Lament
a Poem by Tom Valovic
What is this noose
hanging around my neck
like a loud necktie?
No worries, it is merely
old age,
a common enough affliction
affecting 10 out of 10 Americans.
The ancient religious writers
loved to ramble on
about the body’s impermanence:
“dust to dust”
and the whole nine yards.
What a gloomy bunch!
Once while living in the city,
I passed a large gathering
in a public square
where masses of pink and black
balloons were being released.
Someone in the crowd said that
a circus performer had passed away,
and this was his
intended celebration.
The ancient Taoists had
the right idea.
They knew enough
to laugh and
shrug the whole damn thing off,
fear and dread
floating away
like a black balloon, a tiny speck
in the widening deep blue sky.
Tom Valovic
Tom Valovic is a writer, journalist, and tai chi practitioner of 22 years. He is the author of Digital Mythologies, which explores the relationship between spirituality and technology. He writes about a variety of topics including healthcare, politics, technology, spirituality, and the environment. He has written articles about the relationship of culture and technology for Annals of Earth, Wisdom Magazine, The Whole Earth Review, The Boston Globe, The San Francisco Examiner, Media Studies Journal, and many other publications. Tom has been a board member at Brookline Tai Chi in Massachusetts and is co-founder of the Emergence Project.
He always enjoys hearing from readers. Feel free to e-mail him at cloudhands5885@gmail.com.