ritual

tell me.

what is your ritual made of?
is it a tried truth or a nod to youth?
a coming of age in a sacred space,
the oldest new ritual

tell me of the myth that came before that made generations dance
in that proverbial light

is your ritual ancient?
did you birth it yourself?

was it reborn in a new era
a reiteration of old elation
fixation
on a dream we have all seen through our own bright eyes

do you know?
that your circle is of the eternal cypher
millions joined before you

did your ancestors reach elevated consciousness
move until something else
was moving their feet for them?

is their joy the same?
in the breath of resistance
the pleasure of pain
the air after rain

can you hear them
in your ritual?

that when you make your own
they bless the bodies that move in their clearing

 in that proverbial light.

commissioned by d. sabela grimes for “ritual embrace”