Shaina, I just ... I honestly have no words. I am sitting in a corner of a hotel room in the dark while my non-binary kid sleeps, and was just yesterday talking with my sister, who was with us, about the reality that women have never been safe, how even the supposed best of recent history could not stomach rejecting attacks on women's bodies and senses of self.
Reading the first stanza, I felt that thrill of excitement of seeing someone who shares your thoughts and ideas, but crafts them into word-shapes entirely different and even more powerful. I had no idea that piece on borders would provide inspiration but it means *everything* to me that it has. Because when you wrote "I cannot complete this poem, because I cannot complete the task, which is to funnel our creative abundance no longer toward the skies, but toward one another," I both felt EXACTLY the same because that is what I want people to take from the work I do, find ways to turn toward one another (all of life) and find their own work within that; and because it's exactly what you're doing here.
I am excited to print this out. And just so you know the reverberations it will have, I recently started meeting with two local women who would really like to start taking their writing seriously. They are both poets! This is perfect for them, and for me.
Here's to a world without barbed wire, and without borders imposed on the unwilling. ❤️🔥
Antonia, this comment means the absolute world to me. Thank you so much for spending time with my words. I could not have found them had I not spent so much time with yours in the past year—not only your writing on barbed wire and borders, but the deep spirituality that inhabits your work. And I agree, seeing your words take root and produce fruit in someone else’s ecosystem is the best complement. Thank you also for sharing my poems with friends. I can’t express how much that means to me. Bless you, my friend.
Just got this from one of the local friends I sent this to:
"This is beautiful writing. I sensed her continuously "working" the poem as I read through. I love that she goes into prose at the end, which gives an unfinished sense to a "finished" piece...a layer of metaphor that beautifully links to the unfinished work of finding spirituality, healing the wounds of our society, of mothering, of life. As she extends the question out to the reader, there's a reaching for community that feels eternally unfinished."
Incredibly beautiful, Shaina. I love watching what you've grown and nurtured in your own spirituality and journey. I almost feel like there's something new being born or reborn, in finding ways to bring the spirituality and the physical, real world in all its forms together.
Your blessings are wending their way through my community!
"When you finally breach the border—a border policed by white Christian men who cannot know the ways their narrative weight has landed on your body—you find, in its place, a tall and spacious playground" 🔥
I listened while I was driving to school pick up Shaina. Wow there are just so many beautiful dimensions to this, I am going to relisten (or maybe try to print? My tech skills are also lacking lol) the poem about the room of men gave me a visceral reaction - and the theft of horizon ❤️🩹 so beautiful. Worth the wait.
Thank you so much! Knowing you and a handful of others are out there with desires shaped so closely to mine made it possible for me to find this language. Also, please print it lol. I was up until 4 a.m. twice this week formatting and figuring it out, which was completely unnecessary, but now I need someone to print it 😂
Thanks for reminding me to read this! I started when you first published and then Life happened. Good stuff. Gonna listen to your narration, as well—your poetry has a great spoken word quality to it, and I'm excited to hear it in your voice.
I'll have more thoughts later, and will give more thought to how to finish the poem, since that's what you requested. But I also wanted to jot down some quick links to things this reminded me of:
2. Twelve years ago (!!) I went to Wild Goose Festival where I went to a talk by the Homebrewed Christianity podcast founder, Tripp Fuller. He talked about hats he'd seen around that said "(a)theist," so you're not sure if the wearer is, you know, "a theist" or "an atheist." He made his own hats in response that said "hypertheist"—"god is always bursting into our world through every seam; god is the possibility for good and when you actually look around god is everywhere." Not sure if this resonates, but I thought the "(a)theist" hat probably would! 😂 You might enjoy Homebrewed Christianity? I found it super helpful/interesting for a few years. https://trippfuller.com/category/podcast/
Oh, another thing the post reminded me of that quote, attributed to Rumi, about the field. "Out beyond ideas of right and wrong is a f̶i̶e̶l̶d̶ playground—will I meet you there?"
Shaina, I just ... I honestly have no words. I am sitting in a corner of a hotel room in the dark while my non-binary kid sleeps, and was just yesterday talking with my sister, who was with us, about the reality that women have never been safe, how even the supposed best of recent history could not stomach rejecting attacks on women's bodies and senses of self.
