Putting Radiance in its Place

Earth, water, fire, air. Which element are you?I am a water baby with a need for natural bodies of water around me, within view, within reach. To swim, yes. Moreover, to see and feel. The energy of the water is the energy of movement, emotion, feeling, fluidity, ripples.Who were you, growing up?I used to be a star student, an overachiever, a compulsive planner (still, I have a fetish for calendars and agendas), a teacher's pet, a classroom teacher, an office worker, a copy writer, and a fourth-grade math whiz.Who am I, growing up?I am irreplaceable. I am ordinary and extraordinary, and so are you. I am a starter, not a finisher. I am a lover of kitties, birdsong, laughter and the poetry of each passing moment. I am a teacher and a writer and a mother and a friend. I am afraid of death and old age and abandonment and automobile accidents and hurting people's feelings. I also embrace the reality that old age and death are coming, later or sooner. I am observant. I pay attention to detail, if it's interesting detail. Boring detail is hell. Spending long hours at the computer screen is not the job for me. Dealing with the general public, though I know I am them and they are me, is not the job for me.May you be you.I am radiant. You are radiant. Let's put radiance in its place. Let's let our hearts shine and our voices sing. Let's whisper words of wisdom in our own ears and let ourselves be. Do when it's time to do, let go when it's time to let go.Praise be the sky, the wind, the lake, the flame.