Conflict Absolution

The answer will come

at right angles to the conflict,

it will not take sides,

it will startle all sides to silence

There is a way out

of what seems most intractable —

it is the knowing

that we aren’t caused by one another

and that our cause will speak within,

to each of us,

and lift us up and show us how to go.

©Wendy Mulhern

May 10, 2019

Change of Refuge

You have huddled so long

in that poison refuge

that you may have forgotten

how it feels to breathe deeply,

how it feels to stretch out,

to relax, to bask in the warmth

of belonging

You have been surprised

that others haven’t come to join you —

you wondered where they went —

did you suspect 

that there might be a different refuge?

— One that would hold you

in a bountiful affection,

one that didn’t require venom

on your part, or anyone’s,

one that didn’t have

those soul-effacing rules,

the bitter bite exacted for admission

I’ll tell you something true:

if your refuge breaks,

or if you leave it, 

you’ll find another.

©Wendy Mulhern

April 3, 2019