by Jim Ross
Zen for Non-Zenders
Let it all be porous let it become a self-sieve
a colander to bar bad spirits send them back
to wherever they began
Let it be uncomfortable wear it as a light jacket
to the next party to the grievers and takers
to the labyrinth of human beings the dogs
and cats, the camels and rats, to every living
thing. Let amoeba flow across the surface
of a rock and cilia oscillate like tides
in all the ocean pools. Be leery of demands
that tell you how to live how you should drink
and whether you are worthy of breath
Slow down and learn how it feels to be alive
Listen to your breath the rising and falling
of lungs in your chest Feel the saliva on the walls
of your cheeks Run the tip of your tongue
on the roof of your mouth try not to dodge
the tickle
Spread your arms like wings and fall into a bed
Lie there until your body decides what it wants
to do it may sleep or roll from side to side
like a boat on a choppy sea Do not let it
frighten you away
John Dorroh has been writing ever since he was evacuated from his mother’s uterus in 1953. His first poem was scribbled on the bathroom walls with a cardinal-red lipstick. When he was in high school, his family warned him that his Letters to the Editor in the city newspaper would make some waves. He’s been making waves and rocking the boat ever since. Six of his poems were nominated for Best of the Net. Over 400 others have appeared in over 100 journals including River Heron, Kissing Dynamite, Boston College’s Post Road, Feral, and Thin Air. If he were an animal, he’d definitely be a brown bear with an appetite for berries and hot Thai food. He lives in small-town Illinois near St. Louis.
Jim Ross jumped into creative pursuits in 2015 after a rewarding research career. With graduate degree from Howard University, in ten years he’s published nonfiction, fiction, poetry, photography, hybrid, interviews, and plays in over 200 journals on five continents. Best-of-the-Net nominated in nonfiction and art, his photo publications include Barnstorm, Camas, Feral, Phoebe, and Stonecoast. Photo-essays include Burningword, Kestrel, Litro, New World Writing, Pilgrimage, Sweet, and Typehouse. Jim’s family splits time between city and mountains.