If you come as softlyAs the wind within the treesYou may hear what I hearSee what sorrow sees. -from "If You Come Softly" by Audre Lorde Six months ago I wrote a piece about my corn plant that I had been slowly nursing back to health and how broken down things can be revived. Six… Continue reading Toward 34: “If You Come Softly”
Last night I tossed and turned, the air filled with a nightmare mix of air fresheners and bullets. This afternoon when I hit 'end' on my last call for the day, my body instantly doubled over, racked with uncontrollable tears, as I curled into a ball, holding myself and shaking. Daunte. Another name I should… Continue reading “We Go Out for Sweets & Come Back”
For the past few weeks the sun has decided to shine down on my slice of the Bay, bringing warmth and comfort as spring finally takes a steady hold of the land. I lift my head up to the sun each morning, close my eyes, and bask in delight as the rays dance across the… Continue reading A Winter of Loneliness, Exhaustion, Solitude, Rest, and Gratitude
I had only taken the first two steps into my bedroom in a lush Airbnb when I saw the message from my friend Jacqueline: OMG RBG. I knew what this message meant, and I quickly googled her name to reveal the long list of articles already written about her death at age 87 from complications… Continue reading In Search of Beginnings
For all I am For all I'm feeling I will be true and I will seek Gave away my pain And all the chains 'Cause I'm no slave Yeah For I am King For all I am My ancestors tell me so My blood it tells me so My being it tells me so -"I… Continue reading Grounding.
The staples of my desk at work consists of red chili pepper flakes, salt, a glass name plate, and a black and white photograph of James Baldwin. I am sure others wonder why I have a photograph of James Baldwin on my desk, when they have family photos and old cards, because I can see their quizzical… Continue reading On the Broken Nights, Generating Healing
I have a younger brother. He's now 21, but at one point he was 17, and wore hoodies, and snacked on Skittles just like Trayvon Martin. Being an older sibling is a very special role in one's life. I constantly "meddle" in my brother's affairs, wondering who he is dating, what classes he's taking, who… Continue reading The Gift of a Day, The Promise of Hope
I read a passage from a Bible sermon the other day online. The passage came from the Gospel of Mark and described when Mary the mother of James, Mary Magdalene, and Salome went to Jesus tomb to put spices on his body. When they were walking there they asked themselves who would roll the rock… Continue reading Second Miracles
Earth could be fair. And you and I must be free Not to save the world in a glorious crusade Not to kill ourselves with a nameless gnawing pain But to practice with all the skill of our being The art of making possible. -Nancy Scheibner October has a reputation for being the bottom of… Continue reading “The Art of Making Possible”
Last October, I finished reading James Orbinski’s An Imperfect Offering, which took a hard look at humanitarianism and politics. Orbinski’s job as head of Doctors Without Borders and his founding of Dignitas International exposed him to the type of preventable human suffering that raises a mountain of questions surrounding why things happen and how can… Continue reading Living My Questions
Odelia Younge 