These things I carry
My Iya asked me, “India, what is your way of life?” and all my words scurried away and went into hiding.
Who am I, I thought, without someone else telling me who I should be?
What is my way?
After turning the question over and over in my mind I found out that I was a collector and that what I’ve gathered is what others believed I should have to be well, to be safe, to be happy.
Many things I hold that I do not cherish.
Many things that I don’t believe do all that others have said they’ll do.
Nonetheless I carry them still.
What would happen if I carried new things?
Set one thing down for another that I knew for true would
bring me peace, joy and protection?
Things that I’ve experienced for myself…in my spirit, in my body.
Would that be okay?
Is it okay to collect the things that please me and me only?
Can my life be a treasure trove of my own making?
These things I carry. These things I wonder.