i went out into the world

and saw many broken things

and somehow i found myself

feeling like they were all my

job to change

 

and then i discovered that it was

simply too much for one heart

to bear–and completely beyond

my skillset alone

 

and i crawled into bed more than

a bit battered and bruised and

protected my heart fierce lest it

should shatter

 

and when i peeped back out from under

the covers, i resolved to never do life

in that particular manner again

 

i still wanted to empathy spread

far and wide

 

i still wanted to be part of things that

are healing and freedom bringing

 

i still wanted a life full of purpose and

meaning

 

but now i let the weight of responsibility

for everything else slide right off my shoulders

and only foster specific things

 

things within my skillset, things that i

have the power and capacity to do

and i also allow for space that

nourishes and replenishes me

to keep on moving

 

it’s not that i care any less about

the world at large or that my passion

has decreased, but now i take

what i have been given

and make it into more

 

and trust that others will do the same

and that we will carry the weight

of the world, not alone,

but together

 

brick by brick, stone by stone

one precious individual

at a time

valued

 

–i’m still not afraid to try on big things, just living with a different perspective

 

Heather Pound 2023

Photo by Nina Strehl on Unsplash