Holding

A Peace That Never Left

It was in the willingness

to stand still

for just a moment

when there was no time

to stand still,

to stop trying so hard

to be better,

to meet whatever appeared —

even if it was nothing

at all.

It was in the persistence

of holding my ground —

even if that very ground

seemed shakey

and dissolved

into the nothing.

It was here

that I found a peace

that never left.

Holding

An Unspoken Truce

At a certain point,

it became clear

that relief must come

at once,

in the form of

a respite,

an unspoken truce —

in the middle of

all that remained

unhealed

and unsettled.

And so I entered

the place beyond thought.

And though the energy

of what was held there

was often intense,

it was always tender

to sink a little

further in,

to be willing

to allow the uneasiness

to be there

and to subside,

to see this place

outside of me —

to be okay

no matter what.