Wednesday, September 30, 2009

Poem: The Jitters

The Jitters

1
We almost always feel less
Safe than we actually are.

And not feeling safe uses
Vast swaths of bandwidth

With its high noise to signal ratio,
Leaving nothing redemptive

In the wake of paralysis
By the jitters.

2
It comes like a hit and run driver
Shooting through the crosswalk

As you stop
To tie your shoe--

Luck and circumstance
Conspire to save you.

3
Every throbbing second you spend here,
You engage in a game of dodge ball,

And bob and weave through a multitude
Of objective hazards, walls, and shoals

Over which you have no control―
And only a fraction of which you ever see.

4
If we knew of every near-miss,
It would be tough to keep shuffling on,

And somehow, we learn just enough
To mostly keep us on our toes.
---o0o---

3 comments:

  1. A great Dharma poem if I ever read one. Gen-la just taught about the uselessness of worry this weekend. I do think that living so close to the Temple has affected you.

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  2. I didn't think about Dharma when I was writing it, but when I was done, I thought about it.

    Maybe the temple IS beaming vibes my way? And maybe in my book, I should change the name of the poem to Some Of The Dharma...

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