Arguing With An Echo Poem by Rev. Rebecca Guile Hudson

I was arguing with an echo,
in the mountains near my home -
it made me feel less lonely,
not quite so all alone

for when I yelled, 'hush! ' it shouted, 'hush! '
and back & forth we went,
engaged in conversation
which clearly made no sense

until the end of daylight,
when, all my energy spent,
I realized that the echo
is much like the universe

what I put out comes right on back,
no better & no worse
whatever the words I shouted out,
it yelled right back at me,

just as, in life, when my thoughts ring out
into the collective sea
(of consciousness that's all about,
so close we cannot see)

thus does the universe reflect them back,
because it always mirrors me

***

arguing with an echo
is like arguing with life, itself
we'll never win, we'll never move,
we'll stay stuck upon a shelf

way up high on the mountain top
where the echoing arguments fly,
& we won't get down & we can't go home
until we set our angers by

(2002, Los Lunas, New Mexico - After watching 'Brother Bear')