The Beauty of It

OK, so today's poem fits the "summer re-run" category. I hope you won't mind my repeating myself. Here's part of what I said when I originally posted it:

This commentary is not so much about the poem as about me.
The poem, if not on the first reading, then on the second, reveals itself. My poems, after all, display their meaning fairly near the surface.

But the poem came to me again as I was thinking about something which has been on my mind these past several months.

The poem was lurking nearby yesterday, a long, long day which began amid the trimmings of medical science ... the lights, instruments, glowing screens, careful, attentive, caring medical practitioners.

The day ended with an evening spent watching a "Pink Panther" movie. I needed a few laughs.

***

I was telling readers that I was a cancer patient, that I had been undergoing treatment for several months, and there were other treatments remaining. But the prognosis was good.

I didn't spread the word initially because I found it difficult to talk about ... I knew people would have questions ... and I wasn't prepared for that.

Finally, my intuition told me that I needn't keep guarding this as a "secret." There was no need to keep the facts any longer from friends, from visitors to this page ...

And now, I have some other news to share: My oncologist, at my recent annual visit, released me from treatment. What a great, wonderful, welcome surprise that was.

With many thanks for readers' comments ... which helped to keep me going all those busy months ... sustained me ... and with special thanks to Phyllis, who was with me every step of the way, here's the poem:

THE BEAUTY OF IT

The beauty of intuition
is that you don’t have to analyze,
hypothesize, or otherwise

do anything about it:
You may just sit quietly
and let it come to you,

unfolding like a tightly-wound
rosebud transforming itself,
wafting about while you

breathe in an understanding,
an answer to the question
you hadn't even asked.
© 2003
(originally published in Poem; now part of a manuscript in search of a publisher)

Today's word: intuition