The Weight of Time

Perhaps one of the catalysts for putting pen to paper, or finger to key in the digital age, is the desire to make sense of the random bombardment of thoughts that is an unavoidable consequence of consciousness. At least that's the way I see it. I remember watching Al Pacino's film take on Richard III a few years ago, and finding the appearance of a homeless man in NYC in the film particularly moving. In tattered clothes dispensing street wisdom outside the Met, he said that one of the reasons why young Americans are so prone to violence is that they don't know how to express themselves. If they were exposed to the wisdom to be found in literary works, then perhaps they would learn how to channel and express their thoughts, impulses, and emotions through original, creative outlets. Amen! In the tradition of the Bard, he is an apparent "fool" in the eyes of the world, like the court jester or the servant, but the repository of wisdom. So, I heed the call! I recall Ginsberg saying, "When the muse calls- answer!" The muse has been singing her siren song for too long now. So move on you 10 nimble fingers of mine, and may the keyboard's keys heed the punch song of my soul. And now, a little poem for you...

The Weight of Time

The weight of time
wears me down
like a potato-heavy
burlap sack