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Brains and Guts: The Write, Right, Rite of Revolution

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Brains and Guts:
The Write, Right, Rite of Revolution


Daniel Henry Rodgers

(I made an audio version since it is to be spoken)


"You have entered the dance of existence a fusion of courage where an intelleca propels humanity forward to an alda where the daring hearts of meldo clash with the sharp minds of thinkers. Igniting a revolution of thought and action. We are not merely products of our thoughts. Oh no, we are coar of our destiny sculpted by both intelleca and audacity." - Poet

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Listen to poem:
Brains and guts orbit the soul— that polar star searing in the marrow of being. I was born somewhere between Einstein’s neurons Ginsburg beat poetry, the birth of rock and roll, revolution marches, and the calloused hands of a carpenter, where ink stains fight oil slicks, where the soft susurrations of Plato wrestle the raw shouts of Spartacus. Do you think Socrates sipped hemlock or drank the truth undiluted? Do you think Plato ever turned back? Do you think he stepped out of his cave, saw the world for what it was, and still believed in the Forms? There—between the measured arc of a pendulum and the reckless speed of a cavalry charge— I learned that history does not bend for cowards. Brains map the constellations— Ptolemy charted them wrong, Copernicus spun them right. But it was Galileo’s guts— trembling before the Inquisition— yet, daring to crack the celestial code. Brains split atoms in Los Alamos; guts stood in Nevada’s desert daring to swallow the mushroom cloud’s after/math. Oppenheimer’s eyes ash-heavy with fission’s psalm. “What good are your equations,” gasped Hiroshima child, “when my shadow burns the pavement?” Brains penned the Constitution; guts bled on the beaches of Normandy to defend its ink. Brains solve for X; guts push past the limits of what should be solvable. Tell me, who owns the world? The philosopher or the soldier? The mathematician or the martyr? The lover or the destroyer? Newton’s Principia might have moved planets, but Harriet Tubman moved people— barefoot, night-blind, each breath wagered against a whip. She had no formula for escape, just guts. Brains engineered the gavel, sculpted by jurisprudence, weighing scales so delicate they tip with the weight of a sigh. Yet in the courtroom, it’s often guts that testify— Yet even as justice stands trial James Meredith stepping foot into Ole Miss— Thurgood Marshall splitting the marrow of Jim Crow Rosa Parks gripping the seat with fingers stiff as iron rails. And somewhere some legislator drafts another bill to justify a knee on the neck of justice. Brains code the algorithms that sell you your own hungers— but it takes guts to starve the machine. Brains: Turing’s code / Guts: Alan Turing’s apple, half-eaten by history Brains: Hubble’s lens / Guts: Mandela’s cell, a womb of nations. Brains built Wall Street from Hamilton’s ledgers guts made Rockefeller and Carnegie drink from their own ambition until their stomachs curdled with guilt— philanthropy the only antacid. Look at Van Gogh, painting sunflowers from the static of his mind. Look at Tesla, dying alone, his ideas orphaned by the same capitalists who wired his dreams into their pockets. Look at Frida Kahlo, each brushstroke a suture of pain, her body broken but never her palette. Watson and Crick had the brains but Rosalind Franklin—she had the guts. She stared down DNA with her X-ray eyes, crystallizing the language of life. Do you think the double helix screamed for her when they called it a discovery of men? This poem is a double helix— one strand ink, one strand wound. Look at Sylvia Plath, spitting out sonnets like cyanide, her typewriter a guillotine, her mind a moon crater— deep, uninhabitable, ringing with voices that no physicist could measure. Brains can write the diagnosis; guts wear the disease. justice wears a gavel carved from bone but guts keep fighting long after the credits rot. I have seen men use equations to justify war. I have seen children hold PhDs in suffering. I have watched logic fail to explain love, yet I have watched love rewrite logic. Brains mapped the human genome, but tell me— And what of us— you, me, the nameless billions— what are we but the sum of what we dare to ponder and what we dare to risk? can Euclid quantify courage? Can binary codify hope? Brains and guts, an endless duet, fighting for the right to the final silence. Which one are you made of? Which one will you answer to? Are we the gray matter that maps the stars, or the red sinew that leaps into the void? Tell me, what is the cost of clarity amongst shadows? Brains invent the question; guts endure the answer. Do you dare to see? Dare to speak? Dare to be crushed beneath the weight of their truths? Brains chart the stars; guts sail the storm… Brains wrestle with the divine; while guts are the divine, unflinching.

