NECESSITIES

All I see are shiny things:

Brand new pot with a glass lid warming up a cup of coconut milk.

Wood cabinets and a stainless steel fridge,

filled with compulsions.

 

New pair of pants, a perfume bottle, an expensive skin care routine.

Renew the subscription. Pause.

Cancel order. Faster shipping.

Flat rate, no returns, one-click purchase.

 

My necessities are more urgent than yours.

I want more, you want more.

I want it faster,

I want it now.

 

Black lace bra and nude underwear,

one only goes with the white blouse,

the other only goes with the silk dress.

Only necessities.

 

Don’t worry, they are organic. Fair trade.

Green sticker right on top of the logo,

promising me that I can feel good about myself.

Make better choices, save the planet and order again.

 

Fifty years after the first ever celebrated Earth Day,

but Mother Earth seems to be sicker than ever.

How can that be?

I’ve done my part, I’ve taken the eco pill.

 

But what if instead of looking for more

I stop.

Look inward, take a dose of sobering awareness, and ask myself:

How much can I let go of my own pain in order to see what’s happening around me?