is just too juicy to ignore any longer
We’ll all go into these places at different times and at different rates of speed
Our destination is one of Opening,
Love,
Joy, 
Acceptance,
Belonging
Inhale, exhale, all are invited here
Will you dare to take the first unknown step?

>I submitted this piece of writing from a prompt on the word Portal to the Animas institute, a first for me! Check out their work at https://www.animas.org

Natalie asked me the other day, “mom, are you a writer?“ to which I asked what qualifies as a writer to her. She said writing something everyday, which yes I do, notebooks full actually. So here I am, I’m a writer.