Transformation
Comes in many ways
In the quiet of contemplation
silence
chips away at the false self
revealing the precious
gem of true self
In the violence of trauma
often testing the limits
of what we think we can handle
shaken, confused, unsettled
something new emerges
it may be guarded and shy (that's okay)
but it is wiser
In the tears and pain of healing
some days baby steps
some days leaps
we may not regain what was lost
we find out strength
and possibly a super power
a growing capacity for
compassion, empathy, grace
In the "dirt" of praying
our blindness is removed and
we can see others and the world
with new eyes
our hearts of stone
are softened
we can offer
words of encouragement
and life
hands to help
tear down those things that
oppress and harm
build up
create, comfort, care
We experience
continues, intensifies, spreads
from us into
friends, family, society
out into the world.
I want to be transformed
But not yet,
Not really.
What am I waiting for?
I often wonder the reason
bread baking boomed
during lock down,
thousands intrigued
and flour-dusted
as the starters bloomed
within old pickle jars,
consuming, rising
on their own,
like sticky marshes
of yeast.
Did it rejuvenate
the world to realize
even within
our stagnation,
transformation
was still possible?
magic wand, poof
kiss a frog, poof
make a wish, poof
start and finish/done and done,
all in one, happy hollywood-style.
but what about just the starts?
do they count?
like seeing your church in the rear view mirror.
We talk about it,
transformation,
like a destination, a goal, a process
to complete, an improvement.
I wonder.
When the caterpillar feels
the pull to make a chrysalis,
does she know what she will be
on the other side?
And how long does it take
for her to understand
what it is to be a butterfly
what it is to be herself
what it is to
be.
The wires don’t have to touch
for the electricity to transfer;
it rolls like a wave being guided by the cord.
Perhaps I am the same;
my phases don’t need to touch.
In order to transform,
I must ride the wave
and leap.
My own transformation
is such a slow, painful process.
If only I could embody the rhythm
of the changing seasons
Frozen, dark and cold. No color. No life.
Brutal in its darkness. Then...
Ever so gently, color returns, blossoms,
Growth, sunlight warming and drawing out
new life. Always the knowing that the darkness will return, and yet, the promise of spring’s warmth and growth remains.
is constant and ongoing
within each of us
and all around us
When I take time to notice
the beauty, loss, and newness
of the transformations
happening all around me
And when I bring awareness
to the ongoing transformations
within me with a sense
of curiosity and wonder
I remember that transformation
isn’t a process of working
and striving for a transformed
state of being
But instead a process
of surrendering into what is
already occurring and trusting
the spiraled way it unfolds
When I remember this
I breathe deeper and
even for just a moment the
bigger transformations happening
feel less destabilizing
I've spent more than my fair share of time
becoming the person I thought
I was supposed to be.
It happened so slowly and so subtly
that for a long time I believed
it was actually me.
My biggest transformation by far
has been my unbecoming.
I am unraveling the complex web
of lies I have been told.
I am unloading what was
never mine to carry.
I am coming home
to myself.
Transformation in the moments of solitude and stillness
Peace in the patience of frugality waiting for the raised bed garden harvest
Transformation in the patience of celibacy waiting for a spiritual spring to bloom.
Peace in the steady path to victory over white supremacy, colonization and us versus them mentality.
Transformation in the reciprocity, joy in the reparations and a steady regeneration into a better way of living.
Your words really helped me today, thank you
Beautiful Kaitlin
Transformation is
Giving your inner child
What was always true
Thresholds of transitions
Uncomfortable liminal spaces
Yet
These are the entire point
These are the journey
Transformation happens.
Yet when it is happening to you
It is hard to see.
Others see it
Point it out.
They show you a ‘before’ photo.
Then call you to look in the mirror
So you can see what they see.
You are different.
You are changed.
You are still you, but you have grown into something new...for such a time as this.
Thankfully others see it...so you can, too.
In the ‘magical girl’ genre of anime there’s always a ‘transformation sequence’
A catchy song and a new wardrobe and accessories and “voila” in thirty seconds
The character is now ready to take on the villain and destroy Evil
(she always succeeds)
The transformation changes an ordinary girl into a
Magical and Powerful Heroine
(I see you Sailor Moon!)