Copyright © | Year Posted 2025




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Date: 3/30/2025 4:44:00 AM
Hmm.?? Any advance on advancing the integrity Of communications Daniel? In sync with others' A highly enquiring write however.' Well worth the Read of questioning minds.)
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Daniel Henry Rodgers
Date: 4/1/2025 8:33:00 AM
Hello Joe, Thanks! yes, this is a great question about the integrity of communications. I am actually writing two poems currently that will address parts of that question, although, in the short term, one has to ask, whose integrity? This is not to be facetious but is an important point. I always appreciate your notes and thoughts. Spring Blessings, My Friend, Daniel
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Joe Maverick
Date: 3/30/2025 2:16:00 PM
Well Jennifer diwn there is a great Fan of yours btw D H R..' seems you are doing some things right?
Date: 3/29/2025 10:15:00 AM
Hi Daniel, of whom I am so proud to know and read such amazing, incredible, soul searching, breathtaking, Nobel prize literature. You include scientists, philosophers, perspectives, mathematicians, philanthropists, History cultures, even the X factor, and a multitude of further research. Brains and Guts - could one person not have both, as I believe you have both Sir Daniel Henry Rodgers. IN AWE, Jennifer
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Daniel Henry Rodgers
Date: 4/1/2025 8:30:00 AM
Dear Jenn, Ahh you came by to read my philosophical treatise. I am always impressed with my friends lke you who try to capture the true aspects of understanding of another person's writing. Thank You, Thank You! Spring Blessings, My Dear Friend, Daniel
Date: 3/27/2025 8:31:00 PM
Dear Daniel your reasoning and opinions are wonderful questioning the achievements of mankind honoring those that deserved the credit and challenging those in their reasons of endeavor. This was so incredible to read because your assertions, and opinions, and reality are one's that I doubt very, very, few would disagree with. I am favoring this one my friend and you took us to a realm of understanding mundane, and beautiful by a man of fairness, intelligence, conviction, and truth, ...
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Daniel Henry Rodgers
Date: 4/1/2025 8:28:00 AM
Dear Michael, what a joy to see that you have taken the time to read the poem for all it is worth. Sometimes we sprint through a poem without ever seeing the true spirit of what is said but that is not you. Thank You Always and I appreciate your FAV. I love writing philosophical and psychological story and poems. Spring Blessings, My Dear Friend, Daniel
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Michael Tor
Date: 3/27/2025 8:36:00 PM
that man was you my friend...
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Michael Tor
Date: 3/27/2025 8:33:00 PM
Congratulations on an epic write my friend. You have raised the bar in poetry with this exceptional write. Again a standing ovation with the deafening sound of applause... God bless you...
Date: 3/27/2025 7:28:00 PM
Dear Daniel, I'm in awe of your writing. This poem is a triumph of language and imagination, a testament to the power of poetry to capture the essence of the human condition. Brilliant. Best, Anne.
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Daniel Henry Rodgers
Date: 4/1/2025 8:26:00 AM
Dear Anne, I wanted to make sure that I did not miss your wonderful and inspiring note. Thank you and I hope that April is kicking off in an beautiful way. Spring Blessings, My Dear Friend, Daniel
Date: 3/25/2025 9:44:00 PM
POTD, POTW, POTM, POTY, POTDecade, POTCentury. A M A Z I N G penning, Daniel. A FAVE for me, for sure. So many memorable lines. Very proud of you, for lack of a better word: You've laid it all bare here, and it adds up to an epic. ~ Gershon
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Daniel Henry Rodgers
Date: 3/26/2025 6:39:00 AM
Good Morning, Gershon, Now you made me blush. Thank you for your most inspirational words and today you made my spirit dance a little higher. Have a great rest of the week Gershon and looking forward to reading many more of your amazing poems. Spring Blessings, My Friend, Daniel
Date: 3/25/2025 2:39:00 PM
Daniel, quite a philosophical journey into our existence. You eloquently point out it takes more than thought to bring about the things we take for granted and what we would like to see that could make this world a better place. The examples you use really get at the heart of this matter and point out how courageous people have needed to be to bring about change. It's clear you put a lot of careful philosophical thinking into this one. The Wright gives us quite a write. Smiles!!
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Daniel Henry Rodgers
