this is what we are now,
haunting reflections
of lives half-lived,
crushed together in shifting compartments
crowded under the weight of moremorefasterbiggerbettermustmusthavehavingandnot
less room to stretch and grow,
to stand upright confidently and move with ease,
running from the natural rhythms
of the light and green world,
following paved paths
and the trailing lights of others
trudging ahead in line.
the girl next to me
pleads to God
in exquisite blue cursive
as I sit in awe of the artful way
she is searching for support,
and I want to leap over the vast barrier
of these mere inches
and hug her and
beam love into her dark moment.
I need you to step beyond the boxed lines,
I need to feel your heart SING,
to hear it ululate with the profound resonance
of dawn breaking over the ocean
of the stars wheeling above mountain crests,
to see you move as fluidly as your hair in the strong wind
of a bright summer day
unfettered and electric,
to see the smile not just on your lips
but also in every cell of your being
until you are on fire with joy
and contagiously sharing with everyone else
all of the love this world needs,
that these bodies were made to give.