I’ve held it all in,
all the hopes and dreams,
the cries of despair…
Held it all in until today.
Until today when I felt this net of despair
fall over me choking me, strangling me,
blocking the air so I couldn’t breathe.
I saw her tears – Lady Liberty –
as we locked eyes and
knew in our hearts that
the soul of our nation is
now on the auction block.
I keened for hours in the woods.
Keened for what has already been lost…
what is currently being lost…
what is potentially still to come.
I made altars and offered ritual.
Screamed guttural prayers
to the Mother of All
that enough is enough!
Still the tears came,
but the keening vocals grew quieter
as I had no more to give.
Even the crows and hawks went silent
sensing a pause of sacred reverence.
Where to now I asked?
Where do you want to go She replied?
I don’t know.
I’m tired and disillusioned
and want to crawl into my cave
and have the Old Ones wrap
their arms around me.
Then that is what you do.
But before you go, you offer…
One last prayer to the dreamtime…
One last offering of hope planted
in these darkening times…
One last ritual of rebirth that even now
gestates in the womb of the Mother,
that gestates in the womb and heart of you…
One last offering given with all the fight of
the Warrioress that lives within you.
Then you rest and wait and trust
the Ancient Ones to guide you through
to the place of the next light.
What if there is no more light I ask?
Only darkness and evil?
Evil has and will always exist She said,
but so does the light.
Find that place and know
the light always returns.
Perhaps dimmed,
perhaps brightly illuminative,
but the light always returns.
Until that time…
Rest so you are able to still build
altars to new possibilities and
keen over the bones of what is lost.
Rest until that time you can
give voice to the both/and.
Until that time, vision and dream
and allow the Ancestors to wrap you in
ancient wisdom, ancient knowing
as you embrace the sacred dark.
Until such time the light rises like
the woman you are,
blazing and empowered
and screaming like the Banshee
taking no prisoners,
as you build altars to the sacred new.
As you remember you are a
Daughter of the Cosmic Mother…
Daughter of the As Above, So Below
you aspire to the heights and
plunge the depths as you
walk between the worlds.
So scream like the Banshee
and keen over the bones.
Light the fires of ritual
and offer prayers to the
Ancient and Future ones.
Though the world may change, and
perhaps Not in the way you desire,
you will survive and even prosper
IF you remember who you are
and the power you hold.
__________________________________________
The Place of the Next Light by Arlene Bailey, ©2020