October 5, 2022 - Rahil Najafabadi’s “Everything Works”

EVERYTHING WORKS

My mother tells me to listen to the sun­­––she hums
when the light is faint, when everyone is still asleep.

The day sings with the leaves that fall and soon
I will step on them to make a crunch in the beat.

The frozen night tastes like a bitter lake sometimes,
it takes me away from the fireplace and my heartbeat.

My father tells me I need to be careful with words,
with pictures and moments I live and let out to the world.

I live in a glass bubble, but I know it pops and I will see
the way Earth spins, and how the bubble stands still.

My brother tells me, “Everything works,” and I believe him.
My mother tells me, “Let go of the wind that makes you fall.”
My father tells me, “Pick a name that makes you who you are.”

Everything works, and I believe them.