I Want To Know
by: Oriah Mountain Dreamer, Indian Elder
It doesn't interest me to know what you do for a living.
I want to know what you ache for,
and if you dare to dream your hearts longing.
It doesn't interest me how old you are.
I want to know if you risk being a fool for love, for your dreams,
for the adventure of being alive.
It doesn't interest me what planets are squaring your moon.
I want to know if you have touched the center of your own sorrow,
if you have been opened by life's betrayals
or if you have become shriveled and closed from fear of further pain....
I want to know if you can sit with pain, mine or your own;
without moving to hide it or jade it or fix it.
I want to know if you can be with joy, mine or your own;
if you dance with wildness and let ecstasy fill you to the tips of your fingers
and toes
without cautioning us to be careful, be realistic,
or to remember the limitation of being human.
It doesn't interest me to know if the story you're telling me is true.
I want to know if you can disappoint another
to be true to yourself,
if you can bear the accusation of betrayal and not betray your own soul.
I want to know if you can be faithful and therefore trustworthy.
I want to know if you can see beauty even when it's not pretty every day,
and if you can source your life from gods presence.
I want to know if you can live with failure,
yours and mine, and still stand on the edge of a lake
and shout to the silver moon "YES!"
It doesn't interest me to know where you live or how much money you have.
I want to know if you can get up after a night of grief and despair,
weary to the bone, and do what needs to be done for a child,
for children.
It doesn't interest me to know who you are, how you came here.
I want to know....
if you stand in the center of the fire with me and not shrink back....
It doesn't interest me where or what or with whom you have studied.
I want to know what sustains you
from the inside when all else falls away.
I want to know if you can be alone with yourself,
and if you truly like
the company you keep in the empty moments....