Flashes Three

Edible mushrooms
with poisonous
twins

The forest
is full
of faces

“The fans in the stands
of the team that just lost
look like peed-upon plants”

For forty years
my feet were retarded—
shoes made them dumb

America
mistakes the marketplace
for the arena of dreams

*

The lust
that blinds you
to beauty

The birth
of birds
in nests

Can you grow a rose
from a broken branch?
Yes!

A bunch
of dopes posing
as heroes

Kept awake
by the bitter persuasion
of coffee

*

“If you’re so shy
you’ll just die
of hunger!”

Razzmatazz
Americans:
like leaky circuits

Zen:
another way
of saying Yes

“Oliver! It's Frank!
It’s only eleven!
God!"

Suddenly liking
all the people
on the train

*

The lantern eyes
in the swirling face
of a tiger cat

The sign on the front
of a rusty old bus
said SIMPLIFY

We live as if a disaster happened.
But it hasn’t touched us yet.
Not quite—right?

The Andrews Sisters
were the Yankee Dollar
they sang of

*

Driver
Remember
You’re rolling

Guitarist wisdom:
If you hit a bum note
—bend it!

Cynical thoughts:
let them breeze
through your mind



.

One Thing We All Know

I woke up in the morning
In the fog of a dream
All those faces and voices
Were still buzzing in me

I could feel myself sliding
Back down into the pool
But then something inside me
Said “Get up right now you fool!”

You had better know
It’s gonna go fast
And it won’t last
So get going

I knew I must do my duty
I caught a train to my job
My pressed shirt and my necktie
Let ‘em know I’m no slob

Next to me sat a fat man
Talking into his phone
What he said was important
I could tell by his tone

He said We both know
It’s gonna go fast
And it won’t last
So let’s go

I imagined that fat man
Running down a dark street
He was ragged and sweaty
He had no shoes on his feet

He was stuffing his pockets
With coins that kept raining down
But they slipped through his pants and
Clattered back on the ground

He seemed to really know
It’s gonna go fast
And it won’t last
So it goes

My little fantasy cruelty
Touched a trigger in me
And as if it just happened
I remembered my dream

I was down in the country
There were fruits all around
Everybody was out there
Pulling all of them down

One thing we all know
It’s gonna go fast
And it won’t last
So we go



.

This Is Paradise

I was boss of the office
With a huge view of the bay
A pretty girl brought me coffee
I didn’t bother learning her name

And I said Hey hey hey
I do believe I’ve got it made

A goddess stood on the sidewalk
The urge in me was ready to burst
I had no nerve to make small talk
It felt like I could drown in my thirst

And I said Hey hey hey
I can’t keep freezing at these gates

I went down to the devil
The first thing I felt was afraid
He had a face like a tunnel
And I knew I had made a mistake

And I said Hey hey hey
I sure do miss my better days

(I fell low enough to know
The pit where evil grows
That’s what my weakness showed me)

I met a man like a ragmop
But he had incredible eyes
And even though he did not talk
He made a point I recognized

He seemed to say Hey hey hey
There really is no better way

Open your tired eyes
This is paradise



.

Haven't Got A Name

I was outside on a lunch break
In the financial part of town
The streets were shadowy canyons
Between the buildings all around

I was standing at a stop light
And across the street from me
A woman stood there gaping
With eyes like tv screens

She’d heard some shocking gossip
Through the cell phone at her ear
OH! MY! GOD! she kept repeating
Each word so fierce and clear

The light told us to cross the street
And as we passed I watched her face
Chanting OH! MY! GOD! and gawking
And my mind began to race

I haven’t got a name
For all we’re doing
But it seems insane
And so unreal
I haven’t got a name
For all we’re doing
I haven’t got a name

She’s an idiot! I told myself
An American idiot who wastes
Her free time watching other people
Pretending to live on tv!

And when she gets a tiny bit
Of liveliness in her own life
She hypes it into a huge flashing jackpot
To match the dazzle of her screen!

And then a breeze between buildings
Whispered into me
And something soothing in that wind
Almost seemed to speak

It told me I was foolish
To rant behind me eyes
And I should take the meanings I’d made
And toss them into the sky

I haven’t got a name
For all this beauty
But I feel as sane
As this is real
I haven’t got a name
For all this beauty
I haven’t got a name



.

Power

Standing on the corner
With nothing to do
For hours

Staring while the clouds are
Making faces at you
Like flowers

If you stand still
You will be filled
With Power

Driving through the night when
There is no one in sight
You’re prowling

Feeling all your feelings
So incredibly bright
They’re howling

When your road is clear
You’re gonna steer
Toward Power

Breaker, breaker, Rocket Papa
This is Tarwater Catcaller
Howlin’ on your line, over!

Ten-four, Tarwater
You’re blockin’ Papa—
This best be good, over!

That’s a big ten-four, Papa
I have to honk my heavenly horn
Because I’ve got the Great Current
Flowing through me like a mighty sea
And I’m gliding down the line like flying, over!

Hey now! I do believe
You’re grazing grace, Tarwater
Amen and Godspeed to you—
And if you do see Smokey
Smoke ‘em for me, over!

That’s a big ten-four, Rocket Papa
This is Tarwater Catcaller
Howlin’ over and out!

Sitting in the silence
Just surrounded by air
Is Power

Breathing so your breath can slow
The noise in your head
Is Power

If you shut your mouth
Your belly with growl
With Power



.

Shadow Battle

Do you see the moves we’re making
Out here on the street?
Do you see the shadows shaking
Underneath our feet?

Ev’ry shadow’s a trapdoor when we
Forget about our feet
Can you find me a map for where all
Forgotten footsteps lead?

I saw a shining face who
Sang inside a dream
I wrote a poem that strained to
Capture what it means

Like a smile invites you sometimes
To the other side
In a jungle of shadows somewhere
Something rumbling hides

A shadow battle
You battle shadows

I can’t pretend I understand them and
I can’t remember when

I can’t remember when



.