The humble valley sings a sweet song
burbling its gentle melody as warm steam
brushes the sky with conscious strokes
letting out an exasperated sigh
as passerby move along
to praise the mighty Geysir.
The humble valley boasts hidden treasures
teeming with life in colourful cracks and crevices,
boiling slurries that gurgle and pop,
venting out tensions held by Mother Earth.
The humble valley whispers
as frigid winds flow over the bumpy landscape
and tickle my half-numb cheeks,
reminding me that the valley is a wild a place,
and that I carry the valley in me.
Vanessa Ong is a Teochew-Chinese-Vietnamese-Canadian woman of colour living and working in Kitchener, Ontario. As cofounder of Littlefoot Community Projects, she is interested in building a decolonized food justice movement, which addresses difficult topics like food security, land sovereignty, intergenerational food systems, and cultural resilience. She spends her time overthinking and curling up in bed when the too-muchness of life takes hold.
