12/14/2023
I read this poem by Danna Faulds from her collection, “Go In and In: Poems From The Heart of Yoga” this morning, and although her writing is not about recovering from high-control religion, my own journey of healing and recovery from indoctrination and spiritual abuse felt like it was reflected in these words.
✨
Setting Forth
by Danna Faulds
Something will be born from
this goodbye. In the pain of
setting forth, something will
die. With the release of the
old comes a moment when
nothing is firmly held, and
the unknown burns the
bridges of the past.
When the smoke clears, my
eyes seek out a new horizon.
Nothing is known here, but
the air is sweet and breathing
deeply I see long dormant
seeds send up their shoots
from the fertile ground of
change. As leaves unfurl
to meet the sun, the circle
is complete. I will not
forget a single step of this
sacred journey, nor will I
let comfort lock me in its
warm embrace.
I do not know what fruit these
seeds will bear, but I have
faith that what is taking
root today will surprise me
with its vigor. In birth and
death, the inbreath and the
final exhalation, there is
pain and the movement into
truth. I take the step that I
am called to even if I do not
know the final destination.
