old words of many have dropped hard
on myhead over these years
goosebumps have risen up like tiny bruises
blue/black colors of cold flesh
they have made me dizzy crazily obsessed out of my mind
banged me in the skull, these words
fracturing soft cranial tissue with sharp edges
this fierce wordplay
almost punched in the throat
with wind knocked out of me
i’ve stayed
often carried off to sleep
night after night with these words
still, doubled over and bleeding
line by line
the wounds and joy of others
captivate and ease the hunger
i’ve stayed enchanted by the flow carefully
watching the words play out
in yesterday’s powerful tales
me living behind in the shadows of
today’s
wasted with it
wasted time with it
given too much of me away with it
i open close back down open
close back down again three beats left
i cannot stop cautiously i listen to time’s clicking clock
its broken hands pulling me further and further
away from the real of what matters
here today
19 may 2007