I Sat Down Poem by Dairedee BurrisLandwehr

It's a beautiful day.
b-e-a-utiful.
The grass smells sweet and fresh.
The sky is so blue and clear, I feel as if I can reach up and touch it.

Can you hear the birds singing? Can you feel life being lived?
I walk by a tree, casting shadows and shade
like a magician playing tricks,
and I am so taken by this image (taken away and taken with)
that I must stop and drink in this feeling,
breathe in this moment. Through my skin and whole being,
I touch light and shadow, shade and silence.

If you know me, you know what my next move was;
a chessplayer I plan my moves, looking
for pros and cons, of each motion, but-
as a person of freedom and chance,
of impulse and spontineity...
I can't help but give in.
But no, tha sounds as if I should be restraining myself, containing and training
myself.

no. What I mean is, I embraced free will.
A boundless, limitless, and effortless- though not less, but more-
feeling that I can and will do something...not
shy from enjoyment, becasue of-
society.norms.pressure.
I am so sick of pressure it crushes me until my movements are
robot-like. I am stiff and pressed, right out of the box.
A perfectly minted me. or rather of what I should be.

No, today I looked around. at all the sights and sound
the sky and ground, not caring what they should and shouldn't do
the people, dressed in their best to impress, caring about their air intake-
(is it too much or little? i dont know, maybe i'll just stop...)
and I realized the real lies were what we tell ourselves
about ourselves.
images and reflections are flat and a deminsion I don't dare step into.
they tell a story, but not the right one
they speak of rights and wrongs but not truths and ideas.

I am a truth. I am an idea. I am right and wrong, I am flawed and imperfect.
perfectly imprefect I reflect to much for light to catch
and shine too bright to you to get.
I have layers and sides, but my angles can't be counted-
although I always can be.(on)

Accepted and rejected, loved and hated.
For better or worse, I am me. and I hope you are you,
for I am no mirror, I let you be seen
the way you should be.

So of course you know what I did today,
under that tree of shade and mystery
under that sky of imperfect perfection
under all the weight of stares and glares,
of thoughts and emotions,
of concepts and ideas.
I sat down.
and enjoyed the tree, shade, sun, and sky.
I enjoyed being me. and wished you might join me...