Be forewarned —
the work will change you,
you will not keep the quick
conclusions, the know-it-all opinions,
the glib solutions
that brought you, eager, to the job

You will use your mind
but not in the way you imagined —
there will be great gaps
in what you understand,
you will have to start from nothing,
again and again

Patience will be your best tool,
patience and perseverance
and enough inner silence
to hear what the task suggests

Your body will learn to keep going —
give it permission to work hard
and a way to get warm at day’s end,
it will rise to the occasion,
and serve you well
and be your friend.

©Wendy Mulhern
September 22, 2017