why do I work so hard to locate myself,
identify my coordinates, map my body in relation
to where the earth is, scan the horizon for street signs,
crossing guards, traffic cops, familiar landmarks,
hold my compass so it is only pointing north,
take careful steps in case I have to retrace them,
light the lanterns in preparation for the confusion of darkness,
leave instructions, flight plans, itineraries in the event
I must be retrieved from the land of the lost?
why do I do this when the trip is imprecise
and the road is haphazardly moving from one state
to the next, impromptu switchbacks and deadends and
gravel-less detours? why do I try to pinpoint
anything more than where I know myself to be
when there are hardly any words better than "I am here"?
3 comments:
Dear Maya,
Hello, my name is Kaori and I wrote you a comment a while back asking if I can quote you on my blog or not. I just wanted to write to say I'm sorry I approached you the way I did. I love and respect your writing very much and the way I wrote to you was not the best way to show my respect. (And I would have written sooner but I was very busy for the last week or so.) I don't even remember exactly what I wrote but I remember I didn't leave my name but just my email address. I think it was the fact that I was writing in the comment section that made me a bit conscious of leaving my information. (And I'm sorry I'm writing through your comments again, this is the only way I know to reach you.)
Anyway, I just wanted to say I'm sorry for being rude and if I offended you. I'm not writing in hopes to hear back from you personally or to get your answer on the quoting issue (I haven't and will not without your consent). But I just wanted to apologize.
Thank you always for all the inspiration and beauty you bring with your writing.
Sincerely,
Kaori Ikeda
I love this poem.
Just love it!
Dear Maya:
Today I wrote in a friend's wedding guest book the following passage.
"Much of life comes down to knowing who you are and where you belong in the world."
So maybe that's why.
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