The days are nouns: touch them

November 26, 2007 in Uncategorized

Daily

These shriveled seeds we plant,
corn kernel, dried bean,
poke into loosened soil,
cover over with measured fingertips

These T-shirts we fold into
perfect white squares

These tortillas we slice and fry to crisp strips
This rich egg scrambled in a gray clay bowl

This bed whose covers I straighten
smoothing edges till blue quilt fits brown blanket
and nothing hangs out

This envelope I address
so the name balances like a cloud
in the center of sky

This page I type and retype
This table I dust till the scarred wood shines
This bundle of clothes I wash and hang and wash again
like flags we share, a country so close
no one needs to name it

The days are nouns: touch them
The hands are churches that worship the world

-Naomi Shihab Nye

About Patti Digh

Patti Digh is an author, speaker, and educator who builds learning communities and gets to the heart of difficult topics. Her work over the last three decades has focused on diversity, inclusion, social justice, and living and working mindfully. She has developed diversity strategies and educational programming for major nonprofit and corporate organizations and has been a featured speaker at many national and international conferences.

1 comment to " The days are nouns: touch them "


brandi

November 27, 2007 AT 8:19AM

that is just wonderful. I absolutely love that poem.

thank you for your kind post on my most recent blog. It’s not so much about ‘following’ a particular goddess, more about trying to see her strenghts in me.

as for what do you follow??? Uh…how about the entire patriarchial male dominated empire we call america??? :-) (the popular god is the boy one) ;-)