My morning run GoFunds my soul.
A nighthawk calls from a roadside bush
quieting my muddled brain.
An owl hoots from a distant woods
drawing me into the present, in time to spot
a deer emerging from a cornfield,
a rabbit racing down the side of the road.
Fog settles in, providing inner calm.
Physically spent, spiritually rejuvenated,
I can now try to face the morning newspaper so that
the confluence of headlines becomes palatable.
            U.S. to spend 1.8 billion on nukes
            Experts offer tips on avoiding injuries
                        while conducting your fall clean-up
            9,000 Syrian civilians killed in the last year
            When is too early to decorate for autumn?
            National Guard called out to end Lakota ceremonies
                        surrounding pipeline protest
But disbelief, sadness, and anger build,
and then are assuaged by working with animals at the rehab center
and penning letters to Congress.
Tomorrow it begins again.

– Karen Wolf