Mantra for an Open Mind by Rachel Lechwar (19, Florida)

I am awake. I am alive. I am on the edge of life,
dangling my feet over the horizon line
and waiting for the sun to brush
against my toes

---

I am alive. 
I am wide awake and floating 
in a life that feels too blurred to be
my own: at the top of a parking garage
sleeping below a melancholy sky that looks
upon the silent streets like I do,
bundled within myself.

I am alive;
I am trying to wake from my own slumber,
coffee burning the tip of my tongue 
and flowing through my tired veins,
eyes roaming the pages of life 
shifting under the breeze
of early morning.

And I need to remind myself
that I become the thoughts
I manifest
from dawn to dusk.
And I believe the words
I write:

I am awake. I am alive. I am trying.
And I’m glad for the chance of
eyes wide open,
cloud-coated sunrises,
coffee in my head,
blood flowing through my veins,
words and thoughts floating in the breeze,
shivering but not alone in this moment-
in this life 
that we woke to experience 
this morning.

We’ll pocket the scattered pictures 
and memories, lest we let the world
pass us by when the sun sets
on each sacred day.

​