May We... (A Prayer)
This year, we are grateful to the many women who have shared their voices and their stories with us here on The Refined Woman.
Last month we featured our first poet, Danielle Bennett, and her inspirational piece She Rally; and her words resonated with all of us who needed to be reminded that we are strong enough to weather whatever storm we might encounter. This month we are so excited to reflect with Danielle again as she shares a vision for Thanksgiving, full of light and love.
May We... (A Prayer)
We spend an entire day choosing how to flavor the room
My mother’s warm laugh fills a broken house & lights the candles
I sit next to the bouquet of brilliant thunder I fell in love with
We all hold each other’s hands like they are worthy of it
We invite the scars & trophies to share their stories &
honor them like elders
We laugh & cry in the same measure
When someone spills their wine,
we bless the stain & refill their glass with stars
We only pick up our knives to use with food
One by one
we thank
those we attempted to love before we knew what loving really was,those who stayed when we couldn’t understand why,the river that bore us here,the ways fog has taught us to trust,the way it reminds us we are giant vapor,buzzing for a time like exactly right now
No one rushes to finish
My sisters mop the floor with doowop dancing
There is healing in their hips
If words create worlds,
then somewhere
this is real for us.
Somewhere we understand abundance
not as an IV drip, but as a flood waiting for us to swim
We know the only thing we need more of
is simplicity. Nothing is missing.
Everything belongs but we choose
to sniff out the cinnamon in a moment &
when delight creeps in,
the way it does
when we are brimming with gratitude,
we allow it.
