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