MOOC 2: The Match

We are past the second MOOC week and it was a rough one. My husband has a crazy, summer camp week at the taekwondo school where he teaches which means I take on some extra stuff to help out. Mostly that involves walking two dogs twice a day and driving a half hour back and forth at least twice a day. I also started taekwondo myself, so that has cut into my evening work time…BUT…

I survive and write on. This week’s assignment was to identify a social issue I feel strongly about, and then choose an object to represent my feelings about that issue. For my social issue, I chose violence, revolution and rioting.

I have conflicted emotions about violence. My nature is attracted to it. I want to be there, throwing Molotov cocktails and screaming with the raging mob…BUT… I know it probably isn’t the best solution for positive change. So I chose to write about that conflict with a match as my object. So here is my assignment #2, and now on to assignment #3.

I think you can still join this Massive Open Online Course. We are in week #3 and the deadline for submission is Sept. 5. Plenty of time! You can read my first MOOC assignment here.

The Match

The flame in my hand

balances on the match

trapped by the need

for a foundation—

however slight.

 

But the flame desires bigger things:

to consume buildings

to crumble towns

to reduce forest to soot.

 

This flame yearns

to escape the fragile stick of wood

I hold—that holds it.

 

And, inflamed, I yearn

to escape the fragile system of rules

that hold me—that I hold to.

 

I desire bigger things:

to topple authority

to overthrow mindlessness

to reduce greed to memory.

 

I hold the future in my hand

and it balances on my choice.

Trapped by my need for rage/chaos/kicks

I can build a foundation to evolve instead—

however slight.