When human errors flog us
when we must carry pain, heavy
as tragedies that turn us inward
like turtles inside grief’s shell, sorrows
heavy as mortgages on our backs
heavy as ever-increasing passwords
heavy as fallen statues, heavy
as motives beneath the question Why
when WHY is a lonely acronym
for When Hearts Yearn, slowly
then may we move, heart-to-heart
through questions of grief
who are we now
what will keep us breathing now
what does our spirit need now
until heart-to-heart, our yearnings
turn us toward love-beauty-kindness
life’s holy trinity
finally ready to shed grief’s shell
ready to protect the Salish Sea
the best we know how, for the SEA
carries Sacred Earth Answers to HOW
we Heal Our Wounds, hearts willing
NOW to Nurture Our World.
By Betty Scott