Glorious Servants

author's note:

I don't believe a deep state exists, but I do believe in the existence of a deep self.


GLORIOUS SERVANTS

In the dream
I'm hanging in the sky like a kite
while far below a man digs down
into the earth--

his head bowed and shadowed
his bent back gleaming with sweat:

persistent sincere work has its glory.

Despite the height, I felt small
compared to him

and smaller still
as my vision broadened
to reveal a desert filled
with rows of little square pits--
each with a single occupant:
men and women obedient to the task--
what a cacophony of shovels and picks!

Maybe they mined...maybe for gold.

Such ferocity!--as if going for the core.

But maybe driven by mad delusion--
maybe only raising chimeras--
were they unwittingly digging their own graves?

Or maybe
they labored simply to build strength
--I did indeed see muscle

but also the wear of time and frustration.

I woke with no answers
only the certainty of what I felt:
the strain of their desire.

I recognized that strain as mine--

yes
like those other miners
I'm servant to a deep self
that demands I pursue work
of uncertain worth.

But though I dig alone, at least now I know
I'm not alone in this digging--

a solace made sweeter
when I remember
just how glorious we are.

© 2019, Michael R. Patton
the truth of the dream: poetry ebook

Beautiful Cup

author's note:

I was reading the dictionary.  I thought it was a poem about everything.
                -- Steven Wright


BEAUTIFUL CUP

As I lift the porcelain cup
I hardly notice
the delicate pattern
of flowing green vines
dotted
with little pink roses

no--
my eye goes straight to the place on the lip
where I glued back the chip
after the accident:

despite the solid patch
I can still see a thin nervous line
a downward arc.

A lovely cup ruined
but no--

before the break
it was pretty, yes
but also: pretty mundane...
boring.

Now the cup wears a distinctive mark--
beautiful to me because
I'm reminded of the beauty of all those
who work so hard to heal the wound.

© 2019, Michael R. Patton
common courage: poetry ebook

Saguaro & Tumbleweed

author's note:

“I learn by going where I have to go.”
              -- Theodore Roethke


SAGUARO & TUMBLEWEED

When I feel as if I'm being
pushed around
by unseen forces beyond
my control or understanding
I remind myself:

the tumbleweed
despite its suffering
sows seeds as it bounces.

And when growth feels
so painfully tedious
I tell myself:

to grow an arm
the saguaro needs
seventy slow years

but then what a strong appendage!

And when I again feel the need
to help those who struggle as I do today
I comfort myself with a hope:

if in time, some notice
what sprouted
along my tumbling bumbling path

or notice
I added another arm
or two or three in this life

then maybe some of that some
will feel encouraged
as they grow and sow in the desert.

© 2019, Michael R. Patton
searching for my best beliefs: poetry ebook