From the book:
the daily ritual
they pick up their bones in the morning
placing all of their organs in place
insert lungs, kidneys, liver, GI tract,
insert heart, deep in left center
jump start with a gasp or moan
a groan if built on older frame,
stretch skin and go through the pre-flight sequence
where synapses are firing or misfiring, depending on your story
the day comes, in fits and starts, in
struggles and mini-successes, which ultimately will be the defining features
a war of attrition, between what we can sacrifice
and what we gain, to what end?
I don’t know that answer
if nothing else, we have put in another day to the conquest of living,
another day to figure it all out, or not,
smile because that’s a simple veneer that separates us from the dead (or does it?)
return to the cave, tent, hut, prison, sanctuary,
that answer has so many variables,
unstrap your skin from the framework, hang it on the rack, time permitting give it a quick scrub
place each organ delicately in its vessel, ready for sleep
ready to plug into the cosmic time to recharge
let the lungs and heart wind down like the last soft rpms of a motorbike
fly the wisp of your soul where it needs to sanctuary, contemplate another day
GS Murphy is a Pittsburgh PA expat who now lives in Geneva NY. His poems have appeared in The Festival Review, From Whispers to Roars and Prometheus Dreaming. He has been a featured poet in the Buffalo Reading series curated by Scott Williams, as well as the Steel City Reading Series (an absolute honor) curated by Sheena Carroll. He was the founder of Pittsburgh’s original Poetry and Pints.
Now living in the finger lakes of New York, GS is a professional in the Addiction/Recovery Field, working in Ithaca NY. He writes from a storyteller tradition that can be both absurd and heartbreaking. Often biographical, sometimes utter nonsense. GS has been a poor excuse of a volunteer firefighter for the better part of his adult career, but carries the stories and the trauma into verse when possible. He is an avid motorcyclist and cigar snob, father of 2 spoiled dogs and the goofball husband to Dr. Robyn. You can often find GS haunting coffee shops reading Cohen, Harjo and a myriad of influences. Don’t be afraid to say hello.
Surviving the Day
is a 56 page hand-stitched paperbook w/spine - $14.00
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