Witch

The mind’s eye knows
What the physical eye does not see,
It understands what the heart denies,
I laid a table with some trifles,
Momentary thoughts made visible,
Placed a bowl of stones,
So pretty,
Made candles glow,
Cinnamon sprig for scents so lovely,
I adorn and go,
But then return,
Something calls me to the setting,
This is my space,
What am I forgetting?
Charms of luck,
Of thoughtful teachers,
I’ve a space fit for a priestess,
I gaze upon the temple I’ve created,
And see myself reflected,
An image either I avoided,
Or could not see,
My naturistic heart,
At peace,
The mother womb,
Experienced with patience,
Has waited long for this realization,
Viewing this my altar,
I am more than I thought I was to be,
The title tastes like copper on my tongue,
Savory and forbidden,
I accept the honor be it bestowed,
In name I shall try on,
My ancestors are with me
Helping me to take the mantle,
To acknowledge their often fatal sacrifice,
For sacred craft,
From core realized,
I accept this name,
This gift,
Breathing out I speak it,
“Witch”.

Guarding the Sanctuary

Heart heavy as hallowed space is again desecrated,
Spilling blood at worship,
Taking life before it’s due,
To feed the hate machine
–The machine churning out young angry men,
To do its bidding,
Placing blame for economic shame,
Hardships, losses
On those who have no input,
No contribution to another’s plight,
But hate blurs
And conspiracies abound,
To feed, feed, feed, the machine,
For she is hungry,
And hate only breeds more hate,
And soon more will be shed,
Until the machine is brought to heel,
But it’s inner workings are a maze,
Of white supremacy, antisemitism, islamophobia, vengeance seeking,
All vying to make their bullet marks,
Where heads are bowed and guard is down,
Where peaceable minds are taken advantage of,
And turning the cheek is being abused,
Our sanctuaries are fortresses now,
Guarding from unknown,
as yet to be hostilities,
We come to worship peacefully,
May it be in peace;
And for those lives lost,
may they be at peace.

Sanctuaries

Sanctuaries burn,
Lost are histories, memories,
Artifacts turned to ash,
Only stories are those locked in physical memory,
Lost are homes for souls in search of space,
In search of sacred ground,
Sanctuaries burn,
The world over,
And tears fall,
Tears fall,
That cannot out the flames.