Community Symbiosis

I grew up

In the desert, an ecosystem

So delicate, every

Living thing must be

Sturdy to survive

The heat, the monsoon

Floods, every organism

Important, supporting the

Balance,

But depending largely on

Hearty

Solitude.

I grew accustomed to

Independence,

To existing; not thriving–

That would ask

Too much.

I stood tall and solemn,

A solo saguaro

Thirsting in the sun

For more, longing

To come alive.

***

I migrated

To places I didn't

Seem built for, but I adapted:

The backstabbing streets

Of lost angels, the thin mountain

Air a mile high,

Then finally landed

Here, guided by my

North Star,

I found

The love

I've been longing for:

Not just a system, but

A community

Built on kindness,

A warmth amidst

The freezing winds.

People caring for their

Neighbors, feeding those in

Need, fighting for the marginalized…

And I haven't made it

Yet through the Bible,

But I'm pretty sure this is

The kind of life on which Jesus

Preached:

Welcoming the

Stranger into a world

Inherited by the meek.

***

And the truth is

Goodness cannot exist

In a vacuum.

And honestly,

We need each

Other in order to thrive.

I thought I could do

Everything myself

(because it was dangerous

To depend on anyone else).

I thought I was strong,

Hiding my tears, fearing

I would be seen

As a burden,

Bearing my pain and

Anxieties on my own,

But it takes courage

To admit when

We can no longer

Carry it

Alone.

***

There's water aplenty

Here, vibrant green

Beneath snow.

Here is an ecosystem

Of abundance:

We give without

Expectation, and receive

What we need.

When we ask for help,

We let someone in

(A gift of

Itself) and how much

Lighter the load!

***

And in the end, isn't

This our purpose?

To love!

To reach out

Our hands, to fight back

Against systems

Built by those

Who could never understand:

The Empire of Greed.

We reject their version

Of reality,

And create the one

We want to see.

Our strength is in community,

And we cannot be separated

By arbitrary lines.

A kin-dom founded

On human kind.

***

This is how we save the world

One slim, bright hope

At a time.