https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/R._N._Taber
Email feedback suggests that LGBT readers feel that non-specific LGBT poems do not belong on this blog so today’s entry will be the last. Poetry is for everyone so I would ask those readers to try my general poetry blog. At the same time, today's poem only embraces any LGBT readers in the sense that the only choice facing us is whether or not to follow mind-body-spirit be open about them; sexuality is not, of course, a choice, but in our genes. Meanwhile, I can only promise to try and write a new gay-specific poem, although inspiration has not been very forthcoming since my prostate cancer was diagnosed some years ago; I lost interest in sex as a direct result of subsequent, ongoing hormone therapy.
Again, I can but refer these readers to the blog archives where poems
written during my sexually active years appear; none are offensive or pornographic,
but would be of little or no interest to the heterosexual reader.
Now, of all life forces confronting us a we journey through
life, few if any are equal to that of choice; it can literally be a matter of
life and death or, at the very least, a life changing experience.
Forewarned
is forearmed, or so they say, that communal ‘they’ might well do better to
stick to what it does best, making mountains out of molehills, than trying to
dictate the workings of a mind-body-spirit inclined to put its trust in basic
instinct.
A
couple of days ago, I was warned by a specialist that a recurring ear
complaint could be cancer of the ear and might require
surgery. The possibility had been put to me before, but native instinct was
already rejecting surgery, whatever the outcome. Normally I would not hesitate
to take specialist advice, but sometimes our instincts should not be ignored,
especially when they are as forceful as mine in this particular case. However,
it still remains to be seen if I do have ear cancer,
so...finger crossed.
Which
is the more important, life or quality of life? Everyone will have their own
answer to that, depending on all manner of circumstances; religion, too, will
have its say. Whatever, the final decision remains ours or, if it
so happens that we are not able to make it for ourselves, we can but trust
those who know and love us best to see that the right choice is made on our
behalf; the right choice for us, that is, not necessarily for them.]
As
for yours truly, I’ve had a good run and, at 76 years old, have no intention of
agreeing to surgery even if it is considered to be in my best interests.
Meanwhile, I will continue to play events by ear as they unfold... no pun
intended.
EITHER/
OR, LIFE FORCE
Though
friendly clouds carry me
to the ends of the earth
whenever and wherever caught
such ever-changing
landscapes, matching humanity
mood for mood,
as we now engage, now beat a retreat
with its every heartbeat
It
was a landscape of the womb
first installed in me
a mind-body-spirit reaching out
across a family history
of which soon I would be a part,
for good or ill...
I could not even guess, no thoughts yet
of engaging or retreat
Come
into the world on a tide
of mixed feelings...
pain and joy, relief and such hope
as would carry me
into landscapes unknown...
across generations
drawing on and shaping the human heart
to destroy and/or create
Thus,
a first take on that to-be-or-not-to-be
question for/ of humanity
Copyright
R. N. Taber, 2022
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