The Power of Metaphor

author’s note:

But when I do drown, I’m always able to resuscitate myself.


THE POWER OF METAPHOR

Occasionally a submerged memory
will leap up in a sudden wave

and as the breaking crest topples down
onto my head
the undertow
will begin to pull me under.

But I’ve learned
at such times I can save myself

by calmly repeating this instruction:
don’t try to resist—open yourself
open up your arms—open up
the cage of your chest:
surrender
and feel the full force of the feeling.

And if I then do as told
I will rise up
from the deepening darkness
to the sun
spangling golden
on those light blue waters

and a rolling wave of peace
will carry me home to the sandy shore.

Yes, by using metaphor in this way
I can stop myself from drowning.

But so easy to forget
when a sudden wave rises
and my head gets pounded once again.

mythsteps · power of metaphor

Survival: poetry book
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© 2025, Michael R. Patton

A Plume from a Whale

author’s note:

I’m a menagerie.  But who isn’t?


A PLUME FROM A WHALE

Today’s dark rain reminds me
of the day I almost drown.

And with the memory
I struggle once more
not to drown in the dark.

At such times I sometimes
get a lift
by telling myself I’m a whale.

And like any other whale
I have great capacity
nonetheless
I must rise to surface occasionally

to shoot my geyser of steam
up at the sun—
a glittering white plume.
But a painful release, that offering.

Some say my fountain
is just a bit of spit.
Maybe so
but that brief blow allows this whale
to take another breath
before returning
to the dark blue life
that feeds us so well.

Today, I offer these lines
to all you other leviathans
because we need to remember:

even the strongest creature
must sometimes surrender
and rise to spout the deep water out
so we won’t drown in the dark.

What I Learned While Alone: poetry book
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© 2024, Michael R. Patton

Talking to the Baby

author’s note:

A lot of waves of memory lately.


TALKING TO THE BABY

Emerging from the warm womb
into the harsh raw air of this world
I cried
“Why!  Oh why!  Oh why oh why!”

Since then
I’ve heard many answers--

some I’ve actually found to be of benefit.
For instance:

to accept that we’re here to grow
helps me to accept my growing pains.

Well yes, but
when an old painful memory
suddenly rises like a wave to douse me
even the wisest wisdom
can not buoy my spirits.

At such times I may switch
from philosopher to mother saint
and speak to the saturated heart
as if comforting a squalling babe.

But I need to believe
the world needs me
to do more than just be here
so in short time I’ll shift to the father--
knowing he’ll say:

“Enough honey for now, baby--
 show some courage--dive on in.”

mythsteps · Talking to the Baby

Common Courage: poetry book
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© 2023, Michael R. Patton

The Devil Frog

author’s note:

"My life needs editing."
               -- Mort Sahl

THE DEVIL FROG

One night
as I walked through the park
reflecting again on events of the past
I suddenly heard
a little raspy voice whisper:

“I can answer your wish--
 I’ll erase from your memory
 whatever you’d like to forget!”

Turning quickly, I spied
a tree frog perched on a low limb.
Without thinking, I replied:

“Frog, if you’re not playing a trick
 I’ll gladly accept!--
 as long as I can keep
 what I’ve learned
 from looking back.”

“What you’ve already learned
 you’ve earned,”
 the frog croaked back.

What a relief! I sighed.
I’ve tried so hard to understand.
Now I can finally rest--
I’ll no longer feel pressed
to resolve those old conflicted feelings.

With that thought, a bubble popped
and I began to run

fleeing from that devil frog--
afraid that I might succumb
to a temptation
that would deliver me
to a sweet Eden
if I gave up this bigger wish:

to one day finally graduate--
having achieved
the higher degree of peace I seek.

33 1/3 New Fables & Myths
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© 2023, Michael R. Patton

Despite Appearances

author's note:

The video above is window-dressing.  The real reason for this post is the poem below.


DESPITE APPEARANCES

When I look back
the losses seem to outweigh the wins.

But I must've gained
as I lost
because I would not want
to begin again
if I had to start
as the one I was
when I first began
this adult life.

So, no, I’m not a minus--
I’m a plus.
I have not
wasted this field.
I have grown.

Though I still can’t see
the total equation
I realize the truth of my math
when I sit down in the dark
and deepen into my depths
because then I can sense the strength--
the steady increase.

But I believe
we all grow--
  if not a meter more
  then at least a millimeter--
no one can avoid learning a little.

Maybe we humans will eventually
--collectively--
learn enough through loss
to see how much
our species has actually gained
during its brief play
on the green field of this planet.

© 2020, Michael R. Patton
Poet, Heal Thyself: ebook

The Great Obsession of the Hotel Ghost

author's note:

I’m not a ghost…but I have been mistaken for one.


THE GREAT OBSESSION OF THE HOTEL GHOST

Our tour guide says:
the woman walks the same path
night after lonely night--
sometimes, guests
can hear her soft steps
on the hallway carpet
just outside their door.

A forlorn lady, yes--but
I see her fixation as positive:
I believe some ghosts relive
the same tragedy relentlessly
because
they’re trying to see
a higher reason--
they ask:
can a life that seems so damned
have a grand plan?--
they want the wisdom
that will set them free.

Maybe at first
the ghost expects this wisdom to come
in a sudden blazing beam of light from above

but in time, realizes
the light must slowly be raised
from depths within.

Then, as she delves down
maybe she’ll find a design
of cause and effect
but based on my own experience
I’d guess:
intellectual insight
won’t be enough to free her--
no

she needs to delve until she feels
the truth of what
she’d always been taught:
“all is as it should be”--

what I’ve sometimes felt
in a sudden moment--
a moment too soon gone
because
I’m still too dim to hold on to
that great sense of perfection.

However, I believe
if we keep delving and lifting
eventually that sense
will remain with us
then we’ll finally shed
our old dark chains.

But as the tour guide says:
though ghosts will abandon their haunts
they do so only gradually--
slowly fading over years--
decades.

Yes, decades--but
I can see how
with each delve, I lift
just a bit more light
than on the previous night.

© 2019, Michael R. Patton
what I learned while alone: poetry ebook

A Beer / A Bee

author's note:

Instead of teaching our children about "the birds and the bees"...

...we should teach them about their bears and their bees.


A BEAR / A BEE

When I saw the news photo
of that man laid out on the ground
after an encounter with a bear...

once again, I felt
that invisible paw press
down hard on my chest--

once again, those memories
swarmed my mind--
the bittersweet times
of my history of love.

However
I've learned through honesty:
I'm the one who claws my heart
and stings my head--
not anyone from the past.

But I just can't stop myself
from stirring the swarm
from poking the wound--

driven by a deep desire for resolution.

But though I analyze
and attack from various angles
I'm repeatedly defeated
in this fight for peace--
so frustrated now, so fatigued.

Solitude can only be temporary solace
when the real war is with yourself
so I might as well surrender my hermitage
and offer myself up--
wounded, troubled, flawed, unresolved
though I be--

once again, I'll be
a honey bear among honey bears--
a honey bee among honey bees!

I will slowly push against
the rusty hinges
until the gate of this cage
breaks.

I must create
new memories for myself--
sweet, bitter, bittersweet--whatever
will add some flavor
to this stale history.

© 2019, Michael R. Patton
what I learned while alone: poetry ebook

In a Flash

author's note:

Maybe I'm under the influence of the wonderful anthology From the Country of Eight Islands, edited/translated by Hiroaki Sato and Burton Watson.

I hope I am.


IN A FLASH

A child's footprint in the sand

washed away in the flash of a wave...


© 2014, Michael R. Patton
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