Member-only story
Poetry
Wind, Wave, Current, Tide
Everyone is human — it’s the most interesting thing about us.
When a person expresses their humanity,
They are holding open the door to to let us in.
Take a good look.
Mark the moment when they ask the important questions,
When they share the painful details of their life,
And perhaps most of all, when they have faith enough
To ask us for what they need. Not to be whole, just
To get through to the next hard thing.
Don’t forget, you are human, too. No one expects you
To be perfect, or to perpetually avoid the warm rub of conflict.
Our ability to gracefully embrace conflict makes us human.
We stand up and say, this is who I am; or, this is wrong.
No other human has an obligation to make us happy.
Neither should we sacrifice our humanity
To avoid rocking the small boats that come our way.
Boats are built for rocking, and no boat gets across even
A small pond without a little buck and sway.
It is the friction of oars against water that moves a boat forward.
Turn the blade of the paddle and the boat goes nowhere.
It is the insistent breath of the wind that fills the sails.
The glassy mirror of a tranquil sea is only attractive on…
