Mind: An Analogy
Patrick J. Cole
My mind is like the USS Constitution
isn’t it, the Constitution, too
is about 8% original
you’re always replacing parts
with wooden ships
so inside now there’s only
a few frames
a few futtocks left
from 1789 Ð
it’s like the farmer’s favorite axe:
“I only replaced the head twice
and the handle four times”
like the Buddhist campfire:
you call it the same fire
but after an hour
what is the same about it?
And you now, and you as a child:
Ð what is the same about you?
There may be 8%
of the original tool
8%
of the original ember
8%
of the original little boy
8%
of the original idea
there’s only 8% of the original
Constitution
but they still take her out
that great white tall ship
and when they do
the people gather on the shore
and cheer the shape of the hull
the pure yards of canvas sail
and most of all they cheer
the unconsciously brave boys
who scramble up the trees
and work
aloft