POEM: To Dust You Shall Return

By Christi Ortiz

Lists of worries tumbling around in my head,
problems I can’t solve bringing fear and dread.
This is my dismal state of insomnia, lying in bed.
Then suddenly, a peace befalls me,
a warmth passes over my body, leaving it free
as it travels it releases tension as all anxieties flee.
A profound sense of being held
coddled in love’s embrace, my joy swelled
as all fears were quelled.
Surrounded by such love and care
Why would I choose such burdens to bear
when freedom is found in the simplest prayer?
Bathed in this light so bright,
those heavy concerns now seem so light,
giving an assurance, “everything will be all right”.
All my needs will be provided for
in this embrace, I long for nothing more.
This is all that is needed at the core.
The rest will pass away,
as all things impermanent decay,
Losing the veneer of significance
as they return to clay.
Through this new gift of sight so strong
I see the true nature of these burdens
I’ve carried my lifelong.
And, I let them fall to the dust at my feet,
where they belong.