Countervailing Forces

Since there are no coincidences (but maybe Fate, Irony, & Karma high-five at times) this poem, written a while back (during—without putting too fine a point on it—a time when America was in turmoil, a time I figured, no matter what else happened, we would never repeat), went live this week via one of my favorite lit mags, Exterminating Angel Press. I offer it up for everyone and anyone who can read words written for one occasion that may apply to a separate occasions. I offer it up with a healthy dose of sadness, disappointment, confusion, but mostly an unwavering conviction. Words matter. Stories matter. Kindness matters. Love matters. Art matters. I know what I believe, who and what I love, and everything that follows will flow from that reality. Peace.

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Countervailing Forces

An email, an angry thought,

a meditation, a prayer; ill-will

directed toward those who thrive

on the perpetuated misery

of those accommodating it.

A severed friendship, letters

to the editor, a withholding

of affection, a refusal to smile

mutely while the usual suspects

recite talking points from pundits.

Do you ponder that parable of starfish

and construe futility? If so, are you able

to understand all politics are local—

and there are monied interests invested

in your insistence on remaining aloof?

Can you hear the muted pangs of hunger

as you lament the ten pounds you should

lose? Does a healthy 401-K feel solidarity

with anyone silenced, by force, for fear

that their truth makes complicity intolerable?

Might you smile—and mean it—next time

another commuter, harried and late for work

is striving to be two places at once, a triumph

of late-stage capitalism? Will you be willing

to alleviate this world’s unceasing chokehold?

Do you dare dream of a different reality

where one more stomach is filled, one less

company is acquired, one less rape goes

unreported, or one more tongue’s restored

to a mouth burning to bear witness?

Good. This, at least, is a start. Allow it

to grow into something bigger—and better.

Some Things Considered with Sean Murphy is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber.

About Sean Murphy

I’m Sean Murphy, and you might have heard me on NPR’s “All Things Considered” or seen my name in The New York Times or The Huffington Post, among others. As a contributor to outlets ranging from The Good Men Project and PopMatters to The Village Voice and The Weeklings, my aim has always been to connect, provoke, and celebrate the stories that define us.

I founded 1455, a non-profit dedicated to celebrating creativity and community, and I direct the Center for Story at Shenandoah University, but I’ve been telling—and savoring—words for as long as I can remember. Since I first began writing, I’ve been obsessed with the ways powerful narratives explain our world while creating new possibilities, how art broadens awareness and builds empathy. I think we’d all agree that understanding how storytelling works—and why it’s important—has never been more critical, for our collective and individual well-being.