On Bruno, airborne in 1916
& bro, the State forbids most disasters and poetry; at least the delightful atmosphere has not been sacrificed on the altar of an interesting little postal biography: the historical articles and illustrations of the other truth, being a book in which we say what we think to others, in the soft adagio of absinthe. The old were asked to become official silhouettes and photographs, citizen and art that disappear around the fancy dancing rhythms. Where he came from and where he is going—that is not the main thing. The main thing is that he is longing for the unutterable.
(made from cut up of advertisements from Bruno’s Weekly, 1916)
Warm & Heavy
after several self-help LPs
I.
Deep relaxation is occurring
within the spine. If it’s crows feet
around your eyes you’re worried
about, then just raise your eyebrows
as high as you can. This goes under
the heading of systematic relaxation.
Here is another test
in which your imagination
will create a control
over your nervous system.
Communication in the system is known
as using the machine language.
It is of vital importance to relax the muscles
for both physical and mental wellbeing.
In the early days, when computers were young,
this was the only way to talk.
Everybody gets tense, let’s face it.
Being confined with computers
in an office all day under a competitive
atmosphere produces muscle tension.
So, use your mind’s unoccupied time
constantly
to analyze
what it is hearing,
which, if not relieved, can cause backache,
irritability, stomach upset, and overeating.
II.
At the same time,
I think you realize
there is an essence in this
of truth,
such basic truth,
as to how
your feet and legs feel warm and heavy.
Slowly and gently roll your head
from side to side, while we get ready
to do some of the eye muscle exercises.
Relax the jaw, moving it up and down.
Constantly analyze what is being said
to isolate that which is not relevant
to the main burden of the discussion.
You will be able to exert
a greater control
and influence over
your life’s activities,
whether you are improving
in some skill
or warm and heavy way of thinking
or perhaps your future
development. So warm
and heavy. Squeeze all the muscles
of the face together:
the lips,
the nose,
the eyes,
the forehead.
Hold tightly.
III.
A good example of the machine language
in action is the arcade-type games
that are so popular.
Hold, release. Feel the tension leave
the lower half of your body.
These muscles feel warm
and heavy, so warm and heavy.
You know how fast they are. Yes.
However, there’s more to it
than that, Steve. In about two minutes,
perhaps one minute,
you are going to find
uncontrollably
that you have to swallow.
Now visualize relaxation around the throat.
Imagine yourself on a raft. Alone, inside and out,
softly embraced by the waves.
When was the last time you winked
at someone or let your arms dangle
over the sides of the chair?
Well, you should do it more often.
Because it will help not only drooping
eyelids, but it works wonders
on under-eye puffiness. Because
your mouth
will begin
to salivate.
Let the mind relax fully. It will begin
to water.
So warm and heavy. It may be
happening already.
An idea can be that powerful.
IV.
This time, when you take a deep breath,
imagine your eyes are sinking backward.
You’re going to clinch your fists as tight
as you can without tensing them.
Close your eyes.
Listen to my voice.
It also helps to eradicate laugh lines
at the same time your eyelids feel
smooth and heavy. Once again,
once you master
this particular test
you will not need
or of necessity
have to listen
to this phase
of the recording.
This time, you’re going to concentrate.
Here is such an operation on your eyes
and face muscles. It’s called listening. Now
take a deep breath and squint your eyes tighter.
Tighter together.
Oozing out.
Beginners in programming frequently confuse
the two languages.
Dripping down.
Tighten your face muscles. Tighter.
The more you think about this
the more you almost
relax the tongue, bringing it to the back
of the roof of the mouth. Spontaneously
feel your mouth
watering.
Watering just as if you were tasting that lemon.
V.
This thoroughly confuses the computer,
resulting in relaxing errors. Now close
your mouth and push your jaw from side to side
with all your effort. And relax the upper
lip, and the lower lip. There are times
when individuals
may actually begin to taste
a change that could be like
- ⁃ that likened to a lemon.
Relax the muscles next to your mouth. Let’s try
this four times. Then smile a wide smile.
You feel the warmth of the sun. Try it,
with the lips closed.
Hold,
release,
relax.
Completely relaxed.
And I want you to wink 10 times
with each eye. One at a time. Completely
relaxed. So warm and heavy. You have just seen
another experiment in which
the space between your eyes,
the eyebrows,
are relaxed and motionless.
Relax the forehead. Your imagination can produce
a response in your
physical
and in your nervous
system. Your entire body feels
warm and heavy. So warm and heavy.
***
Patrick Williams is a poet and academic librarian living in Central New York. His recent work appears in publications including Reality Beach, Third Point Press, Jungftak, and Heavy Feather Review. His chapbook manuscript Hygiene in Reading was awarded the 2015 Chris Toll Memorial Writing Prize and is forthcoming from Publishing Genius. He is the editor of Really System, a journal of poetry and extensible poetics. Find him at patrickwilliamsintext.com and on Twitter @activitystory.
*Photo courtesy of Brian Michael Barbeito.*
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