Dear quarter lives,

I am doing something a little different this week and sharing with you a poem instead of my usual essay. This is a poem I wrote about love, about loving another, and about loving our bodies. May it inspire you to contemplate the nature of how we as humans love, of how you in particular love and maybe of how you might like to love.

With love and always for peace,

S.A.

How to love ANY body

Near every body of water is a body of air. 

Near every body of air is a body of fire. 

Near every body of fire is a body of earth.  

To find any body to love, first let go of your height. 

Lie down. Lie beside them. Let them love you.

Let their body caress yours like you let water do. 

Let their body flow onto yours like you let air do. 

Let their body warm yours like you let fire do. 

Let their body shelter yours like you let earth do. 

Lie not below them. 

Lie not above them. 

But lie beside them. 

Side by side. 

Level to level. 

Lie beside one another so you will have no need to speak down to any body.

Lie beside one another so you will have no need to speak up either.  

Lie beside one another so that when the floor shakes, you both feel it. 

Lie beside one another so that when the ceiling cracks, you both see the light. 

To love any body, you must lie beside them. 

To lie beside anybody, you must put your judgements to sleep. 

To put your judgements to sleep, you must lie naked. 

And to lie naked, you must bear the sight of your bare body. 

To bear the sight of your bare body, you must first bear the sight of your naked heart. 

And when your heart is finally exposed, then you can begin to love.

But before you can love any body, you must learn to love your own. 

To love your body, lay with it.

Let it show you all you need to know about love.

Let the water of your blood teach you how to flow. 

Let the fire of your sexuality teach you how to dance. 

Let the air of your lungs teach you how to free your voice. 

And let the earth within your gut show you how to share your body.

To love any body, 

love your body.

To love your body,

love every body.