Grocery Store Parking Lot
Feeling safe in a grocery store parking lot
“I made it,” I think — as if I’d summited a mountain
But haven’t I climbed this mountain many times before?
It isn’t just walking out of the supermarket
It’s realizing I’ve slept through every mass shooting
As if it’s the middle of the night and I don’t know that I’m dreaming
What would I become to be awake through all of this?
To acknowledge that my local King Soopers is not just a chore
But it’s a tomb for ten people, and so many more…
I wonder if they told their loved ones how they really felt
I wonder if they’d awaited the hope of a vaccine
What am I waiting for? For how long will I wait
For myself to show up with some answers
Or hell, even questions would be a solid start
What am I afraid I will know?
Where is the peace in not knowing?
Say your prayers
Say what you mean and mean what you say
Say “I love you” excessively
Hug more frequently, longer
Be thankful for everything
Count your blessings
EVERY DAY OUT LOUD
Pray for the deceased
Pray for the living
Pray for the future generations
That they may find peace in every parking lot, store, school, spa, meadow, church, and beyond
Aware of how little I know,
Briefly, momentarily ashamed
Perhaps I have felt “safe” for too long
Believing my comfort will protect me
Afraid of my lack of control,
I hold on just tightly enough
