It's a good thing

1 week from today

 I'll be crossing the plains

to go 'home' to the reservation;

to re-new relationships and learn new things 

about a place that's familiar after 20 years;

yet a place that still abounds with mysteries;

mysteries which may always remain unknown

to a 'wasicu' like me.

1 week from today

I'll be turning away from news 

of treason and espionage in the White House 

to stand in solidarity with folks 

just trying to get through every day.

That's always the way of the world, isn't it?

Behind all the headlines,

all the news of impending doom 

and human misdeeds, 

folks get up every day 

to face their particular, very individual

and very universal goal

of staying alive 

and living a life that has meaning.  

I gave up trying to define what the pull is,

what keeps me coming back

year after year.

I've accepted that it's deep in my DNA, 

very real

and 

demands to be honored.

It's unsettling,

often painful

and always beautiful.

I read words a few years ago -

in Scotland of all places -

and don't know who wrote them;

words that struck a chord 

and immediately reminded me of the reservation.

Don't hide;

don't run

but rather

discover in the midst of the fragmentation

a new way forward;

a different kind of journey

marked by its fragility,

uncertainty

and lack of definition.

And on that path

hold hands with those

that even in their brokenness

create a new tomorrow;

 dance at the margins

and see

the face of Christ

where hurt is real

and pain a way of life.

Be touched

in the eye of the storm

aware that tomorrow

may not bring peace.

 

 Impossible, you say;

let me retreat

and find my rest.

What rest, my friend, is possible

in these fragmented times?

I'm not looking for rest,

although my soul will be refreshed.

I'm not looking for peace

but there will be many peaceful moments.

I'm eager to be on the road.