Nina Clements: Singing Bowl Massage

She places the bowls

on your body—

the heart and belly,

deep breaths

rise and fall.

You are on the table

but also floating

in the center

of a lake. Vibrations

at your core.

The table begins to shake.

.

She turns you over, gently,

positions your head

lower than your body.

Arms hang down, and bowls sing

on your shoulders, where the tension

hides. Bowls along your spine,

and the chiming of the gong,

the singing song of vibration

in your body. You feel it then—

trying to crawl up your throat,

out your mouth, a cough.

Get the men out, it says.     

.

You want the calm

of the lake

as you walk along

its edge. Get the men

out, you say again.

Get out. Get out.

Alone in your body,

the water placid, only

the slight vibration

of the heart.

Copyright 2022 Nina Clements

Nina Clements is the author of a collection of poems Our Mother of Sorrows (Urban Farmhouse Press, 2020). She’s originally from Pittsburgh and currently lives in Madison, Wisconsin.