You Say, I Say

A Poem

Man muss immer umkehren. (transl. Invert, always invert) —Carl Gustav Jacob Jacobi

Gratia non tollit naturam, sed perficit. (transl. Grace does not destroy nature, but perfects it) —St. Thomas Aquinas

Above: Duck or hare? Who’s to say?

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You say odd, I say unique.

You say old, I say timeless.

You say never, I say soon.

You say damnation, I say salvation.

You say ashes, I say phoenix.

You say actual, I say aspirational.

You say frenzied, I say focused.

You say scar, I say trait.

You say finished, I say just begun.

You say disruptive, I say delightful.

You say antsy, I say alert.

You say dysfunctional, I say distinctive.

You say bad, I say better.

You say afar, I say at hand.

You say incomplete, I say in progress.

You say impossible, I say imminent.

You say vulnerable, I say strong.

You say surrender, I say victory.

You say waste, I say wonder.

You say broken, I say human.

Do we contradict ourselves?

Very well then we contradict ourselves,

We are large, we contain multitudes—

Such is perception’s palindrome.

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Per my about page, White Noise is a work of experimentation. I view it as a sort of thinking aloud, a stress testing of my nascent ideas. Through it, I hope to sharpen my opinions against the whetstone of other people’s feedback, commentary, and input.

If you want to discuss any of the ideas or musings mentioned above or have any books, papers, or links that you think would be interesting to share on a future edition of White Noise, please reach out to me by replying to this email or following me on Twitter X.

With sincere gratitude,

Tom