This Beautiful Mind is Bright: A Mirror Image of Gertrude Stein

A tribute to Stein’s “If I Told Him: A Complete Portrait of Picasso”

by Jenifer DeBellis

Sunshine, hey sunshine, sunshine hey;
you’re bright. You’re bright sunshine; bright sunshine you are. Are you?
You are.
Does little Johnny Nash know he’s bright? He’s bright; bright he is. Is bright Johnny Nash, Jr. still little?
No.
Not little?
Little not.
Not.
Not odd odd not.
Not odd. Not. No?
Arithmetic adds subtracts numbers. Integers are problems. Problems are integers: numbers.  Subtracts arithmetic, arithmetic adds. Adds and adds and adds and adds. Solutions; sets of values.Values set the solutions. Values set, set you see. See you seeing you seeing me.
You see me?
Set.
Value you seeing me.
See values.
Set.
Values of set solutions. Society’s set of values…do they satisfy the set of given inequalities?
Inequalities.
Given inequalities.
Inequalities given John Forbes Nash, Jr. Johnny Nash given inequalities and inequalities given sum. Sum of the parts must equal the whole. Whole, the equal must part from the sum. Sums and sums and so and so, parts are whole. Whole inequalities are summed. Summed up as a whole.
Brilliant!
Brilliant sums the parts. Whole parts can’t sum the image. Image image and image of image.
Image sum can’t part; its whole parts can’t sum image. Image is brilliant. Brilliant is that
image sum. Some parts whole, yet whole parts none.
None.
One.
Not one.
Two.
Two for one.
Then none, or one. Eleanor: one, was one; two. Two one was, then one was three. Three can’t be, can’t be three. Three! Three’s an inequality. No sum. No sum is three. Three can’t be. Be three?
One.
Silence.
Formulate.
Formulate formulas. Formulas formulate formulas, so formulas can formulate. Must formulate so formulas can formulate.
“Formulas first.”
Who said formulas first? He’s after him, he is. Is he after him? He is. He is is he after him and after him is he? He?
Who is he who’s after him? Who’s after him? They’re after him; they’re all after him.
After him they are.
Are they?
Silence.
Sweet silence.
As silence is sweet, silence is.
As winter sun.
Has winter sun. Sun winter has. As winter has sun. Sun has.
As winter sun.
Brilliant.
Brilliant and bright. You’re bright sunshine. Hey winter sunshine, you’re bright.  Allow me to say what’s in a beautiful mind. A beautiful mind.

Who does she think she is?

She knocks on the door;
       she wants to come in.

I say, “It’s unlocked.”
There’s silence again.

She makes my lids drop;
       she teases me so.

Oh, how I’m aroused,
       I sigh.

                  She knows.
She whispers to me,
       “I’ve called you by name.”
Then laughs in my ear.
       “Don’t you hear me dear?”

My eyes are burning;
       I want to let go.
Madness is churning,
       rattling me so.

“Silly little child,”
       she says in a trill voice.
“Isn’t it time?”

“Time,”
       I tell her,
“is the enemy beast.
So much of it goes by
       without reprieve,
I’m aghast.” 

                “I know.”
She smiles back;
       her grin has worn thin.
“With arms wide open,
       I’ve invited you in.”

                  “That’s such a lie!”
Now I’m mad. I’ve had it.
She’s really whacked.

Energized once more,
       she knocks on my door.

"Sparked" to Life

Out of the ashes (of something even tragic)
she finds her will
Crawling through the cruel dirt
she climbs that dark hill
A run for her life; she’s gotta find self
The waters of life are consuming;
she must breathe for herself
Do you know where you’ll be in an hour?
In a Day? A week? Even a year?
Run, darlin’, run
Felicitous spirit overcomes the fear
A cry for help;
they don’t even see her. Can't hear
or be bothered in their zombie state
She’s all alone,
but she has her spirit
She’s tired and cold
but she’s taken hold of her fate.

Inspired by:

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Within this glass bubble

Shards of glass under nails
Shattered
dreams
these snow flakes make

Fish cry
dies
Trapped
in this globe

Fists held high
These walls
run
deep

Day draws nigh,
no sleep

Stagnant air;
breathe to sigh
Misty morning
turns
dry cry

Where to hide?
Small spaces,
old places,
same faces

Tipped over,
upside down
New flakes
fall;
drown

Smile in place
masks
pain
from face
Yet can’t erase

Same small space
Rat race
sets
the rancid pace

Same bubble
Different Day