INTERTWINED THROUGHOUT THE memoir, Paul’s writing is full of insight, revealing a depth that few who knew him would recognize. The inspiration for the memoir’s title came from Paul’s poem, Pleading with Gravity.
PLEADING WITH GRAVITY
Oh gravity why do you blind me with your wicked, ill-fated tempers? Every time I attempt a climb up and out of your crippling power, You welcome me with a fall from grace, back to your cold ground. Am I destined to your chains? Am I a part of your city sidewalk, in a puddle of beer and cracked glass? Do you contain my prayers so they’ll never reach the maker? Do you intercept these wishes and hide them? I want to sing and climb on stars, gravity. I want to do a handstand on the moon and dip my feet in the pacific. I want to cover miles to grasp a notion of what infinity means. I want to cover my dreams in ink and repel you with my pen. I want to hide in my poem and sleep with my own inspiration. But I’m stuck here with you gravity. And I’m bearing your weight for you.