Original Poetry from O, The Oprah Magazine Readers
PAGE 4
I am a Verb
For too much of my life
I have been a noun;
child, boy, man, father, whatever;
nouns of identity.
Often, preceded by too many adjectives.
I seem to be the subject,
or the object,
in the sentences of life.
Sometimes a proper noun,
But most often
just a plain, old, common one.
Is this I?
Not really.
The real me is continually in the process
of doing, being, living.
I am a verb, active tense;
not a verb past tense;
rarely a verb intransitive.
I exist through my living,
not because of some label.
Descriptives enhance mind pictures,
but do not define the essence of my spirit.
I am living. I am being.
I am not a noun.
I am a verb.
—Gene McParland, North Babylon, NY
For too much of my life
I have been a noun;
child, boy, man, father, whatever;
nouns of identity.
Often, preceded by too many adjectives.
I seem to be the subject,
or the object,
in the sentences of life.
Sometimes a proper noun,
But most often
just a plain, old, common one.
Is this I?
Not really.
The real me is continually in the process
of doing, being, living.
I am a verb, active tense;
not a verb past tense;
rarely a verb intransitive.
I exist through my living,
not because of some label.
Descriptives enhance mind pictures,
but do not define the essence of my spirit.
I am living. I am being.
I am not a noun.
I am a verb.
—Gene McParland, North Babylon, NY
NEXT STORY
