Five siblings inherit a blanket. They lie beneath it, together, to stay warm.
          But arms and legs stick out and the siblings squabble and tug. They do
          not realize that they would all fit if they just moved closer together.

This is the Blanket Story. Poets, artists, and musicians have responded to this tale in creative ways. All poems appear here, our ONLINE POETRY SHOWCASE. Visit our main page to find out more about the project.

Susanna Vollenweider

soloist – time

awakening
emerging from a shell
born of a symbiosis of intimate togetherness
to immerse into a new protection
parents family group religion nation world

my life is the path to a new home
what is its dimension
where is my space
what role am I to play
am I going to live as a gadget
do I deny my self and relinquish my feelings
does safety exist
are there feelings of belonging

my wish of prosperity is growing finding inspiration in the new solidarity perceived as a personality my hope is raised by the energy of love I am stimulated by my inner urge listening to the warm-hearted sounds in the duet as a present all the harmony reaching other souls enrich

burst why are you leaving where does your path lead you moving forward alone and rootless to stray or rather set about the forefront in view of governance accepting the responsibility as the leader of the community selfless I feel confidence and mistrust as confederates why looking for this loneliness cutting open the connecting band to find fulfillment in isolation

celebrate your brilliance as a solitaire
in the endeavor of personal bearing
alone along the way
realizable or utopian dream
I see you very soon picking up your little box
to escape the void of true relationship by twittering
messaging to communicate with other beings
wanted
where are you counterpart
present as well as a solitaire
cutting the line
offline
abandonment

awakening
reversion to human nature
and attaining fulfillment in symbiosis
return to our hearts
find your home in our place
give purport to your time
feel it within yourself and us
so that your life lends substance to our affection
and forms the original shape

a film of existence
time
to awake time after time anew