Happy Thanksgiving, Here's A Poem for Home
Lisa Ann Markuson aka LAMARKS aka me
On November 15th I attended a The Collective’s conference, Be More Together, hosted at The Collective Paper Factory. They asked me to collect insights throughout the day on the theme of the conference: Home.
As we speed toward the end of this decade, the concept of home seems to be called into question more and more. Where do we belong? How can we live more sustainably? Why are we so lonely, even as cities become more and more crowded? Through a series of performances, conversations, discussions, and hands-on workshops with The Collective, I got to ask myself these and much more specific questions and learn about the evolution of elements I have taken for granted in our living environments. Two examples: toilets used to be very unhygienic circular holes before our modern oval shape was invented, and historic architecture had no such thing as hallways, the rooms were enfilade, aka room-to-room. But I digress.
At the end of the day, I sat down to contemplate my notes and assemble them into a poem to perform for the hundred or so attendees. And I was struck with this:
I was searching in between
the cracks in the concrete
Looking for a future self
I wouldn’t be ashamed to meet
I found myself wondering
how to define a home
Are we meant to live in
3,000 square feet yet all alone?
Do I really need to own
my own big TV screen?
Or, in rarer cases, my own
giant trampoline?
(ok that would be cool but)
Do our aging parents
really want to relegate
Themselves to a golf course chalet
behind an iron gate?
So I went on a journey -
A working holiday of sorts.
But I got lost along the way -
No compass rose, no starry north.
I came upon a hidden house
with a wide open door,
just when I had started to fear
I could walk no more.
Greeted by transcendent souls
within a quiet storm,
I became an ant, a fish, a bird -
Making sounds without a word.
I tiptoed in curiously,
warmed my hands upon the hearth.
Savored scents of cooking
from an oven made of earth.
In the bathroom I relieved
myself upon an oval throne --
Rinsed myself from graceful faucets
with the most minimalist flows
Suddenly a crowd of friends
had filled up the fine dwelling.
I had never met them
but my lonely heart was swelling.
A feast ensued, my fears subdued
A bounty fit for queens and kings
-and the best part of it was
it was a spontaneous gathering.
Humans do need time alone
and our own privacy.
But even more do we require
trust and love and intimacy.
And as I fall asleep tonight
smiling at all we’ve won:
Undone alienation
Thoughtful co-creation
Cozy hibernation
Flexible foundations
Felt ourselves a new sensation…
I may not have the answer yet
but know I’m not alone
in redefining, seeking, building
what it means to find a home.
I hope you have a wonderful holiday week if you’re in the States, and if not, a great normal week.
And it’s not too late to book me or another poet for your HOLIDAY PARTY!
