I go to the woods to feel safe;
when I know, alone,
walking deeper until I’m lost,
I am little Red to the Wolf.
Still, my heart rests.
It doesn’t switch between
fight or flight like it does
in the moment I approach
a bus stop full of people
and cross to the other street.
I keep my ear buds in
with no music on
and wrap my coat even tighter
around me, and I feel
nothing and I hear
everything.
A squirrel shaking an acorn
or anything it can get its hands on.
Birds pottering about in the shrubs
or fussing over nests in the tree tops.
The wind, or the soft patter of rain
through the sparse canopy.
Barks in the distance
and the squeaks of swings.
Ripples in the lake
and the trickling of a stream.
My footsteps, flat footed
yet small.
The movement of cloud,
the twinkling sound sunlight
makes as it falls through.
The earth. The creaks
as it moves and the groaning
of roots.
My breathing,
my heartbeat
and my stillness
even though I am walking.
I do not feel
the thoughts which haunt me.
I let go, unconsciously.
I am conscious only
to the world around me
and I am thankful
for its willingness
to include me.
© Kristiana Reed 2019
Love this!
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Thank you ☺️
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Very beautiful! You had me hooked from the first few lines.
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Thank you so much 🙂
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You’re welcome!
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