decide

to rest

to heal

to create

to share

to help

to protect 

rhetorical

How lucky am I to see/notice/witness 
rainbows and moonbeams simultaneously :)

i tried..

I tried.. I tried.. I tried.. I understood.. I tolerated.. I bore the brunt of their unprocessed grief,
of their denial, of their conditioning.. I carried it for them as long as I could.. because
they weren’t ready — and maybe they’ll never be.. but that’s for them now, as it always was..
it was for them to hold, to carry, to grieve, to feel, to release.. it was always theirs but they
didn’t know how — I tried to show them.. they piled more on.. and left me with their.. their

I transformed their grief into joy, 

I transformed their hatred into motivation,

I transformed their pain into healing,

I transformed their hostility into imagination,

I transformed their sadness into creativity,

I did everything I could.. I tried.. until I couldn’t carry the weight any longer

I asked them to help pick up the slack

I told them I couldn’t shrink myself anymore

I tried

(Yes, you did.)

(you did everything you could)

(you did enough)

(you tried to show them how to transmute,

  you tried to show them how to be kind,

you tried to show them how to —

you were a child.. 

      they were supposed to take care of you

they were supposed to —

you did everything you could

you tried)

and that’s enough.

"free¿..dom..

Macro-society and micro-“family” force-fed you a tangled mesh of barbed-wire, 

      screaming, bleeding, crying, they continued to shove it down your throat

they tied your hands behind your back, your legs to the chairs’

they muted your screams with their hands, with dirty dish towels,

they ‘washed out your mouth’ with soap,

they punished you for repeating their words,

they blamed you for their in/actions,

they shamed you for bleeding when they cut you,

they mocked you when you cried,

they walked away and left you alone,

they —

And somehow.. somehow you were still able to ‘break free’

tattered, shattered, fractured, cut, bruised,

they broke “you”

and You were able to slip out of their bonds

you shifted and moved until the ties loosened,

you shrunk and slinked away,

They asked you to get back in the chair,

to tie yourself back up,

you said “no”

you ran,

they chased you,

they attacked you,

they dragged you back..

into their "home" lair

so you smiled and played along,

so they wouldn’t tie you up again

so they wouldn’t hurt you more than necessary..

                      [none of it was necessary]

you fawned to survive

you fawned to escape

they tried to guilt you to return,

but you escaped

You escaped.

they cannot hurt you anymore,

you are free.

they cannot hurt you anymore

only memories..

so much to untangle,

so much to release,

so much to grieve and heal, but

You are free now.

an abundance of love

I have a LOT of love to give
I have an abundance of love to give
and I understand how some people can feel overwhelmed by that.. I do
and I hope it helps to know that
      some of my love is for you, yes.. and
      some of my love is for me, and
      some of my love is for cats, and
      some of my love is for the stars, and
      some of my love is for the moon, and
      some of my love is for trees, and

      some of my love is for rain, and
      some of my love is for clouds, and
      some of my love is for dragonflies, and
      some of my love is for birds, and
      some of my love is for flowers, and
      some of my love is for bubbles, and
      some of my love is for food, and
      some of my love is for crafts, and 
      some of my love is for people who live near me (“neighbors”), and
      some of my love is for people who live far away from me
                                         (incl. those I may never meet), and

      some of my love is for people who cook and serve or deliver me food, and
      some of my love is for people who clean shared/public spaces, and 
      some of my love is for people who I only see once
                                         as we pass by each other on the street, and

      some of my love is for people who are thriving/celebrating, and
      some of my love is for people who are grieving, and
      some of my love is for people who are healing from
                                         similar circumstances as me, and

      some of my love is for people who are healing from
                                         different circumstances than me, and
      some of my love is for people who seem like they are stuck
                                         (who haven’t recognized their own ability.. yet), and

I have a LOT of love to give,
and that’s pretty darn awesome :)

enough

 i am enough,

and so are you.

 i have enough, i give enough, i do enough, i think enough, i rest enough,

and so do you.

we are enough.

How to Connect

Tick - tick

Press, click

port, then aft

Underneath

Three tips to the window

One spin up the wall

The velcro bits

stick - stick

Stuck

Don’t forget the glue

Extra sticky 

between the nails

peel and paste

Together we are one

and altogether now

One we are together

With hinges and bolts,

Strings and clips

Hanging

loosely attached

loosely we move and 

**WARNING: risk of damage

tumble, separate, fall

Strongly connected

Connected to support and allow

balance and flow

Not too tight, not too

too much, too little

right-left-right-left

Right there!

just right.

Just enough

The perfect goldilocks amount.

well done.

Created by Rose A. Fitzgerald during a Therapeutic Poetry Workshop courtesy of SocietyX with Lisa Ann Markuson regarding 'Conceptual Surrealism.'