Remember the sky that you were born under,
know each of the star’s stories.
Remember the moon, know who she is.
Remember the sun’s birth at dawn, that is the
strongest point of time. Remember sundown
and the giving away to night.
Remember your birth, how your mother struggled
to give you form and breath. You are evidence of
her life, and her mother’s, and hers.
Remember your father. He is your life, also.
Remember the earth whose skin you are:
red earth, black earth, yellow earth, white earth
brown earth, we are earth.
Remember the plants, trees, animal life who all have their
tribes, their families, their histories, too. Talk to them,
listen to them. They are alive poems.
Remember the wind. Remember her voice. She knows the
origin of this universe.
Remember you are all people and all people
are you.
Remember you are this universe and this
universe is you.
Remember all is in motion, is growing, is you.
Remember language comes from this.
Remember the dance language is, that life is.
Remember.
“Remember.” Copyright © 1983 by Joy Harjo from She Had Some Horses by Joy Harjo. Used by permission of W. W. Norton & Company, Inc.
To be the name uttered, but not to have the burden to be To be the name said, but not heard To not breathe anymore, to be the thing To be the thing being breathed To not be about to die, to be already dead To not have to disappoint To not have the burden of being late Or punctual To not eat, to not have to eat To not feel anything To not be the one whose affect is criticized To not pick up the fallen over boxes To be everywhere but the boxes or plates To not break the plates To be beyond breaking To have been broken To not bear the burden of not being present To not have to feel the pain of being hurt To have transferred that pain over So that hurt is only part of the imagination And the imagination is everywhere, is every color To not contain color, to be color To not make sound, to be sound To not have language, to echo, to plan language To be the stream of words To not be sad for To not have those to be sad for To not eat alone To not fuck those who do not find your corpse attractive To not fuck Or stuff To be ashes and non-placed Not displaced, but to not be in any place To enter the ocean on not a whim, but a physical force Where there is no center Where there is no safety There never was There was never any anger There was never anything to look at I never looked at anything I just went and walked I tried to love But love is hopeless And I have lost all hope, so bleak I am beyond I am beyond what might be considered low There is low nor high, space or time, I have Gone away from that which is uttered I have not burdened to be spoken of or spoken for To croak everyday to the livelong bog I do not speak a thing I exist No, no I don't I never did And you may have But I never did And you may have called out for me But I was already gone And I am already there That which you speak of I am already spoken for In a world of light and ashes They all call my name They have waited for me And now I know I was always Already there With them
Copyright © 2011 by Dorothea Lasky. Used with permission of the author.