Kaitlin, thank you so much for creating this space. My intention for 2022 was "write more poetry and listen to the plants" - the prompts you have offered have taken this to a deeper level. I've writing away, feeling so many feelings rise up and out, and since i'm doing all this outside - *listening* so much more. I am so grateful.
May 6, 2022·edited May 6, 2022Liked by Kaitlin Curtice
I remember one of my favorite professors talking about beliefs. Beliefs are like onions with core beliefs being deep down and hard to peel away. There are also surface level beliefs that get peeled away easily. Here is to the surface level beliefs.
They get peeled away easily but they can still be significant. Some times it may feel as though they go back and forth like a yoyo
I believe that the trauma of my past will haunt me forever.
I believe I can see the healing that I have been through.
I believe this dark night of the soul will never end.
I believe it should be dark KNIGHT of the soul because I am becoming a super hero.
I believe that I have no idea what I am doing putting words together and calling it poetry.
I believe that I am find my voice for the first time in my life from this experience.
The belief may yoyo to the bottom but it comes back up.
I wonder what I believe
that I didn't know I do.
A sort of living belief,
I suppose, the way that my
lungs inflate because it knows
the air is good. How the first
stretch of morning is the same
gesture of embracing a
loved one in surprise, and how
the corners of my lips turn
without thinking when we see
another’s joy. Things the mind
forgets, the body believes.
The only belief I want to hold onto
Is the belief in the force of Love
That holds us all together and
Draws us out of separation
Back into healing and wholeness
When I believe this
I remember and feel
Throughout my whole being
That I am apart of this Love
That I am whole and apart of the whole
belief and play-doh rules:
red always yields red.
blue always blue.
a good mix is more appealing,
but,
careful,
you can never go back.
and maybe that is best.
Often, we envision the word “belief”
like a house—
austere architecture,
immaculately maintained lawns,
stiff chairs,
untouchable trinkets and decor.
Only, the root word for “belief,”
“to care,” is more like a garden—
attended to,
it is generative though not performative,
seasonal,
unfinished, trimmable, and expansible.
There is a movie
A Christmas movie
And Christmas is a time that makes you believe.
There is a line
A line in that movie
“Seeing isn’t believing
Believing is
Seeing.”
But I believe *because* I see.
I see
Trees and bright blooming flowers.
I see
The foam of ocean waves meeting the shore.
I see
Children playing and people loving.
I believe because I see
What leads me to believe
There is more out there I can’t see.
Kaitlin, thank you so much for creating this space. My intention for 2022 was "write more poetry and listen to the plants" - the prompts you have offered have taken this to a deeper level. I've writing away, feeling so many feelings rise up and out, and since i'm doing all this outside - *listening* so much more. I am so grateful.
I have deconstructed my entire belief system.
There were cracks in the foundation,
and I started to see it all crumbling.
I didn't build it myself,
but I allowed it to stand, despite the danger.
It took so long to see how dangerous it was,
even as it harmed me,
even as it harmed those around me.
It took so long to realize I was responsible,
even if I didn't build it myself,
even if I didn't mean any harm.
I am rebuilding now.
Slowly.
Carefully.
I am determined for this new structure to be
a soft place to land,
a sanctuary.
I don't think I will ever be done
adjusting the plans,
making space for everyone.
There are far more skilled builders than I,
but I am learning.
I like to believe
that what I
believe to be true
has settled in my bones
but I am afraid
to make sure-
I would have to be broken
first.
today
was another sweaty garage hour
with my trainer and friend
I breathe and close my eyes,
push the bar up for
bench press
she spots me
we chat about hot topics
carefully
like they are dead lifts
spotting each other
with a weight of priority
on our friendship
we don't share belief
exactly
on all matters
45 pounds
75
150
we love each other
it wasn't always easy
curiosity and empathy
had to be secured
on the ends of the bar between us
with a clasp
now I understand more fully
that gold is in each of us
and cannot be seen as clearly
through the interwebs
What I Believe
-
-
That words are not enough
And maps can only guide
That roads that hurt by being rough
Also teach us as a guide
-
That light still conquers dark
Through time as well as space
That fires start best with spark
And warm us as we search for grace
This practice has been amazing for me— writing a poem first thing in the morning, and reading others’, is incredibly grounding. Here’s mine for today:
Belief
How do I hold you
without you transforming into something monstrous?
How do I cherish you
without you spreading through the well like strychnine?
You were my closest friend,
my only tenet of faith,
strong and secure,
unyielding,
unwavering,
unbreaking,
unassailable,
untouchable.
Then like a tsunami you yielded
You wavered
You broke
You were assailed
You were touched
by something greater and wilder and more reckless than yourself:
a world destroyed and shattered in every possible way:
Grace.
I believe there is more to reality
Than the realist say there is
I know this because it was whispered to me
From mystery
And mystery is more real than
Anything we will ever know for sure
This I do believe, and I think you do too.
belief beckons me.
also, belief eludes me.
belief is fluid.
I remember one of my favorite professors talking about beliefs. Beliefs are like onions with core beliefs being deep down and hard to peel away. There are also surface level beliefs that get peeled away easily. Here is to the surface level beliefs.
They get peeled away easily but they can still be significant. Some times it may feel as though they go back and forth like a yoyo
I believe that the trauma of my past will haunt me forever.
I believe I can see the healing that I have been through.
I believe this dark night of the soul will never end.
I believe it should be dark KNIGHT of the soul because I am becoming a super hero.
I believe that I have no idea what I am doing putting words together and calling it poetry.
I believe that I am find my voice for the first time in my life from this experience.
The belief may yoyo to the bottom but it comes back up.
Belief
A Thought
A Breath
A Hug
A new belief
Beyond belief
Belief
Belief
Belief in God can change and evolve, even as it remains constant.
Belief in others can fade when they show us yet again who they are, or strengthen as they do the same.
Belief in ourselves can be the most difficult….who are we to inspire such love, such faith, such trust?
We are love. We are strength. We are hope. We are courage. We are change.
-Karri Temple Brackett
May 6, 2022
http://themarvelousandthemundane.com/2022/05/06/belief/