"...to carry away memories brought for the forgetting
on one thousand one auspicious origami birds
whispering over chilled salmon, ripe fruit
suggesting the fertility of the afternoon."
from the poem, "One thousand one wedding cranes" 1998
A Lilith moment
​
I have lived my years on a razor wire’s edge, learned early of its broad line of sight, but when I step off it dissolves. I try to make my way on the rocky soil of choosing, but it either turns my ankle or trips me up because on solid ground I think I know.
I wrote a poem of repetition
It came quick and easy
but knew I couldn’t trust it
cuz there’s never just one side
Living on the razor edge of understanding
So you can see both sides
Is fine for knowing where you are
but challenging to balance
I cleaned it up and cut it down
made the lines much longer
then cut and sliced down again
bringing me closer to a goal
Living on a line so thin
you can slice you right in two
knowing changes nothing
and balance doesn’t allay the cut
I wrote a poem and named it at the end in just 5 minutes
Then forgot to mention wobble
and the potential cleaving the razor edge creates
I work best, that is at living, when I stay on that safety line, stretch of seeing both sides, and understanding where truth lies, when it’s dark with evil for its coat, or of course the opposite with sun bright smiling answers lined up neat and clean. Just allow me to use a balance pole across that edge between, and still know there is no power that keeps my footing firm.
In just 5 minutes I can unload my mind
In just 5 minutes I can lose my balance
In just 5 minutes it could all be over
Sharon Lopez Mooney, “A Lilith Moment”, from Sybil Journal, ed. & publ. H.D. & Stephen R. Spencer, https://www.sybiljournal.com 2021