Identity

It was the smile that got me thinking There was no bitterness No resentment No tension between us She kindly spoke With a voice gentle And undemanding “Have a nice day” To which I returned “Thanks, you too” As I took my receipt And walked out of the FedEx office exactly eleven point six pounds lighter than when I’d gone in   “Have a nice day” It wasn’t a commandment to be obeyed Issued from...

Man, you could build a whole brand around this thing Handle the snakes And orchestrate all kinds of glittery manifestations Jittery hands and holy demonstrations Slippery tongues and wordless intonations Oh you don’t speak em? Just take some words and tweak em That’s right, that’s the ticket Show it to the man at the door And he’ll tell you where to stick it But just between you and me? Forget it It’s not a brand...

On that first day We woke up restless Stillborn, bleak, dry and dark Blood dispersed in the water black Ink without paper Language without form Absence without grief It was all ours And ours alone Hear the scalpel-sharp intake Of a baby’s first troubled breath On a day like this, there are no words Yet our voiceless cry, it must be heard For our wings, they are tired And there is no land in sight...

And I said…   “I want a spirit that is calm I want a spirit that swims In the heavens I want a spirit that makes A sweet, sweet song I want a spirit that preys With exacting precision I want a spirit that crows at dawn I want a spirit that flies by night I want a spirit that will fight And give its life To protect its young I want a spirit that...

Out of the eater Comes something to eat And out of the reader Comes something to read...   You may find me in town Or at home resting my feet We’ll discuss the numbers Of money, milk, and meat We’ll entertain the angels Without offering a seat We’ll speak of the devil Without feeling the heat But this meeting of minds Will remain incomplete This is only my shell With which you meet   I’m...

It’s the word that was spoken Before I was sent To a world collapsing Under its own colorless night   I looked with my eyes And saw my failures multiplied An abandoned house Ashes and rust Self destruction Egos blazing like guns And rampant consumption Of this body Of earth And water Of flesh And blood   But these are not the words   And this is not the book   This isn’t a stairway...

I was there at the breaking of dawn When the unknowable heavens Were divided from my unknowable heart When the mountains of my spine Emerged within the salty womb And trees took root With a harvest of life And breath And the pumping of my fragile heart Sustained by nothing but light And my waking life Was divided from its dream And my subconscious disturbed the surface Before diving deep on holy gill And my...

And as I wondered what fears I was about to face When I peered over the ledge Of my own dark and troubled heart And leaned over to look inside I heard a quiet voice speak these words   “Do not be afraid, Whatever you find here Is only a mirror with which To see yourself more clearly”   After an awkward moment of silence I ventured my reply   “Well, I found YOU here...”...

I see you out walking Holding a mirror beneath your eyes So you can look downward into the skies One step at a time all the way home Careful not to go near the sun’s heat For fear of burning your tender feet Using cooler clouds for stepping stones   I see you out walking I see you flying your kite in the park I see you scribbling your notes in the dark I see...

What do you see? A land taken by zeros? More zeros than you’ll ever know? Taken by money changers That take all they want In exchange for their soul? If that’s all that you see You’ve only read headlines In the red letter press This isn’t your land This isn’t my land This is my father’s house And he’ll see you to the door If you think you’re any better If you’ve got the nerve...