Trigger

Sometimes we don’t choose to hold on to something.

Sometimes an event sticks to us like a Cholla burr

So that we live it again and again and again:

When a pop star makes a song about being hit;

When a friend tells you how little she’s had to eat today;

When a client traces the story behind the scars on her wrists;

When a stranger brushes against you in just the wrong way.

At these times we wish we could let go.

We wish our skin would stop holding these moments

And we wonder:

How are they still attached when we’re shaking so hard?

This is why we ask for warning:

Tell us when we’re about to walk through a minefield of cacti.

Tell us when we need an extra layer of clothing.

Or, better yet, let us just stay home

With a journal and a pen or a friend or

A pillow that understands:

We’re trying to let go and pull away

But these moments have such strong hands.