‘Debt’ – A poem about responsibility and what we owe to each other, our planet, and our descendants.

We come into this world owing a debt for one thing after another.

We owe a debt to the land and a debt to each other,
We owe a debt to our parents and our Earth mother. 
We owe a debt to our tears and a debt to our laughter, 
We owe a debt to our children and those who come after.

What gifts can we offer, to give gratitude and pay back what we owe? 

We can restore and heal, and reap what we sow.
We can forgive and remember, and share what we know.
We can honor and hold space, and give ourselves room to grow.
We can protect and plan ahead, and forge a path for them to go.

Whatever gifts we choose to bestow,
We have a responsibility to leave the world better hereafter.

(A word about the poem will continue after the ad)

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A Note About the Poem

I was up late reading Braiding Sweetgrass last night (‘Sitting in a Circle’ chapter) and was moved to tears by the sentiments Kimmerer expressed in this chapter. And I felt inspired to write a short poem.

We live in a hyper-individualist mindset/world, where we feel we don’t owe anything to anyone. That we can do everything by ourselves, when this is against everything human history has taught us. Without our community to care for us and without the lives of others to sustain us, we would not survive on our own. Reciprocity is what strengthens us.

We are reliant on each other. We need each other. We owe each other and our planet a great debt. To pay this debt, we are gifted with the ability to express gratitude and show we care. Empathy is a gift that many have squandered, and others have claimed is weakness or even a sin.

Empathy is what makes us human. It is what connects us. It is what allowed us to survive and evolve. Without empathy, we will cease to exist; we will cease being human.

Now more than ever, we must fight for one another because we can’t fight for ourselves on our own. We must speak up for each other and defend each other, or there will be no one left to do the same for us. Together, we are strong. Alone, we are lost. This goes for the people around us and the planet that provides for us. When we care for each other, beautiful things happen. The reason the world is in such an ugly state is because we have forgotten our debt to it and each other. Together, we can make it more beautiful than ever.

We owe this to each other. We are responsible for each other. And we must protect each other and our home from the people who wish to cause irreversible harm and take away the beauty of being human.

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