Ginsberg Variations

“Catch yourself thinking.”
—Allen Ginsberg, “Cosmopolitan Greetings”

Catch myself gossiping.
Catch myself kvetching.
Catch myself zoning out.

Catch myself sneering.
Catch myself smirking.
Catch myself looking away.

Catch myself signaling.
Catch myself signing off superciliously.
Catch myself about to tell a quarter-truth.

Catch myself yawning.
Catch myself canceling.
Catch myself shutting down.

Catch myself praising myself.
Catch myself defaming someone.
Catch myself meditating with pride.

Catch myself lingering for no good reason.
Catch myself believing we’re above reproach.
Catch myself fantasizing a bad end for you know who.

Catch myself craving.
Catch myself griping.
Catch myself sniveling.

Catch myself heading for the fridge.
Catch myself assuming I could do it so much better.
Catch myself taking offense at the the self-appointed messiah’s latest utterance.

Catch myself playing judge and jury.
Catch myself having a good laugh at myself.
Catch myself thinking I’m a bodhisattva in training.

Catch myself aching to have the last word.
Catch myself forgetting to recite the gatha.
Catch myself remembering a slight from 13 years ago.

Catch myself 30 seconds into yammering like there’s no tomorrow.
Catch myself catching myself.
Catch myself awake.

 

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