We Are Indigo

Don’t Fear
a poem by Hannah LePage

Does it scare you that you will not be able to visit me when I am dead?
Are you afraid you will not know where to find me if you try and look?
Do you find it unsettling to think of me after I am no longer with you?
Don’t fear my passing. I will not be gone.
Don’t look for me. I will not be found in one place.
I am in the depths of your breath and the warmth of your skin.
You should not feel unsettled,
but rather peaceful, in knowing that you will never be alone.
You won’t need to keep a picture of me
or hoard my belongings in boxes. Those things are not me.
If you want to know me, know yourself.
If you want to remember me, remember yourself.
If you want to love me, love yourself.

I wrote this piece back in June while in Manhattan. I actually wasn’t inspired by death when I wrote the poem, but rather only my own precious life and those of my loved ones. It wasn’t until just yesterday, after the passing of a friend, that I reread my own words and felt the truth behind them resonate. If you’ve ever lost someone, especially of a young age, you know what a great difficulty it can be to make sense of.

I think during times of grief or loss, we so often feel alone and isolated, trapped inside our own pain and anger. During these times, we can be impossible to reach, even when surrounded by people. But death is something that we all will bear witness to and experience throughout our life, whether young or old. It is the only certainty that we all must face. What I am learning, day by day, is that we can find peace of mind in knowing that we don’t have to face it alone.

“Oh heart, if one should say to you that the soul perishes like the body, answer that the flower withers, but the seed remains.” - Kahlil Gibran

A poem of mine I recently recorded, called The Beat (lets overlook my sub par recording skills, thanks). Music is complements of M83 ‘I Guess I’m Floating‘

Shihan is coming to Boston College for Black Family Weekend!! I can not wait!

I Wish

By Wayne Visser

I wish …

For lazy days in cluttered bookstores
For meandering walks in shaded parks
For swirling dances in the soaking rain

For intimate cuddles in the dark night
For whispered sighs of deep contentment
For echoed cries of passion unrestrained

For bubbling children never far away

For travel adventures in distant lands

For gentle floating on music’s breeze

For magical hours of poetry reading
For quenching delight in fresh writing
For lingering encounters with enigmatic art

For butterfly kisses in unexpected places
For warm hugs for no reason whatsoever
For holding hands in silent understanding

For roaming talks without destinations
For playful experiments with illusions
For soul journeys to unseen worlds

For growing old through the seasons
For slowing down as the years go by
For being happily in love for ever after

Speaking of porcupines… have you ever thought of how you might love one? Well, just as they are of course. I found this great poem by Patti Woosley.

SPOTS AND STRIPES
By Patti Woosley

When you marry a Tiger
You gotta love stripes
Cause it’s his stripes you will see
when you climb into bed very night
No, you won’t ever change ‘em
no matter how hard you try
and your Tiger will have stripes
till the day that he dies

But if you married a Leopard
He will always have spots
So you had just better learn
to love what you’ve got
Cause you won’t ever change ‘em
no matter how hard you try
and your Leopard will stay spotted
Why would you ask why?

If you fantasize a soft kitten
curling up in your lap
the Porcupine you married
Will never do that
But if you try to change him
you surely will cry
So love your little Porcupine
and kiss the fantasy goodbye

Stop always wanting
What he ain’t got
and stop trying to change him
into something he’s not
Just be sure that you love him
the way that he is
Tiger, Leopard, or Porcupine
He is, what he is.

“If you dare to share your heart, we’ll nod our heart to its beat… I plan to have a whole army by the time that I’m through to load their guns with songs they haven’t sung.”

Brace yourselves, this is a long one. There is just no way to sum Saul Williams up in one word – well maybe, if you asked him, he would say artist. American poet, writer, actor, musician, and above all artist, Saul Williams, is well known for his blend of poetry and alternative hip-hop, transcending genres, as well as his leading role in the 1998 independent film Slam. In regard to himself as an artist, Saul writes, “it is the art of self expression that has heightened my experience on this planet and fueled my understanding of love, compassion, and humanity.” Thank you, Saul. If you want to know how I feel about this, take a look back at my post, What’s The Big Idea?.

The artist also explains his motivation for being a musician as a means to become self sufficient. “I write music because I have found that I cannot rely on other artists, or the music industry to provide the release that I need from a days work, a night out, to inspire a mood, a movement, or simply explore the unsaid in ways that are important to me. I’ve sought to become self sufficient.” I think this is something we all need to do more of. By default, we are always looking to others to provide us with answers. Why not create them ourselves? And now, some words from the artist…

The Art of Transformation

“I am in a process of transformation, despite myself. Even with a clear understanding of God as Change, I sometimes fight and resist the changes that are essential to my being and growth. I fixate upon the challenges of accepting greater and greater responsibilities. I begin to desire results without maintaining the discipline that is required to manifest the necessary changes of heart and of mind, of balance, and inner harmony. I lose patience. I acquire doubt and debt.”

“We are songs. In fact, we are anthems, unsung.”

“What I have chosen to embrace within myself are the very values I caught glimpses of as a kid when I questioned how a world so beautifully diverse in it’s simplicity could be made violently complex by the check-points and regulations of man in his quest to control and manipulate the forces of love and nature for the sake of individual gain and power… I am growing and have chosen to do so consciously and creatively while remaining engaged with both my inner and outer audience.

I am a reality show, tuning into myself on a daily basis simply to see which emotion tattled on which unchecked ambition. My mind gossips about the actions of my heart. My fears attempt to seduce the cameras for airtime. My soul would vote them off the show. I am checking my habits, re-acquainting myself with age-old disciplines. I am meditating and staying focused… I am evolving while simply playing my part. I am staring myself in the eye without flinching or blinking, standing still while moving beyond what holds me in my place. But mostly, I am dancing, everyday, and sleeping perched above the skyline. And I awaken to a new day, a new season, the latest episode…”