Reading the first stanza, I felt that thrill of excitement of seeing someone who shares your thoughts and ideas, but crafts them into word-shapes entirely different and even more powerful. I had no idea that piece on borders would provide inspiration but it means *everything* to me that it has. Because when you wrote "I cannot complete this poem, because I cannot complete the task, which is to funnel our creative abundance no longer toward the skies, but toward one another," I both felt EXACTLY the same because that is what I want people to take from the work I do, find ways to turn toward one another (all of life) and find their own work within that; and because it's exactly what you're doing here.
I am excited to print this out. And just so you know the reverberations it will have, I recently started meeting with two local women who would really like to start taking their writing seriously. They are both poets! This is perfect for them, and for me.
Here's to a world without barbed wire, and without borders imposed on the unwilling. ❤️🔥
Antonia, this comment means the absolute world to me. Thank you so much for spending time with my words. I could not have found them had I not spent so much time with yours in the past year—not only your writing on barbed wire and borders, but the deep spirituality that inhabits your work. And I agree, seeing your words take root and produce fruit in someone else’s ecosystem is the best complement. Thank you also for sharing my poems with friends. I can’t express how much that means to me. Bless you, my friend.
Just got this from one of the local friends I sent this to:
"This is beautiful writing. I sensed her continuously "working" the poem as I read through. I love that she goes into prose at the end, which gives an unfinished sense to a "finished" piece...a layer of metaphor that beautifully links to the unfinished work of finding spirituality, healing the wounds of our society, of mothering, of life. As she extends the question out to the reader, there's a reaching for community that feels eternally unfinished."
Oh, thank you so much! This feedback is so delightful, and it means the world to me that you are sharing my work!
Incredibly beautiful, Shaina. I love watching what you've grown and nurtured in your own spirituality and journey. I almost feel like there's something new being born or reborn, in finding ways to bring the spirituality and the physical, real world in all its forms together.
Your blessings are wending their way through my community!
One day we are going to talk and talk about these things, on your front porch or mine. 🖤
Yes, please!
"When you finally breach the border—a border policed by white Christian men who cannot know the ways their narrative weight has landed on your body—you find, in its place, a tall and spacious playground" 🔥
Thank you for reading!
I listened while I was driving to school pick up Shaina. Wow there are just so many beautiful dimensions to this, I am going to relisten (or maybe try to print? My tech skills are also lacking lol) the poem about the room of men gave me a visceral reaction - and the theft of horizon ❤️🩹 so beautiful. Worth the wait.
Thank you so much! Knowing you and a handful of others are out there with desires shaped so closely to mine made it possible for me to find this language. Also, please print it lol. I was up until 4 a.m. twice this week formatting and figuring it out, which was completely unnecessary, but now I need someone to print it 😂
I will!
Thanks for reminding me to read this! I started when you first published and then Life happened. Good stuff. Gonna listen to your narration, as well—your poetry has a great spoken word quality to it, and I'm excited to hear it in your voice.
I'll have more thoughts later, and will give more thought to how to finish the poem, since that's what you requested. But I also wanted to jot down some quick links to things this reminded me of:
1. Some of your themes and rhythms reminded me of Levi The Poet. I liked the whole Cataracts album, but this is the specific track that came to mind: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fywHsfyYYhE&list=PLtrwcm8liyqD97XbuUBhxsM8wFzmDajy4&index=7
2. Twelve years ago (!!) I went to Wild Goose Festival where I went to a talk by the Homebrewed Christianity podcast founder, Tripp Fuller. He talked about hats he'd seen around that said "(a)theist," so you're not sure if the wearer is, you know, "a theist" or "an atheist." He made his own hats in response that said "hypertheist"—"god is always bursting into our world through every seam; god is the possibility for good and when you actually look around god is everywhere." Not sure if this resonates, but I thought the "(a)theist" hat probably would! 😂 You might enjoy Homebrewed Christianity? I found it super helpful/interesting for a few years. https://trippfuller.com/category/podcast/
Thanks for the link! I look forward to checking them out.
Oh, another thing the post reminded me of that quote, attributed to Rumi, about the field. "Out beyond ideas of right and wrong is a f̶i̶e̶l̶d̶ playground—will I meet you there?"
This is in a song I used to sing to my kids as a lullaby, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OgCTwTV-IQ4 (I wrote a poem about singing them this song! https://github.com/chadoh/poemey-writes/blob/main/23/old-lullabies.md)