X2 Poem by RIC BASTASA

finding the self in the self
gives you the wrong path

do not look to the stars
you are never there

look at the ground and
touch the hand of the blind
talk to the mute and be
the ears of the deaf

only can you find your eyes
in their eyes
your hands can feel the
warmth
that is not found within the
lines of your palms
only then can you hear
the sounds of your longing
that you can only understand
from their hunger

yourself is not in yourself
it is in the other
your heart is not in your
chest
it is in the emptiness of
another.