Washing Dishes

A waterfall hums as it descends into the sink
Rapidly rising, it becomes quite deep
Bathers jump in with their shampoo
Scrubbing and rinsing, becoming like new
A bather got in a fight with a sponge
The latter dived in and made a quick lunge
The bather could not dodge the attack
And was thrown from the pool cleansed of grease and fat-back
The other bathers slowly followed in suit
Scrubbed clean from pizza and some moldy green soup
One by one they were tossed from the lake
So tired from swimming they were barely awake
They were carefully dried and tucked in on the shelf
So exhausted were they, they could do nothing else
The pond slowly, quietly gurgled away
As the waterfall slept waiting for the next day

~2005

Never Alone

There is within each person a deep longing to belong, to have a place, to not be alone. Every day we are surrounded by people. Every day we have the opportunity to speak, listen and make a change. It is also true that on some days we feel desperately lonely. It is like we speak and aren’t heard, we listen and aren’t spoken to, we try to change and nothing works. Is any of this true? Probably not. But deep down, does the truth of the question matter? Deep down, what matters in that moment is that we feel alone. We don’t care about the truth when caught in such emotion. I certainly don’t.

And it isn’t really that I don’t know the truth. I know that I am one not alone. It comes down to the fact that my desperate wave of loneliness is a feeling. It is a place that moves me… usually to tears I must admit, but nevertheless it is motion. Motion moves us. I know, what a drastic declaration, revelation, and inspiration. Motion moves us. This changes the question from “Is any of this true?” to “Where are you moving?” Where are you moving? Is the fear of being lonely moving you in circles? Or is this place, this place that moves me, taking me back to the truth? I am I able to release all of the emotional backup (think clogged toilet) that has been blinding me to the truth? Am I able to live the truth again? Yes. I am one not alone. I have the opportunity to speak, listen and make a change. I can shape the future. And I am one not alone.