consider a delicate porcelain bowl how it crushes under a single blow- in one moment whole years disappear - Lisa Suhair Majaj

how a word transforms us
seedling taking delicate hold
or a weed choking the tender plants
news enters us and puts down roots

I find inspiration in anything that sparks attention and emotion and associations—an object, a news article, a natural scene, a sound, an odor. Going for walks sharpens my awareness as well as freeing my mind to wander. I think losing my parents so early, and keeping so many mementos from them around me in my daily life, helped shape my understanding of how meaning is embedded in the simplest of things. I use potholders my mother crocheted, keep my dad’s paperweight on my desk, and think of them daily.

No matter how far you've come, remember:
the starting line is always closer than you think.