Why I Do What I Do

I wasn't born

in a trash heap,

but I heard of someone

who was.

He met a writer-philosopher

who came to observe life

in a trash heap in Mexico,

and the trash heap man implored:

"You write about me.

I was born in this trash heap.

I live my life in this trash heap.

I will die in this trash heap.

I will be buried in this trash heap.

Write about me.

Tell them: " 'I was here.' "

There's only One Life,

and you and I and the trash heap man

are each an integral part of it.

I do what I do

because I want the world to know

I was here.

Everyone does.

And yet, every one, every thing

that ever existed, exists or will be

is known in the mind of God, the Designer,

and loved in the Heart of Reality,

whether a queen or a trash heap man

a lizard or a microbe.

And the reason I write poetry

or create art,

or play the harp

is only because

built into my dna,

my bio-chemistry

urges me to purpose,

and it is purpose

that shouts out

to the world:

 "I am here!"

So forgive me

if I tease out from you

a compliment,

a thank you,

a purr or leg rub,

even a criticism,

or if I create chaos

or vie for attention

in any way,

judged saintly or vile.

I only want someone

to affirm my existence.

I only want to take a deep breath

and with confidence, breathe out,

"I am here."

So yes, I WILL smile at you in the street,

I WILL help you without asking,

send you a card just for the hell of it.

I WILL avoid the squirrel racing across the road,

and help the turtle reach the road's edge,

and not crush the furry caterpillar.

(But to hell with the flies, ticks and mosquitos!)

I WILL condemn your faulty thinking

but will try to heal your brokenness,

to make your day more pleasant,

to encourage your purpose.

For when you fulfill YOUR purpose,

you make MY life easier,

and the world is a better place to be.

Selah.

agd - 7.15.2018 - Inspired by a story by Luis Alberto Urrea  during an interview on Krista Tippett's radio program "On Being"