Dig In

I gots my shovel today!

soft earth wrestles between my toes
when I take my boots off and roam in it
the smells of the tall grass, crab weed and flowerbeds
intoxicate me to the point where I don't want to break ground
so I take a picture and store it in my mental rolodex

"what you're looking at is the before joint, now here, here those there are the construction photos... see, see that yeah, look at the pile, man!
aiight, now here are the after photos... That's a real beaut right there, huh? Yup, my pride and joy"

I snap to attention in the realization
that dirt was meant to be broken
piles were to be made in the process
and water can be added to make the finest of mud castles
so I dig in

With each small mound I get rich morsels of phytonutrients
capable of feeding the largest of family with just one seed
the moist coolness of being inside this large hole
helps me realize that it's framework for foundation

and not a ditch

the pile blocks out the sun's harmful rays
I notice that I have more than one earthpile
and the smell from the nearby citrus trees keep me refreshed
I see the roots of nearby tall trees
I use the tip of my shovel to dig around
I take off my work gloves and touch them in admiration
I get a chance to feel history in the place in which it was planted

After a while I realize that my head is feet beneath the surface
and I ain't even taxed from my task
I also notice that what I have dug is square
and has depth, sense and purpose
there was no blueprint in the beginning
the finest of masons would pull out compass and square
scope and level
and confirm by seeing that all is right and even
You could build right here

and then it rains

Light and airy the drizzle turns formless piles of dirt
unearthed into concrete
small rock into brick.
The hole with no form becomes more than just shapeless
I recover finds from ancestors in places where no one else would be
outside of its sarcophagus handwritten and addressed to me
or maybe its cuneiform is just for my eyes to see
translation from previous digs overlooked it purposefully
and now these treasures have been left for me


I admire the clumps of clay on the tip of my shovel
revel in the fact that I am not fatigued
excited that I wake up with the intent to get back to the worksite
started looking in books to help cultivate the need to learn drafting
sketching out schematics
working on subtle nuances in the making of blueprints


trowel
water
dirt
time
imagination
passion


And the occasional bringing of the lemonade at 1 in the afternoon


gives me the motivation to erect a foundation
so I dig with the purpose to continue receiving inspiration
putting all of who I am into this excavation
giving meaning to all of that perspiration

I roll up my sleeves on this day, prepared to work
I lace up my boots prepared to stand on uneven ground
ready to dig
So I dig deeper. Intently

I gots my shovel everyday.
What will you have me dig today?

2006 Hassan Ntimbanjayo