My Mind Poem by Karen Alc.

My mind, a confine, so jaded by graphic depictions
of this thing called life, ready to unload the trials and tribulations
it has dissected and digested

It is an oxymoron in itself
Complex, yet so simple; unique, yet so common
It wants what all minds want- stimulation, validation,
A place to feel safe, a place to call home
And yet, it yearns for challenge, variety, diversity and
All things that it knows are not right for the body

My mind wants freedom and capture, insensitivity and rapture
It believes in self-medication but berates it as well
It desires a simple life but refuses to embrace routine
It is on stand-by, waiting desperately for its name to be called,
But secretly wishing to be left behind for fear of having to react

My mind is an unconventional aphrodisiac,
So aware of its sovereign rule over this body that it governs
Its power can guide my body to the apex of ecstasy,
Whilst not once guiding a hand to court my bed of roses

My mind, so brave yet so apprehensive of causing harm,
So aware of the dangers that lie beyond the surface of its delicate membranes,
So strong, yet so susceptible to the living or dying of my physical being

Its survival hangs on my decision to deny or accept its wonderful complexities
It considers too much, analyzes too much, loves too much and hates not enough
Life is either too difficult or too easy- never a truce, never black or white
It wants to find peace,
a half-way house that accepts its complexity,
embraces its power, but accepts its vulnerabilities

My mind is mine, and mine alone
It did not provide me with the democratic luxury to change it, modify it,
Reject it or annihilate it
And so, I take it in and let it engulf my very being
like the inevitable sequence of osmosis

My mind, it will become my own. My mind, I will become.

November 2004