a small entreaty
written by Patti Smith in 1994 for the Dalai Lama
May I be nothing
but the peeling of a lotus
papering the distance
for You underfoot
one lone skin
to lift and fashion
as a cap to cradle
Your bowing head
an ear to hear
the great horn
a slipper to mount
the temple step
one lone skin
baring this wish
May Your hands be full
of nothing
May your toys
scatter the sky
tiny yellow bundles bursting like stars
like smiles
and the laughter Art by Molly Costello
Recommended listening: Dalai Lama+Patti Smith at Glastonbury Festival 2015 (This is overwhelming.) My Father's Life by Raymond Carver
Fern Hill - Dylan Thomas
Links of the Day: Literary Party Themes To Throw A Bookish-ly Fun Bash
Singapore Through Pantone Cards The New Yorker GIFs A Nauseous Nocturne by Bill Watterson