I got an email the other day from someone who stumbled across my other blog about art and activism. He mentioned that although he’s in Cincinnati, he had recently visited Louisville (which inspired the said online search), and was on his way to Chile to visit friends (who he is telling about my work!)
I had to share what he said at the close of his email:
“PS: In exchange for reading some of the thoughts you share in your blogging, here are some notes I scribbled today - not claiming these lines are anything more than a draft with more-than-normal typos from using a foreign keyboard, but the words have some connection to me thinking about your artist-activist lifestyle.
THERE IS AN ITCHING IN MY LEGS
I WANT TO LEAP
I WANT TO RUN
SPINNING WITH ACTIVITY
I FEEL THE THREAD-THIN IMPORTANCE OF MY LIFE
THREAD THAT GAINS STRENGTH WHEN INTERTWINED
OR INTERWOVEN WITH OTHER SLIGHT FIBERS
I WANT TO LIE IN CALM REPOSE
WATCHING RIVERS FLOW
YET TODAY I MIND MY DUTY TO CARRY WATER
TO THOSE WHO CANNOT REACH THE STREAM
THERE IS AN ITCHING IN MY LIMBS
NOT A BURNING
– PERHAPS JUST A TICKLE,
A SPINNING OF ENERGY –
I COULD SOAK IT UP
ABSORB ITS DIZZY-BUZZING-HIGH.
NOT TODAY THOUGH.
RATHER THAN REMAIN MERE FIBER, LOOSE, KNOTTED, UNMATTED,
I SUMMON (IMAGES OF) WORKING, HARD-CALLOUSED HANDS:
GANDHI SPIN-DROPPING HIS SPOOL OF NATIVE COTTON BY THE SEA,
THE THREE THREAD-SPINNING FATES,
THE WISE OLD WOMEN WHO KEEP TALENTS ALIVE,
THE YOUNG APPRENTICES WHO WILL CONTINUE SPINNING AFTER ELDERS DIE…
MAY MY VEGETABLE/VEGETATIVE MATTER SPIDER-SPIN A LINE
WITH STRENGTH ENOUGH TO MEND, NOT TO BIND”
Wow! Am I blushing?