A Cautionary Note Poem by RIC BASTASA

there is a way to
reach other minds

teaching can be
a tool
to let them show
how mushrooms
grow
on fields of rotten
hay

there are more than
other ways
to make our coldness
felt

not growing hands
not having to add
more feet
on such a grotesque
alternative

funny clowns
at a certain time can be
entertaining

but we get bored of
what happens
almost every time
when they please us
again with the
usual images of
thick lips and
curly hair

i tell you about
Plato's midwife
and the woman
who conceived and
gave birth
to new ideas

it is this
teaching, this medium
to make minds open
like some
peaceful corals
untouched by
our hands

an open heart
arms that always mimic
an embrace
blinking lights
of towers
asking ships to
dock away
from storms

as i type all these
please take note
i demand nothing