How To Be A Person In The World
This poem is by the fabulous Lyndsay Rush (@maryoliversdrunkcousin). Her poetry beautifully and perfectly sums up the thoughts going through my mind recently during this dumpster fire called our country right now.
How to Be a Person in the World
Let the sorrow of it all sink deep into your bones
but don’t forget to finish the laundry
and water the lawn
and dry your eyes
Dream up a five year plan for your small business
while picturing your baby doing a lockdown drill in his kindergarten classroom
Discover new music
and laugh at new jokes
and let creativity dip from each of your fingertips
but be mindful that you have neighbors who are starving and dying and fighting for the most basic of freedoms
Look up how much protein you should be eating and also what to do if you’re in public with an active shooter
Get your moles checked
get your head checked
get a mammogram
and a grip
and the new thriller book everyone’s talking about on TikTok
but please, dear god, don’t forget the oceans!
the ozone layer!
the rhinos!
the emails!
the dogs and cats that need forever homes!
Try to grapple with the fact that your parents are starting to get old-old
but also with the future of AI
and the pending recession
and the billionaires
and the depth of division between you and so many people you love
It’s undeniable that everyone, everywhere is on the brink of losing their humanity
and their empathy
and their shit
but to be a person in the world is to do the impossible
every day
simply by keeping your eyes open
simply by getting out of bed
simply by facing these incomprehensible horrors
again and again
without somehow abandoning your joy.
– Lyndsay Rush