Here is a poem I wrote some years ago on a day when sickness is tugging at my cuff, and yet I can turn to my own poetry for some guidance and inspiration.
It is called “Simple Steps.”
When the mind loiters beyond its rulesShadowy misery crawls over my skin.
It wraps itself tightly against my bonds,
Holding me more sharply than crowning thorns.
These are the times for simple steps:
One at a time, one after the other.
Find a word here, and spin around its thread
The notions discovered in desert dreams.
Take it down like God’s secretary.
Repeat the mantras that have led me
From erring sadness to working quiet;
From worry that garrottes my voice,
To an even plateau, high above the clouds,
Where through thin air
Across flowered fields
I run, left then right, towards a fading sun.”
Excerpt From: Rich, Jeff. “After the Pills.” iBooks.
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