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THIS DOES NOT BELONG TO YOU by Salyna Gracie

How do we decide what is worth saving?...

This summer, a forest fire raged around moving hungrily through the trees. My land, my house, my family, the place where all the memories of the life I had lived could be gone in a moment. In those vivid and frightful days I found myself unattached to all of the things we had decorated our lives with. The people, the moments we spent hugging and laughing and crying were all that truly mattered. These are the gifts that make it a Home.
Artwork: "This does not belong to you" (collage with wax on panel) by the author

This Does Not Belong To You

Ask yourself
As you stand there
In the pale grey air
Frozen to these four walls
Feet turned to stone
Decide!
What is worth saving?

Can you will your hands
To grab the memories
You carry only in your heart
Can you pack your boxes full
With the laughter that rings in your ears

The clouds taunt you
Hurry!
There is no time left
Three red flags declare your fate
The defiance of your feet
The moan caught in your throat
Your hands still empty



Photography by Yuko Ishii 
Salyna Gracie is the director of Red Lotus Dance Company. She performs and teaches Middle Eastern Dance and facilitates the Red Lotus SEEDs program which mentors teen girls through dance at her studio in a small rural town in Washington state. Salyna’s dancing reflects a commitment to personal growth by internalizing rhythms and expressing emotion through the body – dancing from the heart. Poetry and visual art continue the conversation of dance with words and images that dance on the page. You may contact her through her website here and her artwork here. 


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  1. Maureen LancasterSeptember 17, 2023 at 7:05 AM

    such questions run through my mind...well versed, especially the last stanza :)

    ReplyDelete

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