Providence knocks.

You open the door to see
a needy beast on your doorstep
with your name and a handwritten note scrawled
Begin.

You didn’t order loss or ruin,
the shattering of a tidy life.
But here it is,
with its own heft and reason.

The invitation is this —
Whatever the burden, wherever it came from,
carry it in your capable arms,
wrap it with your wild curiosity. 

Live as if you chose it.

—Rebecca Tolin

“The Invitation” is published in the anthology Song of Ourself: Voices in Unison, available in print or digital form. To learn more, visit https://www.songofourself.com.