Prometheseus Speaks
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April 21, 2023Today is the Launch of "Unspoken Word: Love, Longing & Letting Go"
Dear Friends:
If you have been reading this blog for a while, there is a very good chance you will enjoy my just-published book of poetry dedicated to Prem Rawat, "Unspoken Word: Love, Longing & Letting Go."
Today is the day it launches on Amazon.
If you are thinking about buying it (or even if you're not), today is the day to buy it. Why? Because the more people who buy the book on the same day, the greater the chance the book will rank high on Amazon's NEW RELEASES list. And the higher it ranks, the more visibility the book will get. And since my vision is that millions of people read this book, visibility is a good thing.
PS: If you read the book and enjoy it, please consider writing an Amazon review -- one more way to help me get the word out there. Gracias!
Buy on Amazon
What ChatGBT says about my poetry
The website
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April 19, 2023You May Not Know This Man. His Name is Hank Alpert.
I first met Hank when we were 6-years old at the Willets Road Elementary School in Roslyn Heights, NY. Because our last names started with letters in the beginning of the alphabet, we were always in the same homeroom class from first grade through 12th grade.
We became best friends, went to summer camp together, were teammates on the same varsity basketball team, double-dated and, basically, enjoyed a beautiful friendship until the age of 19. Then, we drifted apart.
His life went one way. Mine went another.
Three months ago, after 56 years of no contact, I received an email from him. Retired from a successful business as he was, his kids grown up, Hank was in a process that many people go through in their 70's -- looking back at their life and trying to understand what it was all about.
At one point, in his life review, he started thinking about his childhood and the people he grew up with that left some kind of impression on him. That's when he decided to call me.
We talked for two laughter-filled hours.
A few weeks later he drove from New York City to my home in Catskill, NY. It was as if no time passed. None. For five hours, we rewound the tape of our lives and marveled, remembering sweet moments I hadn't thought about in 56 years.
Hank expressed a lot of interest in my writing and asked me to send him the pre-publication manuscript of my new book of poetry, "Unspoken Word" -- which tickled me no end, especially since we had both been in the same 10th grade English class, with Ms. Kennedy.
So I emailed it to him. He read it. What he had to say is embedded on his photo above.
PS: What childhood friend of yours might it be time to connect with?
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April 18, 2023What People Are Saying About My New Book of Poetry: Part 1
UnspokenWordBook.com
Buy on Amazon
What ChatGBT has to say about my poetry
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April 07, 2023Sometimes I Cry for No Reason
Sometimes I cry for no reason,
something takes me over and shakes my body free of all tears,
I don't know where it comes from, but I love where it takes me.
Volcanic, primal and pure, it moves me to
the other shore of myself,
the place beyond place,
beyond thought, thinking, or having,
leaving me with the only thing there really is,
what has always been and will always be,
call it what you will,
there is no name for it.
This force of nature,
this tightrope strung between worlds
is totally invisible, even when you walk it
or sing about it
or pretend it doesn't exist.
It does
and it doesn't,
both at the same time.
maybe that's why I cry,
my way of being shaken awake,
free of anything and everything,
wholly alive, present,
empty, full,
and very, very grateful.
Posted by Mitch Ditkoff at 12:01 PM | Comments (0)
March 20, 2023Reading Kabir in Bed on a Saturday Morning
Don't do anything
and don't do nothing either
which includes, of course, you, in this moment,
thinking that "don't do nothing"
isn't exactly the King's English
and I should rewrite the second line of this poem.
See how fast the mind moves
even when you were invited just six lines ago
not to do anything?
Zero is hard for most of us.
We assume it's an absence,
as if something important was missing.
It's not.
Nothing is missing,
nothing at all,
everything you need, you already have.
What is all this rushing about,
this urge to accomplish, this need to prove?
God is not your mother
waiting for you to come home from school
so she can put your cute little drawings on the refrigerator.
She has other things in store for you.
Today, even if it's not yet Sunday, rest!
Go slower than you usually do,
watch a cloud,
listen to the sound inside of you,
pull the fishing line you have cast into the world
back into your self.
Is there anything on the hook?
There is no correct answer to this question, by the way.
Hook, no hook, it doesn't matter in the least,
not when the ocean that contains all those fish
isn't really doing anything at all.
Its waves, the ones you like to surf on or write poems about,
are made by the pull of the moon!
Let that same moon pull you.
Be a wave of that celestial orb.
Be moved in ways that don't require thinking.
Posted by Mitch Ditkoff at 04:24 PM | Comments (0)
February 14, 2023Happy Valentine's Day to You!
Here is an inspiring Valentine's Day slide show for you. Includes 21 wonderful quotes on love and vocals by Daya Rawat.
Posted by Mitch Ditkoff at 12:24 AM | Comments (0)
February 06, 2023The Lost Journals
Upon moving from Woodstock to Catskill, New York last year and getting quite a workout lifting, carrying, tossing, selling, and noticing way too many possessions, I came across three boxes in the garage of old journals of mine -- some going back more than 40 years -- moon howling rants, late night ramblings, incantations, Rumi-infused ecstasies, madman utterances, lists, plans, notes, drawings, and other outtakes from own suburban Mahabharata.