Date: 3/26/2025 6:37:00 AM
Hello Duke, Sometimes when I get started doing the research and writing, I get caught up into the poem in a very real way and this is one of those poems. I have always loved philosophy since my freshman year in college, where it was one of my electives. I had an excellent professor who really made me think about life in a way that was never explained before. Thank you again for coming and reading my spoken word poem. Spring Blessings, My Friend, Daniel
Date: 3/25/2025 8:57:00 AM
The quintessence of those noted were essential for this Spoken Word. Emotional impact, and there is intimate connection. btw well-recited! MLK had both brains and guts, Mother Nature is highly on the owner’s list Daniel, tho in God’s grace we'll exhibit balance. ~Anaya
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Daniel Henry Rodgers
Date: 3/25/2025 11:30:00 AM
Dear Anaya, Ahhhh... Thank you my dear friend. There were so many great people in our world who have exhibited such guts and brains that have made a difference!! I wanted to put more in my poem but I knew the poem would be the song that never ends. :) You mention MLK, if it were not him and other champions for racial freedom I would not have two of my son-in-laws who I am so proud of. One is black and married to my middle daughter and one is Puerto Rican who is married to my oldest daughter. I now have 3 and soon to be 4 granddaughters of mixed race who are my besties and I love and adore. MLK (Brains and Guts) made a difference in my life! Spring Blessings, My Dear Anaya, Daniel
Date: 3/25/2025 8:19:00 AM
Hey you added audio, no easy task. I've done numerous audios mostly with voice improvs but only a few reposted here. I say kudos to those who add something to the poetic experience. Maria Williams is the queen of multi -sensory poetry. Check out her latest
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Daniel Henry Rodgers
Date: 3/25/2025 8:56:00 AM
Hello Tom, I have added audio to some of my poems and perhaps will do more in the future. It is funny that Maria and Ron (her husband) turned me onto Audacity, a much more robust system for recording both voice and music. I did the music on one poem and, of course, the speaking on this one. I will go and check out her newest creation. Thanks for coming back to listen. Spring Blessings, My Friend, Daniel
Date: 3/25/2025 5:44:00 AM
Wow! Daniel, this is poetry at it's finest, my friend. I've been meaning to stop by and read some of your amazing writes (I'm just so involved with many things these days) but I'm glad I found this outstanding piece. So much to think about here... Thanks for your recent visits as well...keep that pen golden! Charlie
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Daniel Henry Rodgers
Date: 3/25/2025 8:54:00 AM
Hello Charles, I am so glad to see your note and comments and they are certainly inspiring. Thank you so much and I am very appreciative. Spring Blessings, My Friend, Daniel
Date: 3/25/2025 5:26:00 AM
Interesting lines penned, Daniel. Very creative in using so many aspects of what humans go through and how they handle it. Sara K
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Daniel Henry Rodgers
Date: 3/25/2025 8:52:00 AM
Dear Sara, I am always thinking about what really drives life and what gifts the Lord has given us that we can use. He has given us intellect and emotions or brains and guts and the wisdom in how to use them. It is always a joy to see your notes. Spring Blessings, my Dear Friend, Daniel
Date: 3/25/2025 3:17:00 AM
Your vigour runs from concept to concept with deep thought. Brilliant.
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Daniel Henry Rodgers
Date: 3/25/2025 5:18:00 AM
Dear Victor, I pray you are having a blessed week. Thank you so much for your uplifting note this morning. It certainly makes the journey so worthwhile. Spring Blessings, My Dear Friend, Daniel
Date: 3/24/2025 1:25:00 PM
Dear friend Daniel, you exhibit a tremendous talent for articulating concepts with clarity and elegance. Your insights have been beneficial in several contexts. Ultimately, we are all constituents of the magnetic field, and the field is an integral component of our being. All knowledge originates from our mind, that deep Supreme wisdom. I appreciate your insightful analysis of the constraints.
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Daniel Henry Rodgers
Date: 3/25/2025 5:17:00 AM
Hello Sotto, Thank you so much and I love that you look deeply in the meaning of poems. It certainly is a gift that not everyone possesses. I appreciate your wonderful comments. Spring Blessings, My Dear Friend, Daniel!
Date: 3/24/2025 10:25:00 AM
I enjoyed reading your powerful/wonderful write. Your pen was working overtime on this one. "Good Luck" if for a contest. Have a blessed spring day writing away.........
