Words Are Sweet

I hope...
you realize the problem is, you think you have time.
you learn to discipline your disappointment.
you greet triumph and tribulation with the same smile.
you create more than you consume.
you create more than you criticize.
you create more than you compare.

I hope...
you edit your life ruthlessly and frequently.
you forgive yourself ruthlessly and frequently.
you realize that what you are will never happen again.
you make the shit you wanna make whether people like it or not.
you pub your shit harder than anyone else’s.
you work harder on yourself than you do on your job.
you sew without expectation and reap without complaint.
you realize that patience is an active process.
you realize love is an active process.

I hope…
you learn that habit beats inspiration.
you realize four walls can’t hold you.
you give your grief the respect it deserves.
you realize you are never alone in how you are feeling.
you realize you’re full of wounds and still standing.

I hope…
you understand it’s been done before but not by you.
you don’t compromise your vision.
you learn to surrender to your dreams.
you don’t leave the arena to the fools.
you know that you and your work and your voice are needed, now
more than ever.

––Nneka Julia