rites

It is not her belief, but she is a believer nonetheless;
It is not her religion, but she cherishes the rites nonetheless.

She is silent, listening,
Making intention,
Waiting to follow my lead,
Learning from my instruction.
She is the technician, after all,
She Who Undertakes the Process.

So we ablute together,
We bathe together,
We make ourselves clean and cleansed,
My sister and I,
Side by side,
In niyyah,
Each act, each step
A word of prayer
Spoken through the movement of our bodies.