Monday, February 28, 2022
IN THE NEWS
THREE OLD MONK POEMS (147)
HOW MUCH
How much of it
can you stand
before you have to
go back down
the mountain --
that's the question,
the old monk said.
~
IF YOU DON'T
If you don't
understand it,
try reading it
upside down,
the old monk said.
~
SEVEN OR
Seven or a hundred
is how many,
the master asked
the old monk who
approximates.
~
Sunday, February 27, 2022
TEN OLD MONK POEMS (56)
POEMS?
Poems? How many
of them are there,
they asked.
As many as there
are stars,
the old monk said.
~
ABOUT THE TIME
About the time
you lose it is
when you need it,
the old monk said.
~
WHEN THE HUM
When the hum
of the universe
goes through you,
you hum with it,
the old monk said.
~
SOMEWHERE OUT PAST
Somewhere out past
Omaha when you're
halfway there is
no time to remember
what you forgot,
the old monk said.
~
YOU CAN TURN
You can turn him
a different way,
they say about
the old monk,
and he still
talks the same.
~
WHERE WOULD I BE
Where would I be
if I wasn't here,
the old monk
asked the mountain.
The mountain
wouldn't say.
~
EVERY PROCESS
Every process
has a shape
and if you
know the shape
you know
the process,
the old monk said.
~
IF IT'S NOT
If it's not there
when you want it,
it's there
when you don't,
the old monk said.
~
THE SKY
The sky
doesn't understand
what the wind
wants,
the old monk says.
~
HOW MUCH INK
How much ink does it take
to write the night sky dark,
the old monk wondered.
~
IN THE NEWS
THREE OLD MONK POEMS (146)
EVERYTHING
Everything
that goes
is not always
what you want
to let go,
the old monk said.
~
YOU CAN'T IMAGINE
You can't imagine
imagination,
you actually
have to have it,
the old monk said.
~
IF HE SAID
If he said it before,
he was only getting started,
the master said
about the old monk.
~
Saturday, February 26, 2022
THREE OLD MONK POEMS (145)
AH, YES, SKIN
Ah, yes, skin,
where we begin
to understand
the world,
the old monk said.
~
IMAGINE
Imagine imagining it
and then be ready,
the old monk told
the waiting poets.
~
WHERE YOU DRAW
Where you draw the line
is where the line is.
Does it move around with you,
the old monk wondered.
~
Friday, February 25, 2022
THREE OLD MONK POEMS (144)
YOU CAN'T
You can't see
that you don't
see it,
the old monk says.
~
WANT
Want
is not what
you want,
the old monk said.
~
BEFORE
Before we were humans,
we were dragons,
the old monk said.
~
Thursday, February 24, 2022
THREE OLD MONK POEMS (143)
YOU WATCH
You watch yourself
watching yourself
you can't see
what you're doing,
the old monk says.
~
WHERE'S THE PROFIT
Where's the profit
in prophecy,
the old monk asked.
~
WHAT YOU WANT
What you want
is to touch
the lightning
bolt of God,
the old monk says.
~
Wednesday, February 23, 2022
THREE OLD MONK POEMS (142)
I MAY HAVE
I may have
already said that.
I've been talking
ten thousand years,
the old monk said.
~
IF I PUT THEM
If I put them together
I could make a speech,
the old monk said
about his poems.
~
THE STARS
The stars can only be
all things by dying,
the old monk explained
to the astronomer.
~
Tuesday, February 22, 2022
THREE OLD MONK POEMS (141)
AT THE SMALLEST
At the smallest hut
they will offer
the best supper,
the old monk said.
This is true
of many things.
~
SETTLE
Settle onto
the soft grasses here,
the grasses want it,
the old monk said.
~
HOW IMPORTANT
How important is it
to break the line?
If you don't break it,
it's not a line,
the old monk told
the poet.
~
Monday, February 21, 2022
THREE OLD MONK POEMS (140)
NO, I DON'T
No, I don't live in
a monastery,
the old monk said.
I live in
the roots of a tree.
~
THE DOOR WON'T
The door doesn't open
when the guest
isn't wanted,
the old monk said.
You can tell by
the rusty hinges.
~
IF YOU GO
If you go
up the mountain,
go all the way
up.
If you come
down the mountain,
come half-
way,
the old monk says.
~
Sunday, February 20, 2022
TEN OLD MONK POEMS (55)
HOW YOU DO IT
How you do it
is your business,
the old monk says.
How you don't
is mine.
~
A SOFT STONE
A soft stone
is a good pillow,
the old monk says.
~
TWO HALVES
Two halves
can be divided
easier than
one whole,
the old monk said.
~
WHY DO WE
Why do we want more
when half will do,
the old monk wonders.
~
IF THEY GIVE YOU
If they give you a hand,
don't keep their fingers,
the old monk said.
~
I HAVE NO
I have no opinion
and I'm out of
onions,
the old monk said.
~
IF THAT'S THE LAST
If that's the last
thing the old monk
has to say,
will he shut up,
they wondered.
~
IF YOU CAN
If you can,
the old monk said,
you do what
you can't.
