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author’s note:
A decades of life reduced to a few lines.
THE QUIET DARK
As a fledgling adult, I preferred the cacophony:
I thrilled to feel the energy
of the loud proud mishmash of noise
roiling in the public square.
But soon the commotion infested my head
and I wasn’t able to hear
my thoughts and feelings clearly—
a problem indeed
when choices must be made.
I was struggling to decide
which way was the best way for me.
I was told:
listen to your intuition.
But when I tried
I soon discovered
just how obtuse I’d become
from being in the blare so long.
In search of what I’d lost
I then delved down into the quiet dark.
Deep within
I could feel what I truly felt
and see the trouble in my thoughts.
Then of course, I wanted to find
what was behind
those thoughts and feelings.
And so I continued to explore.
No, I didn’t always like what I found inside
but good or bad, the discoveries amazed me.
Antarctica has already been mapped.
So I’m probing this other strange continent.
However
I’m still obliged to participate
in the cacophony outside.
And since I must, I might as well
open myself fully to the experience:
I’ll grin as I squint into the blare’s bold wind
and let my monkey dance in the mad parade.
I can still enjoy the superficial noise—
I just need to remind myself:
the show is not the substance.
I can play as a child
without becoming infantile
as long as I stay connected
to the wise one I’ve found
below the surface—
in the recesses of the quiet dark.
How Can I Live In This World?: poetry book
dream steps blog
myth steps blog
you tube channel
© 2026, Michael R. Patton
author’s note: “Life is woof.” – anonymous dog THE HIGH-PITCHED VOICE As I travel this convoluted path I’m accompanied by a strong dog that growls when it senses danger. But if a voice inside then says “go forward” I’ll force myself to ignore the dog and accept unreasonable risk while enduring people who see my way as haphazard. Yes, I worry when the dog begins to whimper in fear but a dream once promised me if I went where I needed to go no matter where that might be I’d eventually arrive at a garden. When I awoke I felt a deep desire to find that paradise. But how I could know where I needed to go? I would not go until I knew. A voice I did not recognize then said: “stand and walk and do as instructed.” That sudden turn spun my head. Hooked by mystery and myth-- I decided to trust. I stood up and began to walk. Obviously I haven’t yet found the garden but now I can see this twisted path spirals up a mountain. So today I still feel a grand sense of purpose. Nonetheless sometimes when I’m led into trouble I will join with the dog and bark back at that maddening high-pitched voice.
Common Courage: poetry book
myth steps blog
dream steps blog
you tube channel
© 2023, Michael R. Patton
author’s note: I learned the way I often learn: the hard way. ONLY A FOOL ARGUES WITH STONE Long ago a clever storyteller saw the features of a human face on the gray stone of the bluff overlooking the bend in the river then invented the tale of the wise woman spirit who sees all who pass as her children and warns them with an echo: steer away from the rocky shore. A legend we love because both young and old want to feel protected by Mother. Many of those who canoe down the river today will slow their paddles at the bluff and ask that stone sage for guidance. And the ones who truly listen may discern an answer buried within the distorted amplification booming back across the water. I’ve known people who refused to accept what they needed to do until they heard the woman of stone say: you know the truth. But you need not travel to our river when burdened with a question. I say: wise stone spirits can be found all over this planet and if we approach with reverence they will tell us what we need to know-- even if they don’t echo we can hear their thoughts if we quiet our hearts. I myself have sometimes received an answer of truth from a cliffside or a boulder or even a rock in the sand. And though I often want to reject that wisdom I don’t because I’ve learned: only a fool argues with stone.
Listening to Silence: poetry book
dream steps blog
myth steps blog
you tube channel
© 2023, Michael R. Patton
author’s note: To all the Noahs out there. AN ARK BUILDER OVERCOMES REASONABLE DOUBT WITH REASON As a child when I heard the story of Noah I firmly decided: you must obey higher guidance even if people doubt you. Ah, but my resolution slipped when, years later the voice of wisdom spoke to me as I tried to quiet my heart during a time of confusion. Like the command Noah heard the message I received seemed to go against common sense. Nonetheless, I might have believed-- if the voice had boomed down from the clouds. But no the answer rose softly from a place deep within me and so governed by doubt I went against the guidance and soon realized I should’ve heeded that advice. And oh-- the advice didn’t stop-- because in curiosity, I strained to hear the next message and the next and the next. Though in short time, I learned I should obey what I heard I still worried about rejecting my reasonable doubt-- after all I didn’t want to lose my reason-- reason is good! Fortunately, I eventually I developed a strategy: when I begin to fret about some major building instruction I counter my doubt with this reasonable argument: maybe I am making a grand mistake but if I act with courage and love that mistake will be wonderfully grand.
Common Courage: poetry book
dream steps blog
myth steps blog
you tube channel
© 2023, Michael R. Patton
Michael Patton
sky rope (subterranean rappel) 