Poems from GPS training January 2023

These are poems that were shared in the recent Group Peer Support (GPS) facilitator training, hosted by Perinatal Support Washington (PS-WA).

Notes on Survival
by Nikita Gill

You are allowed to break.
Everything does.
The stars grow tired and fall.
The waves crash against rocks and shores.
Trees fall for both storms and wind
leaving behind seeds and saplings
so a version of them may grow again.
Storm clouds part for rain
then part for the sun to come through.
Night must break for day
and day for night in a cycle.
The world is made of broken things
piecing themselves back together
-- this is what gives us the most resilient stories.
So why do you think that you were made
any differently than the night and the storm clouds?
You know how to put yourself back together again, too,
just as well as they do.

Take heart that you have managed
to rebuild yourself a thousand times
after every bad day.

That is no small thing.

Image description: a tree is at the top of a grassy hill with a blue sky behind it. A large branch is broken off and lying on the ground.
Photo credit: Tim Mossholder via Unsplash

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Image description:  two people sit with their backs to the camera, looking toward water. Glowing light from the sunset shines between their shoulders.
Photo credit: Briana Tozour via Unsplash

​WHEN SOMEONE DEEPLY LISTENS TO YOU
by John Fox

When someone deeply listens to you
It is like holding out a dented cup
you’ve had since childhood
and watching it fill up with
cold, fresh water.
When it balances on top of the brim,
you are understood.
When it overflows and touches your skin
you are loved.

When someone deeply listens to you
the room where you stay
starts a new life
and the place where you wrote your first poem
begins to glow in your mind’s eye.
It is as if gold had been discovered.

When someone deeply listens to you
Your bare feet are on the earth
and a beloved land that seemed distant
is now at home within you.

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the fire that awakens you
by Danielle Doby
From I Am Her Tribe

I am drawn to the light in others
it is how I know I am not alone

to be a seeker of the light
is to be connected to the very truth itself -

               the way out of the darkness
               is when we can look across the table
               and find our face in another's 

when we let our stories exist
we invite others to see themselves more clearly
in a space where
pain
struggle
stunning resilience
and belonging
are not unique to just one person

they live in each of us
proving we are not on our own

i heal
and you heal
and when we heal
the world heals with us

an open heart is the key
that unlocks hope's reach

the sun is here
within you
now open your eyes

Image description: a field of bright yellow sunflowers. The sun is just visible above the tree line in the background.
Photo credit: Todd Kent via Unsplash