~
ANY PLACE
Any place you land
is where you want to
when there's no
alternative,
the old monk says.
~
IF I EXPLAINED
If I explained it any better
I wouldn't understand it either,
the old monk said, apologizing.
~
Saturday, February 19, 2022
THREE OLD MONK POEMS (139)
THAT'S SOMEONE ELSE'S
That's someone else's
mountain,
the old monk said.
You don't go up
without invitation.
~
I DON'T DO
I don't do
deals on the side,
I do them
right out front,
the old monk said.
~
SOME OF THOSE
Some of those
stones are my
dearest friends,
the old monk said.
He meant it.
~
Friday, February 18, 2022
THREE OLD MONK POEMS (138)
IT WORKS OUT
It works out better
if I don't work it out,
the old monk said.
~
AS MANY
As many as you need
is for those who
like a few extra,
the old monk says.
~
WE PLACE
We place markers
and lose them.
That's how we
get confused,
the old monk says.
~
Thursday, February 17, 2022
THREE OLD MONK POEMS (137)
THE GRASSES KNOW
The grasses know
what the grasses know
and that is enough
for the mountain,
the old monk says.
~
HE DOESN'T
He doesn't always know
what he's going to say
but he goes ahead and
says it, the old monk.
~
POETRY
Poetry -- it starts
when it wants
and you don't
tell it to stop,
the old monk says.
~
Wednesday, February 16, 2022
THREE OLD MONK POEMS (136)
THE DIRTY DEALS
The dirty deals you make --
the devil will want some,
the old monk says.
~
HOW MUCH
How much to do
before you do it,
the old monk asked
the rebellious student.
~
THE BEST MOMENT
The best moment
is the last one,
the old monk says.
~
Tuesday, February 15, 2022
THREE OLD MONK POEMS (135)
JUST LIKE
Just like last night,
the stars and their stories,
the old monk said.
~
IF YOU'RE WORRIED
If you're worried
about what you're
going to say,
skip rehearsal --
just say it,
the old monk says.
~
IF SHE LIVES
If she lives
across the river,
is she really
one of ours,
that poet,
the old monk asked.
~
Monday, February 14, 2022
THREE OLD MONK POEMS (134)
FEAR
Fear
is what fear
fears,
the old monk says.
~
IT'S NOT
It's not the excitement
that will kill you,
the old monk said,
it's the sudden stop.
~
IT'S A MESS
It's a mess,
the old monk said,
speaking of the box
he puts his
poems into.
~
Sunday, February 13, 2022
TEN OLD MONK POEMS (54)
IF I HAD
If I had a larger vocabulary
I wouldn't know what to say,
the old monk said.
~
WHEN YOU TURN
When you turn
inside out
upside down
you get
upside out,
the old monk said.
Try it. You'll see.
~
WHEN THE WORLD
When the world
goes quiet
it makes you
wonder,
the old monk said.
~
SOMETIMES THERE'S
Sometimes there's the girl
and sometimes it's the tiger
but often there's nothing
behind either door,
the old monk told them.
~
NOT PARTICLE
Not particle
nor wave,
light is a sheet
flapping in
the great wind,
the old monk said.
~
LIGHT IS
Light is
the mane of a hard-
running horse,
the old monk says.
~
THE WATCHERS
The watchers watch
the crows and the corn
in the field,
everything, that's
what they do,
the old monk says.
~
MORNING COMES
Morning comes sooner
on the mountain,
and lasts longer,
the old monk says.
~
IF YOU FOLLOW
If you follow
your shadow
you are
going home,
the old monk says.
~
THE LOWEST
The lowest is first
off the apple tree,
the old monk says.
~
THREE OLD MONK POEMS (133)
HOW MANY WORDS
How many words
can you bend,
how many ways
can you bend them,
the old monk asked
the poet.
~
YESTERDAY
Yesterday
is always better
than today
and tomorrow
is even better
than that,
the old monk said,
speaking generally.
~
THE POET
The poet
judges his students.
The old monk
judges the poet.
Who judges
the old monk?
The students.
~
Saturday, February 12, 2022
THREE OLD MONK POEMS (132)
DON'T WEAR
Don't wear a face
to hide yourself,
the old monk said.
It won't be pretty.
~
TURN WHEREVER
Turn wherever --
you aren't going
to get there,
the old monk told
his worst student.
~
ANYWHERE IS
Anywhere is
somewhere else,
the old monk said.
It's not here.
~
Friday, February 11, 2022
THREE OLD MONK POEMS (131)
THE WAY IT BREAKS
The way it breaks is
the way it breaks,
the old monk said,
whether you're talking
about a storm,
a walking stick, or
a line of poetry.
~
SOMETIMES / SHADOWS
Sometimes
shadows
on the wall
is all
the candle
has to say
the old monk said.
~
THE LEAST YOU CAN DO
The least you can do
is to try not to undo
what God has done,
the old monk said.
~
Thursday, February 10, 2022
THREE OLD MONK POEMS (130)
SOME GO
Some go into
the desert
to choose their silence.
Some go up
the mountain.
Those who find it
do not return,
the old monk says.
~
MAKE WAY
Make way. Make way,
the old monk says.
