Entering the Fire

From this day forward
I will no longer live in fear
of catching fire
For my heart knows that
In order to radiate light
I must endure the burning.

In the fire lies the source of my power-
The power to claim who I am,
To be free of the mind's trickery,
To open my heart so that
I am both vulnerable and fierce.

By entering the fire
I choose to risk my own identity-
To descend into the darkness
And face what is most fearful
So that I may rise again
As a man and a warrior.

With guts and open eyes
Let me unflinchingly burn
Into a halo of my own healing flame
Until I become a wing, a torch, a promise
To claim this one wild and precious life.

This is my choice, and my prayer....

{Volume 1 of Midwifing the Death of mother}