A few years ago during a whimsical conversation a friend asked if I had a body part that I liked the most... Without thinking much, I declared it to be my toes. They’re a point of connection with the earth. They give me stability when I stand and the means of moving rapidly from one stance or posture to another. And, when they wiggle - I giggle. It was, after all, a whimsical conversation. Her question popped into my head again a few days later and niggled at me. After a few more days, this poem fell out of my heart. I was immediately struck by the realization that while this poem authentically describes how I feel about my aging, softening, Buddha-round, imperfect body, it’s not how I most often act or talk about myself. I act as if I am broken and must be fixed, or as if I’m damaged and should be avoided or even discarded. I act the way I’ve been socialized to act. That disconnect between what I believe about my body and how I act about it may promp...
Women's Spiritual Poetry