I have finished my first week at the Sustainability Institute.

There are many wonderful things about the institute, but one of them is the activity we start the day with, our class is divided into groups that go and work somewhere on the farm/institute for the day, whether its in the garden, the building or one of th schools.

I wrote this poem as we were in the midst of a very busy week, starting to attempt comprehending sustainability as the complex issue which it is.

Washing windows

Washing their windows
Each is different
Each frames a different perspective
Little spiders and insects sustain their lives in the dust
My newspapers are words crumpled
together that cleanse the pane

A bucket of water
My friend on the other side is washing her side
Each different perspective
Comprehending the world


With our windows
That sing when we pit
Against dirt
Immersing in mud our cloth
Clearing and clarifying
Phenomena
In the end really reflecting
With deliciously muddy feet
I’m washing my windows