The earth around me has no strings,

Or reeds or keys to express itself.

It must rely on a myriad of hosts,

Both animate and inanimate.

The bathroom exhaust fan provides 

A steady bass as the water 

Beats against the shower tiles.

Sounds both familiar and comforting. 

Our chanting voices give rise to hope.

For fifty years we’ve done this 

Almost every day for our own happiness

And for the Earth’s music to continue. 

Drinking coffee on the front porch

While a teen’s joyful iPhone chatter

Reverberates from across the street.

A delivery truck grinds up our driveway. 

We love the light tinkle

Of our next-door neighbor’s wind chime.

I need to let her know that she

Is making the Earth a better place. 

Hiking downtown to 305 & Winslow Way,

The walk sign barks, “Wait.”

I imagine all the other words it might muster

Like “Sing” or “Talk” or “Pray.” 

At T&C, each purchase gives off a slight whoosh

As our friendly cashier slides the food 

Across the magic glass window.

When did cash registers stop going “Ka-Ching?”

There is a sound the bookstore makes

That resonates even though I can’t

Isolate its specific source.

Still, it is incredibly soothing. 

A mad dash home through a downpour,

The patter of raindrops hitting my bald head

Reminds me that the Earth never loses

Its sense of humor. 

Evening band practice…five men

Of various ages playing the blues.

The only apparent ego

Is the one we create together. 

Later, around our crackling fire pit,

Marshmallows melting on grahams

And chocolate, I ponder

The Earth’s ability to make music

Without strings,

Or reeds,

Or keys. 

ABOUT MIKE LISAGOR​ Mike Lisagor plays harmonica and sings in Good Karma Blues. He has written hundreds of magazine articles and blogs on a variety of business and Buddhist related topics. He is the author of “Romancing the Buddha,” which he adapted into a successful one-man show that he performed at Bainbridge Performing Arts and in Los Angeles and Washington D.C. His nature photographs have appeared in the Boston Globe, Bainbridge Island Magazine, Living Buddhism as well as in several local galleries. His latest graphic art project, “Reimagined Nature”, is in the lobby of New Motion Physical Therapy.