July 2019
I'm a retired English Professor spending my time writing, taking the occasional photograph, trying to follow the Dharma. For more about me and my musings: http://www.michaelminassian.com
I KNOW YOU ARE NOT A SCIENTIST
Dear Friend, the letter begins,
I am sorry to tell you
that the earth is indeed round,
no matter how many
two dimensional drawings
you produce. And, yes,
it is true that I had a lonely
childhood, and suffered
mightily, having not even
an imaginary friend,
though I found at an early age
that I could communicate
not only with animals
and birds, but also fish
and mammals of the sea;
there I am in the photograph
on page one of today’s
newspaper, holding up a globe,
though slightly misshapen,
riding on the back
of a blue whale as it leaps
from the ocean to sing
the song made, as you know,
without vocal cords.
Hence, this letter;
if you cannot sing,
simply hum the tune
as it wanders
through your mind
like the sun revolving
around the earth,
and the planets
spinning like plates
in the circus of air.
*Previously appeared in Comstock Review, 2017
I KNOW YOU ARE NOT A SCIENTIST
Dear Friend, the letter begins,
I am sorry to tell you
that the earth is indeed round,
no matter how many
two dimensional drawings
you produce. And, yes,
it is true that I had a lonely
childhood, and suffered
mightily, having not even
an imaginary friend,
though I found at an early age
that I could communicate
not only with animals
and birds, but also fish
and mammals of the sea;
there I am in the photograph
on page one of today’s
newspaper, holding up a globe,
though slightly misshapen,
riding on the back
of a blue whale as it leaps
from the ocean to sing
the song made, as you know,
without vocal cords.
Hence, this letter;
if you cannot sing,
simply hum the tune
as it wanders
through your mind
like the sun revolving
around the earth,
and the planets
spinning like plates
in the circus of air.
*Previously appeared in Comstock Review, 2017
© 2019 Michael Minassian
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