Bonus: Poem + Practice

Hey Friend,

I wrote a poem for you. Listen to me read it aloud above and/or read along below if you wish.

Here’s the layout for the audio: I give a short intro, read the poem, and then guide a mindfulness practice. I’m calling this a Poem Practice. See my notes below if you want to just listen to one portion of the audio.

• Intro: 0:00

• Poem: 3:15

• Practice: 5:10

I’ve never shared a poem publicly. Let me know what you think!

143,

Ryan

---

How Might I Help You
Dear body,

I’m sorry. 

You came into this world expecting tigers,
I gave you horrors
Painted in headlines

You arrived with instructions from starlit beings
A promise 
To guide you on moonless nights,
I covered them 
With lanterns made from coal

You were primed 
For the wise embrace of grandma’s wrinkly skin,
I digitized her face
A whole dimension of her spirit
Lost

You showed up 
With tender feet
Eager to receive 
The lessons written in granite,
I scattered broken glass over concrete
And mandated sneakers

It’s not what I had imagined either

A lonely life
Lived in the mind

A pace so dire 
I go numb to you 

An accident 
Born of a billion petty decisions 
None of us voted for

Yet here we are;
A broken friendship
Needing repair

How might I help you
Make sense of this landscape
So unfamiliar
To the web of life that wove you

Teach me 
What is primordial,
Sing me 
The song of my ancestors,
Tickle me 
When I can’t feel you

I will explain desk jobs
The fourth quarter
Zeros and ones

Remind me I am animal
And I will whisper the terrible secret 
Of being human.

---

Thanks for joining me in this fun experiment. How was it for you? Did you listen? Read? Do both at the same time? Reply or leave a comment below, if you would.