Ikigai
(The reason for being; the thing that gets you up in the morning)
It is the thing that makes you open the window in the morning
to feel your heart come alive once more
to let each ray of sunshine be more than just a sign of a new day
to let each beam remind you of the days of yore —
when you laughed without a care
and your heart was full
and your nights were less difficult.
It is evoking hope
and faith
and sweet tears
and the exhuming of memories of love and life.
Fika
(a moment to slow down and appreciate the good things in life)
I am a story and my narrator is a broken song
for all the lovers that left.
An unfinished verse of all my past selves that died.
A piano chord played in a concert
in an empty room;
wondering if I was loud enough
wondering if I made a difference
wondering if I was enough.
Grief
(Lost love, persevering)
Grief is a memorabilia
a proof that we once loved — but lost.
I have a conversation with my heart and I ask why lost love perseveres
He holds my hands
and says it’s because time, space and the entire universe
conspired to help me find that which I lost.
It’s their punishment for me
It’s my reward.
Alive
(because today is not the day I die)
Today is the first day of the rest of my life
— some say that makes it a new beginning.
I must go out
I must try again
Despite the odds
Despite yesterday
Because there’s always more
And I am deserving of it all.
– Mark Obeya (Contributor).
