United

Kathleen P. Decker

the unconscious brain
divided hemispheres

seeds of consciousness
buried in cortical folds

here an equation
there a theory
on the left

on the right
melodies and arpeggios float
to consciousness 

pure science, pure art
a continuous struggle
for dominance

in a world divided by
religion, race
and college discipline

each day as a grad student
struggling with professors
thesis advisor says: 
"Put away that music…
an hour playing music 
is an hour away from the lab!"

stubbornly, I persist
sending melodies skyward
arpeggios during hours stolen
from another experiment

over the years
an inner truce
mediated by
crossing fibers
and a medical career
that uses both science and art

and so, a life and mind
united as a quirky self
unconscious gifts put consciously to use
striving for harmony, not dominance

The Science

The right and left brain contain processing centers for different activities. Abilities or thoughts localized to the right-brain include certain aspects of musical processing, art, intuitive thinking, creativity and imagination. The left-brain houses some functions related to analysis, reasoning, logic, science and numeric ability. Studies have shown that localization of different abilities to different brain hemispheres (known as lateralization) confers advantages so that the organism can pay attention to two different tasks simultaneously. This concept has been disputed as simplistic, and recent research suggest that only certain functions are lateralized. Finally, recent studies show that lateralization decreases with increasing age. 

This poem has a connected piece of artwork with ConciliARTe, which can be viewed here.

The Poet

Kathleen P. Decker, M.D. is past President of the National League of American Pen Women, Seattle Branch, and Vice President of the Poetry Society of Virginia. She has written six books of poetry and edited six poetry anthologies. Non-fiction publications include Fit, Unfit, or Misfit, and many peer-reviewed scientific publications. Her books and fiber art can be found at www.KathleenDeckerAuthor.com .

Next poem: A variation on Tzuang Tzu by Amlanjyoti Goswami