BRAIN BAZAAR
by LIZ NOBLE
AN UNCONDITIONAL BLESSING
The voice that leans over to me in the dark
And whispers not the recycled sweet nothings,
Those others would long to hear,
But the tales of a dark Dharmic Angel
Not one hardened of evil, but the sacrifices of fragmented reality…
Who did not turn his back to fear, or concede to sweet repression
One that has been bound to address life’s morose possibilities-
And embraced the uninvited, engaged in its sweet talk and toxins
In order to completely know the agony and apathy of spirit broken-
To become the gray empty matter and sorrowful shadow itself.
Only then able feel the singular pinprick of promise
The exquisite pain of the one last spark left within…
The indestructability of soul, an urging of the way
A reminder of another existence, of kindred lingering
Others suffering life, not truly sensing, or perceiving,
The auspicious ignition of epic mortal reincarnation
Unfolds the cycle with altered anatomy and modified mind.
Strength from the past journey, Perseverance for the present,
And a mindful mentality for the destined deviation of Future
Into the defense, development, and deliverance of
Others traveling this same unexpected and seemingly endless path…
With livelihood defined, spirituality thriving, support accepted, and excessive solitude forgotten,
You lean alongside me and with that slightly deep, resonant voice
And whisper “Can you pass me the water?”
I wrote this following my 3rd TBI, a result of an assault by a client at the day treatment school where I worked as the art therapy program coordinator. I was coming off of six months of bed rest and the realization that I had just lost the career I never knew I wanted and loved more than I could have imagined. I was not completely lost,I had successfully made it through rehabs twice before. Painfully aware of the hard work I had ahead of me, again, I was looking for motivation.
Liz Noble is a multi-media artist, clinical art therapist, the author of over 275,000 Post-It Notes, and renegade brain injury survivor extraordinaire from Ohio. She recently completed vision development/sight rehabilitation to address damage caused by her TBI and is happy to be able to function like a human being and create art, love an,d life after a long hiatus.
