I am not even the mindI am not the bodyI am not the mindI am not the oceanBut I swim there George Cassidy Payne is a poet from Rochester, NY. His work has been included in such publications as the Hazmat Review, Moria Poetry Journal, Chronogram Journal, Ampersand Literary Review, The Angle at St. John Fisher College, and 3:16 Journal. George’s blogs, essays […]
no-self
My Core
My core does not speakin Classic Greek hexametersor return to the left margin.It is a scallop shell, a snakeshedding its skin, with an infinite supply of words and pages to turn over.Yet, my whole is recordedon a single, foreboding page.38 years of life. One exposed solitary page. George Cassidy Payne is a poet from Rochester, […]
At the Core
My heart is a self-published book, likea snake shedding its skin, I have an infinite supply of words and pages toturn over.Yet my whole past andmy entire future has been recordedon a single page.38 years of life.One exposed, solitary page. Stored in metallic ink,each morning reachingamelioration. George Cassidy Payne is a poet from Rochester, NY. His work has been included […]
America
is a vast desolate plantation withan eerie wind tone signaling deep space.It’s an ocean of forbidden red wine reaching for throats once transformed into statues smearedin albatross shit. The kind you step into when wandering the dusty sidewalks of Atlantic City smokingyour last pack of Newports.Petrified shit clinging to the skin like an Amarillo clings to its […]
Realizing anatta (non-self) through Travel
Visiting home. Such a strange thing, to visit one’s home. In this case a period I spent in Montana from 2015-2018. I am no stranger to travels. Despite a youth spent almost exclusively in the rural state of Montana, at age 24 I moved to Bristol, England for a Masters degree in Buddhist Studies. Afterward I […]
Recognizing the future in a greater self
It is commonly understood that the final goal of Buddhist practice involves a realization of not-self, or no-self; the direct “seeing” that there is no substantial and lasting essence in “me” (or in “you” or in anyone else). In American society, this can conflict with our desire to have a “healthy self-image” or adequate self-esteem. […]
Friendship and Identity: Who is Reuniting with Who?
Raymond Lam December last year was a delightful conclusion to 2015 for me because my best mates and I had organized a reunion in Ho Chi Minh City. I’ve known one friend since kindergarten, the other two are more or less my best university buddies. What was perhaps most encouraging, and I daresay touching, was that despite having passed so many years apart and living […]