That Thread

             After Stafford

I thought I’d leave it
in a safe place

Should have kept it close at hand
but I believed its usefulness was gone

And so I coiled it up and stowed it
somewhere in the attic of my heart

Who would have thought
I’d feel such longing

Who could have known
how much I’d need it now

 –Dennis Huffman

I wrote the first draft of this poem on January 26, 2025, during a Courage to Teach retreat outside Frederick, Maryland. We had read William Stafford’s “The Way It Is,” and I just couldn’t get it out of my head.

In the days following the retreat, the poem went through multiple iterations. I felt I had to “explain about the thread,” as Stafford says. Among other things, this stanza kept insinuating itself, right into the middle of the poem:

      Oh
I am not ready for this storm

But didn’t that imply a specific time, a particular set of events? Was that really what I was writing about? Yes. It had been a tumultuous week. But no. The thread I was missing was more than a tool or a strategy to get through the present moment. I had suddenly recognized in myself a deep longing for community. A sense of solidarity and common purpose. Joining hands. Maybe even building bridges. 

Having retired during COVID, I found it all too easy to allow my circles to shrink. I suspect I’m not alone in that.  Now, the image of the thread has reawakened in me the possibility and potential of connections, old and new.

– Dennis Huffman, Advisor, Building Bridges Word by Word

What’s Your Story?

Where has your thread taken you?  What might be tugging at it now?

Consider responding to these questions or to William Stafford’s poem, “The Way It Is” as Dennis Huffman has done. Or pick up where Dennis has left off.

Writing about something that is meaningful to you can stir inner reflections and add to its meaning. Each reflection posted on Building Bridges Word by Word helps us get to know each other a little better – a first step in building bridges across our divides.

How to get started? Review the  guidelines and steps for sending in your reflection. Questions? Write us at mscribner.buildingbridgeswbw@gmail.com.  We look forward to hearing from you.