Foundation Stones, A Poem by Danna Faulds

Here is my past--

what I've been proud of,

and what I've pushed away.

Today I see how each piece

was needed, not a single

step wasted on the way.

Like a stone wall,

every rock resting

on what came before-

no stone can be

suspended in mid-air.

Foundation laid by every

act and omission,

each decision, even

those the mind would

label "big mistake.”

These things I thought

were sins, these are as

necessary as successes,

each one resting on the

surface of the last, stone

upon stone, the fit

particular, complete,

the rough, uneven

face of these rocks

makes surprising,

satisfying patterns

in the sunlight.