where the thoughts go
when they don’t end in bitten nails
is a place of transformation,
of wilder sublimation
where the thoughts go
when they don’t slither
down a hissing, forked tongue
is a realm of quiet bliss,
of warm, naked discovery
don’t bother with the awful ones,
the cruel and hurtful gods
whose pernicious jabs
aim to weaken faulty hearts
and cause burning in the throat
where your thoughts go
is not always under your control
but one might like to know
that most of life’s meaning
is in the struggle, the quest to learn
how to steady the jittery attention beams,
to calm the raging mental streams,
and master the unconscious flow
of where the thoughts go —
so, here is but one place…
here is where my thoughts go
Garbage Notes:
This one stood out to me especially in light of my last post being centered around fearful thoughts and anxiety.
In this poem, I’m recognizing that thoughts, however unphysical, are quite powerful. And, although we sometimes don’t have much control over the negative ones that tend to pop up in unfortunate situations, we still have this thing—this ability we call attention or focus or choice over what and how to think. Call it whatever you want, really, but it enables us to guide our thoughts, to channel our energy, both conscious and unconscious to any sort of thing we choose.
It takes work, but that’s the beauty of introspection.
Thoughts can turn into words—and those words can be hurtful, helpful, evil, or gracious. Words can be used to tear down, or they can be used to teach. They can be turned into metaphors and thrown into a story, or they can be used as paint to create luscious imagery in a poem. These are just a few ways a thought can be turned into something good.
So where do your thoughts go? Do they fly out the window, never to be seen again? Are they pushed down, repressed, and then turned into agony and torment? Do they tear you up inside? Do you use them to hurt others? Or do they flow freely?
The answer is always up to you.
You have your own unique talents, and your own special power over where the thoughts go.
Franco Amati 2023
where your thoughts go
is not always under your control
but one might like to know
that most of life’s meaning
is in the struggle, the quest to learn
how to steady the jittery attention beams,
to calm the raging mental streams,
and master the unconscious flow
So so soooo good!!!!!!!!
Beautiful poem and great commentary on mindful word choice. The power of words. I feel like even if you are not a writer, whose job it is to choose words carefully, it's important for us all to know that each word is like a stream of power going out into the universe. I love, "they can be used to tear down or they can be used to teach." So true.