Member-only story
stay true to yourself
the turtle method
it’s a dandy-doo-wonderful thing
to go slow and be okay with it
because going slow lets you see
what you need
what can heal
what you can appreciate
what you miss
what you want
what you value
who loves you
and most of all, how to get off this fucking cliff
you are stuck on.
i cradle
these hard-shelled creatures in my mind
the baby brown turtles that get flipped over
kicking their miniature dinosaur flippers
screaming, “someone help me — ”
and you never rescue these turtles exactly how you want
you have to watch them build the strength to flip over
or help them budge and scoot and inch over to a sandy cliff
and slide their way to an ocean of freedom.
to turtles
a foot feels like a thousand
but change and distance and freedom shrink to their will
turtles do what’s necessary
to suffer
to keep going
to work toward freedom
and maybe this is how you…
