Dear Child
How can I explain a world I myself don’t understand
How can I comfort what is wholly uncomfortable
I can’t tell you it will get better
For this I do not know
I won’t tell you to be strong
Because strength is not what is needed most
What I will tell you is
The most important work you do
Is the work you do on yourself
What I will tell you is
Have the courage to be yourself
For no one else can be you for you
What I will tell you is
When you take time to rest, to feel, to heal
It is not selfish
Yet maybe the most selfless act you can commit
Be the healing you wish to see in the world
As when you are you may just find the world
around you starts to heal itself
Dear child
I can’t tell you things will get better
For this I do not know
But I can re-assure you
That the better you wish to see
Has always and will always
Start with you
Dear child
Scott is a recent graduate of the University of Michigan. He was a 2016-2017 Bonderman fellow, a fellowship given to 4 graduating students to travel to and immerse in non- Westernized regions, alone, for 8 consecutive months in return for them writing about their experience. Most of his work examines the relationship between natural and social systems. He is informed by a daily meditation and yoga practice, in addition to solitude in nature.