Light

I was in Canada in June for a whirlwind of wedding and family love. I was there for the longest day, the Summer Solstice. People in my Bogota office still remark with wonder whenever I mention my trip home that: “When Anna was there, day lasted all night long.”

As fall begins in the north and Bogota remains the same, I am reminded once again of the wonder that is the world and how grateful I am to be part of this earth, with all of its variations and possibilities. It is a paradox to be part of a species that finds meaning in the sky but participates in the destruction of seasons and cycles. Yet I also find hope and light in activities, such as People’s Climate Change marches around the world, that remind us that we can change our trajectory, if we can transform moments into long term movements.

6/21

It’s June and summer’s height
the longest bridge of light
leaps from all the rivers
of the sky
Yet it’s of earth
and nowhere else I have to speak
Only on earth has this light taken on
these swivelled meanings, only on this earth
where we are dying befouled, gritting our teeth
losing our guiding stars
has this light
found an alphabet   a mouth

–Adrienne Rich from Time’s Power, Poems 1885-1988