Bloodlines
I inherit from my bloodlines
Filled with the hopes and dreams of my Mother
my Grandmother
Overflowing with memories
of pain
of love
of a thousand names for each caveat carved out of and into my flesh
Twisting and tracing into bodies unknown
Names lost in the translation of a language cut into our tongues
Caught within the trees so we can no longer hear their sweet whispers
It is where hands meet earth
Meet each other
Meet where stories blend truth
“That is not traditional”
Blow torches and swim shorts
But there is no room in the middle of the lodge
Boys to one side, girls to the other
Red flowing
Down our arms
Between our legs
Amidst each other
Weaponized in a way only the patriarchy understands
Injected into
Drowning out
Attempted banishment of our bonds
Memories locked in muscle that have yet to be untrained
Holding the blueprint to my being
Stitching together the pieces dropped off over the centuries to create anew
It is the go between and the in between
Holding the unworthy with the salvation
Gifts unfelt but not forgotten
Absorbing what my mother knew
Her mother knew
Born into the knowledge of our ancestors
Deep in our chest
At the tip of each finger
Brought to life with each intake of breath
I need to remember
Shielded by broken bones and promises
It sits
A truth willing to wait
Buried among but not tainted by our burdens
Flowing to and from generations now and past
Connected by a conscious knowing
Gifted into my body still cradled in my mother’s womb
It is what I inherit from my bloodlines