September 13th, 2009
Malcolm Alexander
GESTURE
At a temple in Bangkok
you can purchase a living dove
for less than you’d think,
but the idea is not
to keep it, as pet or meal,
but to free it,
as gesture, such pure joy
in symbolism, you think,
until you come to learn
the bird is trained
and will return later
to be paid for
and released again. The cynic
in you says, enough
of gestures, but this one
is more profound than you might think,
for when it comes to freedom,
the down payment is cheap and easy.
It’s the installments that kill you.
–from Rattle #23, Spring 2005
I will spend today thinking about freedom, and how habits of mind can imprison us. Lovely poem.
Such honest, straight-forward lines that leave deep lingering afterthoughts.
I love how relatable this poem is. Anyone could read this and think: “this poem is about me.”