Love is a Battlefield

A word collage of quotes from my reading today…

“Blessed be the man who took notice of me

Relative, Guardian, Redeemer of my family

Removed his sandal as a vow

to renew her life.”*

“We don’t talk much but I believe

we have a more complete communion

with one another than even lovers have.

We are two minute sparks of life

what does he know of I or I of him?

Formerly we should not have

A single thought in common

now we sit with a goose between us

and feel in unison

are so intimate

that we do not even speak.”**

*The Book of Ruth- NRSV Bible

**”All Quiet on the Western Front” by Erich Maria Remarque, p.85. (HEB London, 1986)

Natural Born

Thrills, pills and highball spills
Tumbler emptied, hip flask chilled
Coney island, a laced wafer more
To take the edge off life, numb the core
Wheelers clad in their leathers
Dealers caught us by the tether
To market to market to buy the next ride
On struggle street bodies walk, dead inside
Shake it off, senseless these memories old
Surrounded by living, breathing trees, dreaming beings
Self-satisfaction at old tales retold
The evidence and consequence faded, unseen
The natural born tripper who shunned chemical highs
Prescribed a long life course of pain relief
The deepest ease comes from our loves inside reside
Protects from the whirlpool down, buoyed by treats

Seems the things that make us happy, haven’t changed much since we were in nappies – love food, stimulation, mother nature’s inspiration – rap lyrics to ‘The Favourite’ (author unknown)

Street angels

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Like a bolt out of the blue they came to me
Standing in wait as I walked aimlessly
In the dark, the day, back street, bar pew
The night market, car park, the mall

Just standing around head looking down
Saying words under their breath
The names have escaped, their faces erased
But if not for intervention it was surely death

For just the week before or the night after last
Another girl just like me had also walked past
But they met a different face and ever since had paid
Ultimate price for freedom to walk out past late

Fellow from far North under dim street light
Walkabout round nowhere I’d been serving tables
Waiting just to take me in and serve me soy tea
He showed me what it meant to set my Spirit free

The woman waiting patiently each day on every street
For the one to hear her words and in turn agree
She gave up all she had also her family
To bare her soul to every passer by she’d meet

Once I knew the code of this secret army
I found them plain clothes everywhere
Staring right into my soul carefree
Just when nobody else would dare

Parental Guidance Recommended

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At break of day our Padre

Awakens and stirs me

Words and phrases exchanged

Ruminating upon this mind

The purveyor of fine intricacies,

Subtleties and non-sensicalities

Steeped in Pathos here relieved

To bathe in bathos 

At the wink of an eye upon pillow

We exchange a therapeutic peek-a-boo

With the clouded sun peeping out

Casting light round and round the garden

Wired for Sound

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Tuning in frequently

sound bites, snippets

pop up in low fi

filling my mind

through wireless ears

Static surrounds and drops down

Ringing and pinging hearts beating

Your gestures punctuated

by prayers and pleading

begging for what we’re needing

to hear

connecting dots

between points

numbered

pulling together

problems and silence

soaked deep in Word

sewn together into

a larger world view

illustrate illustrate

no mundane repartee

sacrifice secular stoics

devout pleasure in pain

tears restrain

buoyed by passion

de-liberation? wrong..

good people I’ve managed

to hold attention too long

 

 

Thanks to Mikey

Rewind

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I caught myself
On a cold wet night
Mesmerised by
That same sight
On the winding lane
I laid eyes on
the lighted way
That holds my own
Heart’s recipe
It makes me see in
Rear view clearly
When I could be
What I dared to be
I’d speak out loud
When I want to speak
Do whatever I cared to
I’d feel much more than
I ought to feel
Because there’s none
But you
The night sky is dark and heavy

Like my love

 

a nod at James Shelton’s famous song Lilac Wine (1950)