When times feel heavy (a poem)

When times feel heavy

Remember that you are not Atlas

Made to hold the heavens upon your shoulders.

No single being

Is meant to hold the weight of the world.

If you find yourself wading

In a torrent

Of heartache,

Slow down—

Allow your tears to flow

Grace yourself with time to feel your emotions

And grieve.

And then remember,

The counterbalance

To all this suffering is

Love.

And community.

Connection.

Look into the eyes of a child, a beloved, or a stranger.

Listen.

And allow yourself to be heard.

This communion heals the world.

As a spider weaves a delicate-yet-indestructible web,

These moments of kindness

Create a multi-dimensional network

Of love.

Healing the world

Inch by inch.