Beloved is Where You Begin
by Jan Richardson

If you would enter
Into the wilderness,
Do not begin
Without a blessing.
Do not leave
Without hearing
Who you are:
Beloved,
Named by the One
Who has traveled this path
Before you.
Do not go
Without letting it echo
In your ears,
And if you find
it is hard
To let into your heart,
Do not despair.
That is what
This journey is for.