I thought of throwing them out, not wanting to pray at the Golden Calf of Memory, but something stayed my hand and so I lugged them to my new abode.
Usually, when I lug these journals around, as I have been been doing for 40 years, I stash them in a closet or a basement. But since I have only one small closet and no basement here in the town that time forgot, I removed them from their boxes and placed them on a bookshelf in front of my desk -- my feral children, my orphan brothers, my mendicants, madmen, and monks.
Continue reading "The Lost Journals"
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February 04, 2023Who Can I Share My Joy With?
MitchDitkoff.com
Full Moon at Sunrise
Photograph: Nathan Dumlao
Posted by Mitch Ditkoff at 06:54 PM | Comments (0)
December 05, 2022Advanced Praise for "Unspoken Word: Love Longing & Letting Go"
My fourth book of poetry, Unspoken Word: On Love, Longing and Letting Go, will be published in March, 2023. What follows are a selection of comments from early readers of the manuscript:
"Your poetry has given me one of the greatest gifts of all -- hope." - Michael Nouri, Television and Film Actor
"Unspoken Word is entrancing -- a stellar accomplishment. This precious book is a rare treasure, a cloudburst of wisdom, a true feast for the soul." - John Audette, Author, Loved by the Light: True Stories of Divine Intervention and Providence
"Mitch's poetry resonates with the story of my life and pours forth like an erupting volcano, igniting that unnameable thirst within." - Joan Apter, Healer and Author, Miracle of Thirst
"Ditkoff connects everything with invisible threads of joy that point to a past, present and future of profound acceptance and gratitude for what is." - Rabbi Zoe B Zak, Temple Israel, Catskill, NY
"Open the cover of this book, and in the first few words you'll be greeted by an old friend who knows a part of you that you may have forgotten. Take your time and savor each bite of this delicious meal!" - Jim Hobbs, Psychology Professor, SUNY Ulster
"I spent a month reading a few poems each day from Unspoken Word. It became a journey of searching my own soul. It connected me with my loved ones, the world, and a better understanding of myself." - Hank Alpert, President, Spartan Petroleum Corp.
"I've just read the first few poems and am very touched. Tears started falling almost immediately. How beautiful! For me, what you've written is a love letter I want to savor." -- Susan Hubly, Realtor
"Mitch Ditkoff's poems are striking and lyrical. They grow more profound each time you re-read your favorites. His wide-range of poetic styles reflect the gentle romanticism of Rilke and Gibran and the wry wit of Billy Collins. Like Rumi and Hafiz, Mitch has the gift of distilling infinity into words that inspire you to feel its vastness within you. Unspoken Word is ecstatic poetry for the 21st Century." - Francisca Matos, Writer
"Inspiring. Ecstatic. Mystical. Profound. Exciting. Mesmerizing. Juicy. Memorable. Joyous. Wondrous. Sublime. Uplifting." - Jonathan Lloyd, Writer & TaiChi/QiGong teacher
"Mitch Ditkoff's poetry is inspired -- an invocation to Spirit for guidance, grace and opening to a life of love. His writing makes the unseen world visible and palpable. It opens the heart." - Steve McHugh, Author, You are God Enough
"Unspoken Word evokes some of my favorite devotional poets, Rumi in particular. These pages will delight with a familiarity similar to remembering an enchanting dream that has long been forgotten." -- MaryAnne Erickson, Fine Artist
"From the very first poem in this book, we find ourselves on a journey all of us share in common. Mitch Ditkoff has eloquently put into words the transcendence of our limitations as we experience the grace of being human." - Steve Ornstein, Founder, Israel Seen
"If one thinks of ecstatic poetry as something created in the past and preserved by a few in the present, I offer another possibility. Make way for the living! Mitch Ditkoff lives in his own ecstatic landscape -- NOW. He reminds us of this magical place we all share because we are alive." - Alla Rogers, Director of Art and Cultural Impact Programs, Global Peace Education Network
"Mitch Ditkoff takes us on the ride of our lives, holding us tenderly and showing us what's possible in the world and in ourselves. Unspoken Word is a gift!" - Joseph Bennett, Author, Rest, The Art of Doing Less
"These beautiful poems reflect us back to ourselves, allowing us to see our human condition with greater love and compassion, to breathe a sigh of relief and flow." - Ellen Goldberg, Mystic and Author, The Art and Science of Hand Reading
"I applaud Mitch's relentless efforts to share these secrets of the heart, for they are hints of how to enter through that invisible door to your truest home." - Jan Buchalter, Humanitarian
"One cannot fail to respond to the call of Mitch's poetry to awaken us in the midst of life's circumstances. No matter how apparently estranged from our hearts we feel or troubled in mind, we glance a second time at what's before us and find it suddenly transformed." -- Robert Esformes, Cantor
"A true joy to read and contemplate." - George Samuels, Tibetan Buddhist
SOME MIGHT CALL IT DANCING
Some might call it dancing,
I call it stumbling closer to God,
the unrehearsed
falling forward into God
as if the world was tipped.
