by Karen Warinsky
Intersected by a hundred forces
we stand, affected energy
over laps of spirit, sport, seduction,
a hundred tugs
and we try to
integrate
pull what’s useful to us,
cling to what might matter
as matter pummels
our very bones
and signs tell us:
You Are Here.
You Are Here
where spirit meets
grace meets love,
where democracy
collides with fascism
where the Earth sits
in its designated spot
amid endless planets and moons
stardust and expanding space,
where interesting cultures
mingle with manufactured conflicts,
where real conflicts clash
with solutions and greed
where apathy aligns with sorrow
where rage rests against response,
reaction, resolution.
You Are Here.
What will you decide to do?
Karen Warinsky has published poetry in numerous anthologies, journals and online sites since 2011. She is the author of three collections: Gold in Autumn (2020), Sunrise Ruby (2022), and Dining with War (2023). She is a 2023 Best of the Net nominee and a former finalist of the Montreal International Poetry Contest. Warinsky coordinates Poets at Large, a group that performs spoken word in MA and CT. Her new book Beauty and Ashes will be released later this year from Kelsay Books.