Let me say
what I have to
before the wind
comes up the mountain.
~
I HAVE GONE
I have gone up
the mountain
and have spoken
with silence and
now I can say
what I have to,
the old monk
told his students.
~
Wednesday, February 09, 2022
THREE OLD MONK POEMS (129)
THE JOY
The joy
in going
up the mountain
is going
up the mountain,
the old monk says.
~
WHEN THE DARKNESS
When the darkness
calls you, hold to
the stone of the mountain
and to the light
within it,
the old monk says.
~
THIS IS HOW
This is how I live,
writing one line at a time.
This is how I will die, too,
the old monk said.
~
Tuesday, February 08, 2022
THREE OLD MONK POEMS (128)
SO, YOU'RE SAYING
So, you're saying
all that is
is
all that was,
the old monk asked
the physicist.
~
WHEN YOU SEE
When you see
this tree
or that stone
is god
you will be
lifted,
the old monk said.
~
THE MOUNTAIN DOES NOT
The mountain does not
make promises.
You are on your own,
the old monk
told his students.
~
Monday, February 07, 2022
THREE OLD MONK POEMS (127)
KEEP THINKING
Keep thinking about it,
the old monk says,
and you'll never do it.
~
SOME OF US
Some of us
only imagine
mountains
and some
mountains
only imagine
us,
the old monk said.
~
YOU CAN'T TALK
You can't talk your way
into silence,
the old monk says.
~
Sunday, February 06, 2022
TEN OLD MONK POEMS (53)
IF YOU WANT TO
If you want to
move here from there
it always goes faster when
you move there from here,
the old monk said.
~
SO HE CAN
So he can
keep up, the old
monk wants
an old and
tired mule.
Sally will do.
~
IF YOU GET OUT THERE
If you get out there
past the front edge
of the universe,
it might get scary,
the old monk warned.
~
THE UNIVERSE
The universe
came up from
the bottom and goes
out all the way
to the edge
and can't come back,
the old monk said.
This is your
advanced cosmology
I'm talking about.
~
IT'S THE CALL-BUTTON
It's the call-button
for the nurse
or the tail
of the tiger,
the old monk said.
I don't know which.
~
IF GOD
If God has taken
more than seven days
to make the universe,
imagine how much
more interesting
it could be,
the old monk said.
I mean, God has
other tricks.
~
ALL THE GRASSES
All the grasses
love the mountain,
the old monk says.
All the stone.
All the sky.
~
I'D DRAW YOU
I'd draw you a map,
the old monk said,
but it might not help
you find your way.
~
HOW CAN WE TELL
How can we tell
the old monk from
any grumpy old man
on the mountain,
they asked the master
before they left.
~
IF SOMEONE
If someone makes you
a cheap offer, ask them
what they honor,
the old monk said.
~
THREE OLD MONK POEMS (126)
THE OLD MONK GOT ON
The old monk got on the train.
He said, I don't know where
it goes but I'm going.
~
WANTING
Wanting nothing is
what you want to want,
the old monk said.
He was only
half-teasing.
~
ONE LAST LINE
One last line opens,
the old monk said,
and one last line closes.
It works either way.
~
Saturday, February 05, 2022
THREE OLD MONK POEMS (125)
I DON'T ALWAYS
I don't always know
where I'm going,
the old monk said,
and that's the way
you want it.
~
I CAN TELL YOU
I can tell you what I know
but it won't be easy,
the old monk said.
~
YES, KEEP TALKING
Yes, keep talking,
the old monk said,
and maybe you'll
say something
memorable.
~
Friday, February 04, 2022
THREE OLD MONK POEMS (124)
SOMETIMES IT'S SO
Sometimes it's so
good you can't
remember
anything else,
the old monk says.
~
A POLE IS
A pole is slow
going up and
faster coming down
even if you
don't grease it,
the old monk says.
~
PUT IT
Put it to it,
see if it does it,
the old monk said.
That usually works.
~
Thursday, February 03, 2022
THREE OLD MONK POEMS (123)
LIKE US
Like us
birds and flowers
are the stuff
of dead stars,
the old monk said,
the many which
have died for us.
~
OF COURSE
Of course,
the old monk said,
you cannot
offer anything
to the old masters
that the old masters
have not already
given.
~
HE CARRIES
He carries his
sack of stones
for practice
and because
he's afraid
he might
fly away,
the old monk.
~
Wednesday, February 02, 2022
THREE OLD MONK POEMS (122)
THE WISE MAN
The wise man knows
where the fool has been,
the old monk says.
~
I JUST TYPE THEM
I just type them,
I don't judge them,
the old monk's secretary
said of his poems.
~
KEEP SHOOTING
Keep shooting.
One of them
will hit it,
the old monk said.
~
Tuesday, February 01, 2022
THREE OLD MONK POEMS (121)
HE THINKS
He thinks he's a poet.
We know he's a monk,
they said about
their teacher.
~
THE OLD MONK
AT SUNDAY DINNER
Show them
you loved it.
Lick your plate
clean.
~
YOU LOOK
You look like a monk,
but you don't talk like one,
they told the old monk.
~