To receive an alert when the book is published, send an email to mitch@ideachampions.com with "Unspoken Word" in the subject line.
Posted by Mitch Ditkoff at 08:25 PM | Comments (0)
November 25, 2022How to Order "Unspoken Word"
My next book of poetry, "Unspoken Word: On Love, Longing and Letting Go" will be published in March, 2023.
If you would like to receive an email alert when the book is out, all you need to do is send me a email with the words "Unspoken Word" in the subject line. That's it. Simple.
mitch@ideachampions.com
Advance praise for "Unspoken Word"
Poets on poetry
Posted by Mitch Ditkoff at 08:54 AM | Comments (0)
November 23, 2022If You Enjoy Reading What I Write
If you enjoy my writing, I invite you to click on any one of the six links below. These are the six most popular posts of mine on MEDIUM -- an online platform where I am publishing daily. If you like what you read, feel free to subscribe to my posts and request to receive an email alert whenever anything new of mine is published there. Enjoy!
What I Learned, in a Closet, from my 3-Year Old Son
What It Really Means to Be a Friend
On Realizing the Nature of True Being
Here's the Problem with Reading Rumi
100 Sure-Fire Reasons to Go Within
Posted by Mitch Ditkoff at 08:37 AM | Comments (0)
November 13, 2022Poets on Poetry
"A poem is never finished, only abandoned." - Paul Valery
"Genuine poetry can communicate before it is understood." - T.S. Eliot
"If I feel physically as if the top of my head were taken off, I know that is poetry." - Emily Dickinson
"Poetry is just the evidence of life. If your life is burning well, poetry is just the ash." - Leonard Cohen
"Poetry is the liquid voice that can wear through stone." - Adrienne Rich
"The poet is the priest of the invisible." - Wallace Stevens
"I have nothing to say, I am saying it, and that is poetry." - John Cage
Continue reading "Poets on Poetry"
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The Shortest Pilgrimage (and the rebooting of my MEDIUM blog)
Good news! After a long hiatus, I have rebooted my blog on MEDIUM -- a very lovely online platform where the best of my writing is being published. I will be posting one piece daily. Feel free to subscribe. It's free. And if you want to receive email alerts whenever something new is posted, be sure to click that option.
Posted by Mitch Ditkoff at 04:52 AM | Comments (0)
October 09, 2022How to Listen to the Beloved
Excerpted from Full Moon at Sunrise
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October 05, 2022So You Want to Be a Writer?
Posted by Mitch Ditkoff at 10:52 AM | Comments (0)
September 16, 2022Rilke's Late Night Violin Music
Rainer Maria Rilke, the genius German poet
who translated God in ways
no scripture has ever come close to,
once wondered why every time he walked
beneath a high window
(out of which violin music could be heard)
he thought it promised him a future lover.
When I die, I want to meet this man,
standing, as I imagine he will be, just beyond
the gathering of my long gone relatives waiting to greet me.
I don't think he will be saying much of anything,
just looking in my general direction, his dark eyes singing,
his body completely at ease, having just released
a thousand poems he never needed to write,
the lips of his high-windowed lovers still unkissed,
summoned as they were by violins to embrace him
far beyond the body's few pleasures.
Rilke will not be looking up,
remembering as he was, from a few years ago,
a beautiful young couple crossing the street before him,
laughing, talking, holding hands, but not his glance,
always reserved, it seemed, for someone else,
but if you dared to ask "for whom?"
he would fumble for his pen,
reach inside the quiet pocket of his favorite coat,
and find the old notebook he always kept there
for precisely moments
like this.
Rilke's Duino Elegies
Painting: Leslie Dietrich
More of my poetry here
Posted by Mitch Ditkoff at 09:06 PM | Comments (0)
August 25, 2022What Is This Strange Forgetting?
An audio poem for your enjoyment
Photo: Courtesy of TimelessToday
Posted by Mitch Ditkoff at 09:13 PM | Comments (0)
August 13, 2022The Open Window
Is an open window missing anything --
a pane of glass, a curtain,
a sheet of plywood in case a hurricane looms?
Breezes enter through this window
or should I say where a window was,
there being nothing now but empty space,
no way to separate
the inside from the outside,
where I'm standing now
from where I will be later,
you from me.
Who I am is this empty space,
my home, my lens,
the portal to everything and nothing
the formless one
before a single need arises,
or regret.
Keep this window open wide, my friend,
even in a storm.
While the floor may get soaked
and it will seem as if, sometimes, you are all alone
the tears you shed
will dry everything,
the silence now filled
with the holy thunder of yourself.
Posted by Mitch Ditkoff at 12:30 PM | Comments (0)
August 08, 2022In This Late Night Silence
In this late night silence,
no one here but me,
I am being
slowly deprogrammed,
unraveled, unhinged, unfurled.
In this ever-widening space of no time,
there is nothing to say
and everything,
songs unwritten
now being hummed in another world,
a thousand Zen koans, unasked,
spinning in great circles around me,
the one who waits for an answer
out for a stroll
and noticing
a single daisy.
Posted by Mitch Ditkoff at 04:12 AM | Comments (0)
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