so I took the opportunity

sent for the recipe

mixed up a batch

and popped out a child.

I had birthed myself,

a new version,

shiny and wet with laughter.

Fresh start,

held and rocked by a new caring world

who loved themselves and the planet

and its people more than ever before

more than I thought possible.

And my baby kept gurgling with smiles,

kicking chubby legs

reaching from a sturdy core

so resilient

so bright with vision.

I carried my child

everywhere I went,

changed everyone I met.

Ziji Beth Goren, March 2012