Existing Through Me

     Our past is where the roots of our family legacy can be found. Reflecting on how that legacy is showing up in our present moment is often the work of artists/authors/activists/creatives. In this poem, the “she” represents the spirit of many things; from people to land. It is thinking about my grandmother and my grandfather's first time back in Palestine after being in the North America for over 20 years. They only returned a couple times during their lifetimes.  A big part of my time in Palestine focused on discovering my heritage and spending time with my family. Many of my family elders in North America would have made the trip with me had they not been sick or already passed away. Time goes by so fast. I was going to our homeland and taking them with me in spirit.

     The poem starts out with my roots and legacy dying, but that was just an illusion. The roots were becoming an even deeper part of who I am. Just as Palestine and her people always were...the children’s smiles, the limestone sand, the mint tea, and the activists asking me to join them.  
 

      This poem reflects a choice. A choice that many of us face no matter what our ethnicity or religion. A time comes where we have to make a choice. A choice to deny or embrace who we truly are and where we come from. In this poem, see that my spirit is a blending of the past with the present… my existence is a renewal... a renewing...a renewing of: legacy, love, family, ethnicity, and a renewing of spirit...woven within a declaration of identity.   

Poem Excerpt:

Existing Through Me

 

I die in my drying roots. Waiting patiently.
As patient as a crow waiting for perfect wind
and perfect wind never comes.
Water still falls.
Crying out,
her,
crying her out, 
but she is never gone
her essence
lining the breath just between then and now.

Written by Micaela Kaibni Raen