Susan B. Auld: "Practicing the Art of Zen"

how can I be in the present
when I need two hands to twitter and tweet
when world events are everywhere all the time

above   below   under   inside   outside
slithering through
ear buds   flat screens   cell phones

and I miss the exact second the rose
opens its red lips or the dramatic entrance
of the lilac's perfume as it catches a ride
on the back of a spring breeze
and floats through my open window

how can I listen    to my breath
move   in    move   out    move   in    move   out

through the rumbles of cement trucks
bells and whistles of garbage trucks
siren songs   ring tones   doorbells
computer music and twitches

how can I possibly be
in the moment
when the world is so

in my face
in my ears
in my rooms
in my yard
swallowing this
moment and
the next and next and next...

how in this world do I let go
of all the cacophonous chaos

practice    practice    practice



"Practicing the Art of Zen" by Susan B. Auld. Published on the website of the Illinois State Poetry Society, April 2011. © Susan B. Auld.

Photography credit: "Signal noise," by unknown photographer (originally color).