Poem: "Speechflesh"

[ysabetwordsmith]

This poem came out of the December 6, 2011 Poetry Fishbowl.  It was inspired by a prompt from siege and sponsored by Shirley Barrette.  Take a close look at the beginning of the poem: the title is a tongue-twister, which is something I very rarely use since poetry usually needs to be easily pronounced.  The first verse introduces the theme, and you can see why I've chosen to embody that in the title.

Speechflesh

It is difficult to speak of these things,
the body and the spirit
and how to feed them.
The tongue wants to tangle
and the mind veer away
to easier topics.

Yet these are the very things
which sustain us:
we are what we eat
and what we believe,
and these two are
often nearer than we realize.

Learn to listen to your bones,
not just your heart and your mind.
There is more to being alive
than merely feeling and thinking.
Hush.  Be still.  Trust your body
to tell you what it needs.

Learn to listen with your soul,
not just your ears and your wishes.
There is more to being than humanity
and some part of you remembers this.
Hush.  Be still.  That which is divine
will unfold itself within you.

Seek that which truly nourishes,
for the life that went into the food
is all that will ever come out of it.
Seek that which really fulfills, for
spiritual junk food is no better for the soul
than empty calories are for the body.

Open yourself: beyond the noise
is an eternity of meaningful silences.
Hear what is real and what is true.
Speak what is difficult yet worthwhile.
Explore that which is flesh, which is spirit.
Choose consciously what you will become.