All is quiet today in the gray and so I peruse books from my book shelves.
Here is a piece on the nature of the soul by Hildegard of Bingen.
"The soul in the body is like sap in a tree, and the soul's powers are like the form of the tree. How? The intellect in the soul is like the greenery of the tree's branches and leaves, the will like its flowers, the mind like its bursting firstfruits, the reason like the perfected mature fruit, and the senses like its size and shape. And so a person's body is strengthened and sustained by the soul. Hence, O human, understand what you are in your soul...."
I'm also enjoying another book by Alberto Rios, The Theatre of Night. In this book, his poems follow the lives and love of an elderly couple. Clemente and Ventura. I like this poem for its expanding interpretation of the senses.
Clemente, in Love, Speaks to Himself in the Mirror
We have, we are told - we are sure - five senses.
This is easy, this is first grade, this is certain.
We know this, five. But look, when I count
I can't stop: I see ten fingers in front of me
Plain as anything. Ten. You see them, too.
And they move around.
Someone, whoever he is,
He has been keeping something from us.
I see this, now, using my sense of cunning.
That makes six senses quickly and right there.
Clemente, they used to say, pay attention,
Do your work, don't look up - I know now
What they were up to. I see what they were trying
To do. But it's over. They can't stop me anymore.
I can see ten, but I can think a thousand.
The world of a thousand senses -
This opens things up considerably, don't you think?
They add up right away, and easy, these gifts of mine.
The sense of wonder, horse sense,
The sense of timing, good sense,
Sense enough to come in from the rain.
I will not be stopped. I know what I know.
I feel powerful, I am powerful - Look at me! -
I am the Sense-Man! And I am walking right past you
Straight into and ready for the world. All of you!
All of you! Out of my way!
Enjoy your thousands of senses today and everyday. Be Sense-Men and Sense-Women. Enjoy the play!!