Photo by: Rachel Holderman/EMU
I’ve been playing around with this poem for months. Studying in the field of peacebuilding has been the most significant step into a beautifully messy deconstruction of my life, beliefs, and emotions. The anger and frustration of this poem, I hope, will one day turn into joy and rest.
Let Me Rest
I keep hearing people wanting to return
To the new normal,
But there is no such thing as normal.
Normal maintains the pressure,
Keeps the pyramid.
I want it shaken.
I want it crumbled.
Maybe then
We’ll all find ourselves on our knees.
I want us to grieve.
I want us to feel.
Feel the dust of ruins,
Letting it sift through our fingers
Maybe some of us can feel every particle.
Deem each one as a moment of release
From illusions
Of convenience,
Of scarcity.
Let me rest!
This is not a race!
Why can’t I stop,
And dream
Of a world that moves differently?
Perhaps a little more slowly,
A little more warmly,
And a little more honestly.
Let us rest.
This is not a race.
Mariana Martinez-Hernandez is a student in the Peacebuilding and Development (PXD) program at Eastern Mennonite University (EMU).
