Rachel Ann

I am the darkness and the light. I can shine brightly — or not at all. I am the birds in the trees, the songs they sing, the wind beneath their wings. I am the air that is breathed. I am weaved though everything. I am the sun and the stars. I am the people everywhere, the stones upon which they stumble, the sand beneath their feet, all of the water in the sea. I am all that is seen, spoken, and heard. I am the mother, the child, the father and the son. I am the lover, the addict, the...

I’m tired of others telling me how to build my fire. Pushing me aside, telling me… I can’t do it. It’s all wrong or, “you’re taking too long.” “It’s not the way I would do it, so you’re incorrect.” So they shove me to the ground to shut me down, Trying to control me with their judgments and harsh words, Hoping I will fall apart. I am wrong because I don’t think and do things the way they would, or how they think I should. So they promptly stomp my fire out. What difference does it make how I...

When we are born, we are all adorned with a crown of thorns. We are not told we can remove it at any time that we choose release ourselves from all of the crimes we have laid upon ourselves and others. Instead, we are taught to love it. So we decorate it — with flowers, with gems. We let it condemn us. Some even use it as a tool to create false rules. We go through life weak and weary, with many crosses to carry. We become attached, drag them wherever we go, too afraid to let them go. If we...