Mercy

Give yourself twelve moons
start with the fullest point
collect all the things
you say about yourself,
the hardness, the brittle thoughts
the lack of kindness, the things
you would never say to a dearest friend,
but you say to yourself with ease
and learned repetition
these endless thoughts that have
have carved caverns in your mind

At the fullest point when
when the wolves howl
beside those creeks
and the moon hangs
above the fir trees
let those things go
to the milky silence
watch the moon wane
into the darkness
until your vitriol disappears

Give yourself twelve moons,
start with the point of disappearance
when the owl hoots its wisdom
collect all the things that are good,
everything that is gracious
about you, the generous you, the one
who loves tiny things that no one notices,
the one who lights a room
and watch that moon wax until
it reaches its fullness,
just as you too will bear the light

Grant yourself mercy
grant yourself peace
grant yourself twelve moons
of mercy, heal yourself
with forgiveness and release
and perhaps,
having lived these cycles
of intentional contemplation,
the whole world
might just be healed.

© Tanya Southey
#52words52weeks