Poet Yolanda Sealey-Ruiz’s Follow the Sun
From Dr. Sealey-Ruiz’s first book, Love from the Vortex, “Follow the Sun” is a poem about laying oneself bare both to oneself and her beloved; putting to rest doubt and fear after having looked it in the eye; and daring to hope that a beautiful, reciprocated love worth waiting for is in their future, like God’s rainbow after the flood. It is written in a moment of peace, full of hope and optimism for a brighter tomorrow.
Follow the Sun
It takes patience & courage to choose —
I choose to walk with uncertainty
through ambiguity;
maintaining my dignity & belief
that we were meant to be.
Meant to walk this journey together,
a search for momentum that carries the risk
only an open heart can hold
when love is the choice.
I am not Catholic, but I confess:
It is you.
I knew it was you the moment
we exchanged smiles.
It has always been you without
much resistance from me.
But I feel your trepidation, like
the heat that prickles my skin
the bird reluctant to leave the egg
the toddler learning to walk,
one step forward, two back & a fall —
I have fallen for you.
Yet, remain a witness to
your wonderings about me.
Still I offer you this invitation to love
yourself & me.
I sit with patience—
In fellowship we have become good friends.
I invite you to meet with us
as we make space to recognize
the gift of having met.
I have broken through fear today.
I have wrestled with my thoughts
as fear tugged at my heart.
Found the courage to say
what I always knew to be true:
I. Choose. You.
I hope you accept this invitation
& choose to be fully present
when my heart arrives for a visit.
I hope you choose to be courageous
in moments of fear,
delimit the possibilities
to consider that this could in fact
be a beautiful friendship.
I hope you choose to build
a different kind of family
with me.
Us. Together. As one.
Show me your fears,
your scars.
Tell me what is in
your heart; I promise
I will not walk away.
This invitation calls for
patience & courage,
both of which I have in abundance.
So why not just talk?
Let’s just talk & see where it goes.
If we end up in a place we don’t want to be,
we can just turn around
& follow the sun.
Yolanda Sealey-Ruiz is an award-winning Associate Professor at Teachers College, Columbia University. Her research focuses on racial literacy in teacher education and improving equitable school experiences for Black and Latinx students. As a poet, she has released two full length collections on love, betrayal, and healing. Her first book of poetry, Love from the Vortex & Other Poems (2020), is an archeological exploration on love and intimacy, charting her journey of finding and losing love over the span of three decades. Her follow up volume, The Peace Chronicles (2021), moves from a place of betrayal and heartbreak to equanimity, peacemaking, and joy.