It is#thankyouthursday and it is also Transgender Day Of Visibility. So today’s poem has to be for Kate Bornstein, who teaches me so much. Including the concept of shenpa.
Suddenly
In the middle of the argument
The fishhook slides into
The flesh of your lip.
You freeze,
Your eyes are glazed,
And all you want to do is pull away
But pain and fear and anger make you stay.
Then gently, gently, gently,
They
Reach over to you
Holding the bloody hook between their fingers,
Show you how to lean into the pain:
Unhook yourself,
Start listening again.
Tom Juniper Poetry 