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Daniel Henry Rodgers
Date: 3/25/2025 5:15:00 AM
Dear Paula, What a blessing you are! This one is not for a contest and was just me writing. You may feel the same; when I start writing, the hours just whip right by and I think to myself, where did the day go? Thank you for your friendship. Spring Blessings, My Dear Friend, Daniel
Date: 3/24/2025 8:51:00 AM
What a thought provoking literary masterpiece Daniel, you take your reader on an amazing journey through time marking historical events. A fave for me. Tom
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Daniel Henry Rodgers
Date: 3/25/2025 5:13:00 AM
Dear Tom, I am so glad that you came on my journey and I am grateful for your fave! I love doing research when I am in the process of writing. It is always a pleasure to read your note! Spring Blessings, My Dear Friendm Daniel
Date: 3/24/2025 8:33:00 AM
-There was a lot to think about here, Daniel: "history does not bow to cowards dare to crack the heavenly code "when my shadow burns the pavement?" Tell me, who owns the world? in the courtroom, it is often the gut feeling that bears witness Look at Van Gogh .... Look at Tesla ...a thread of ink, a thread wounded ...justice carries a club ... children in suffering" ... yes, what are you made of ... woow ... !!!! - hugs
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Daniel Henry Rodgers
Date: 3/25/2025 5:11:00 AM
Dear Anne-Lise, I am so happy you stopped by and wrote your wonderful, inspiring note. I am so thankful and grateful. Have a beautiful week!! Spring Blessings, My Dear Friend, Daniel
Date: 3/24/2025 7:00:00 AM
My goodness you certainly wax eloquent in this accurate write of yours Dear Daniel. there are many parts in it, ns in which you have disgorged pearls of wisdom - I like and have quoted Harriet Tubman. At the end of the day, I guess we are all part of the Quantum field and it is part of us. Our intelligence, that great Supreme intelligence, is what we learn from . Hugs my friend and thanks for the astute persecutious summaries. Maria
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Maria Williams
Date: 3/25/2025 10:42:00 PM
Your recital is sooooo good Daniel. It adds such depth to your poem. BTW, so glad your daughter vilified Audacity. It is an Irish platform. You must be so proud of your daughter - is she a conductor? she would be able to play many instruments? As you know my late Dad trained Zubin Metha the conductor for free, along with some other musical greats like L Subramanium. Hugs Maria
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Daniel Henry Rodgers
Date: 3/24/2025 7:36:00 AM
Dear Maria, Thank you so much for your wonderful comments and I am very appreciative. I also want to thank you and your husband about Audacity recorder. My daughter who is an High School Orchestra Director was showing me how to lay tracks. She uses it all the time and knows it well. Spring Blessings, My Dear Friend, Daniel
Date: 3/24/2025 6:23:00 AM
At first glance I thought, oh boy, another read that's gonna go straight over my head. But I'm glad I buckled up and took the ride. So many classic lines it's hard to choose a favorite but the stanza about Plath stands out as well as the line about children holding PhDs in suffering. If I was to offer any critique I might have substituted heart for guts but in the end it amounts to the same, since the heart has been called the seat of motivation. Man, you really gave us alot to think about here
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Tom Woody
Date: 3/24/2025 7:57:00 AM
Yes, always striving for balance. A life long endeavor to be sure
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Daniel Henry Rodgers
Date: 3/24/2025 6:54:00 AM
Hello Tom, I am always grateful that you are one of the first ones to read and to comment and that says a lot about you, my friend. When I was building this poem, I wanted it to be a battle of brains and guts and also a poem that steps outside the norms, as you might tell by my quote. I thought about Heart instead of Guts but I wanted to buck the system to be more raw and visceral. I think I developed that rawness from reading one of my most favorite poets, Sylvia Plath, whom you mentioned. Also in counseling we believe that Intellect and Emotions need to be balanced so one can think more wisely. Too much Intellect you are cold and uncaring; too much emotion, you are a drama person. Therefore, a balance. Our God has given us both and we can use both wisely. :) Thank you again, Spring Blessings, My Friend, Daniel
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Tom Woody
Date: 3/24/2025 6:23:00 AM
This is the kind of poem that demands multiple reads

Book: Reflection on the Important Things