I’m no magical girl, with a heart-shaped locket
And I don’t always beat Evil
(I Freeze--I don’t Fight)
But I’m showing up to try anyways
And that’s pretty heroic
For Me
Transformation
Comes in many ways
In the quiet of contemplation
silence
chips away at the false self
revealing the precious
gem of true self
In the violence of trauma
often testing the limits
of what we think we can handle
shaken, confused, unsettled
something new emerges
it may be guarded and shy (that's okay)
but it is wiser
In the tears and pain of healing
some days baby steps
some days leaps
we may not regain what was lost
we find out strength
and possibly a super power
a growing capacity for
compassion, empathy, grace
In the "dirt" of praying
our blindness is removed and
we can see others and the world
with new eyes
our hearts of stone
are softened
we can offer
words of encouragement
and life
hands to help
tear down those things that
oppress and harm
build up
create, comfort, care
Transformation
We experience
continues, intensifies, spreads
from us into
friends, family, society
out into the world.
I want to be transformed
But not yet,
Not really.
What am I waiting for?
I often wonder the reason
bread baking boomed
during lock down,
thousands intrigued
and flour-dusted
as the starters bloomed
within old pickle jars,
consuming, rising
on their own,
like sticky marshes
of yeast.
Did it rejuvenate
the world to realize
even within
our stagnation,
transformation
was still possible?
magic wand, poof
kiss a frog, poof
make a wish, poof
start and finish/done and done,
all in one, happy hollywood-style.
but what about just the starts?
do they count?
like seeing your church in the rear view mirror.
We talk about it,
transformation,
like a destination, a goal, a process
to complete, an improvement.
I wonder.
When the caterpillar feels
the pull to make a chrysalis,
does she know what she will be
on the other side?
And how long does it take
for her to understand
what it is to be a butterfly
what it is to be herself
what it is to
be.
The wires don’t have to touch
for the electricity to transfer;
it rolls like a wave being guided by the cord.
Perhaps I am the same;
my phases don’t need to touch.
In order to transform,
I must ride the wave
and leap.
My own transformation
is such a slow, painful process.
If only I could embody the rhythm
of the changing seasons
Frozen, dark and cold. No color. No life.
Brutal in its darkness. Then...
Ever so gently, color returns, blossoms,
Growth, sunlight warming and drawing out
new life. Always the knowing that the darkness will return, and yet, the promise of spring’s warmth and growth remains.
Transformation
is constant and ongoing
within each of us
and all around us
When I take time to notice
the beauty, loss, and newness
of the transformations
happening all around me
And when I bring awareness
to the ongoing transformations
within me with a sense
of curiosity and wonder
I remember that transformation
isn’t a process of working
and striving for a transformed
state of being
But instead a process
of surrendering into what is
already occurring and trusting
the spiraled way it unfolds
When I remember this
I breathe deeper and
even for just a moment the
bigger transformations happening
feel less destabilizing
I've spent more than my fair share of time
becoming the person I thought
I was supposed to be.
It happened so slowly and so subtly
that for a long time I believed
it was actually me.
My biggest transformation by far
has been my unbecoming.
I am unraveling the complex web
of lies I have been told.
I am unloading what was
never mine to carry.
I am coming home
to myself.
Transformation in the moments of solitude and stillness
Peace in the patience of frugality waiting for the raised bed garden harvest
Transformation in the patience of celibacy waiting for a spiritual spring to bloom.
Peace in the steady path to victory over white supremacy, colonization and us versus them mentality.
Transformation in the reciprocity, joy in the reparations and a steady regeneration into a better way of living.
Your words really helped me today, thank you
Beautiful Kaitlin
Transformation is
Giving your inner child
What was always true
Thresholds of transitions
Uncomfortable liminal spaces
Yet
These are the entire point
These are the journey
Transformation happens.
Yet when it is happening to you
It is hard to see.
Others see it
Point it out.
They show you a ‘before’ photo.
Then call you to look in the mirror
So you can see what they see.
You are different.
You are changed.
You are still you, but you have grown into something new...for such a time as this.
Transformation happens.
Thankfully others see it...so you can, too.
Transformation
In the ‘magical girl’ genre of anime there’s always a ‘transformation sequence’
A catchy song and a new wardrobe and accessories and “voila” in thirty seconds
The character is now ready to take on the villain and destroy Evil
(she always succeeds)
The transformation changes an ordinary girl into a
Magical and Powerful Heroine
(I see you Sailor Moon!)
I’m no magical girl, with a heart-shaped locket
And I don’t always beat Evil
(I Freeze--I don’t Fight)
But I’m showing up to try anyways
And that’s pretty heroic
For Me