nothing to be done
i have walked the way for you
let me tell you some things
i have learned
heed
or ignore
or both
i heed
or ignore
or both
these words as much
as anybody else’s
watch the moon rising
and the sun setting
and the moon setting
and the sun rising
as often as you can
take your fill and will of love
whatever and whoever you fancy
it is your business
enjoy
don’t scrimp on shoes
look after your feet
look after your back too
take care of your posture
your back is your best friend
strive to be wise
strive to be rude
always say thank you
if you find love
be prepared to lie down
in darkness with devils
for the one that you love
illiteracy is never excusable
learn how to speak
learn how to spell
learn grammar
syntax is not a levy on one’s evils
context is not a paragraph
that seeks to deceive you
don’t listen to your parents
they brought you into this world
to rally against them
that is what offspring do
tell them firmly
parents it is your purpose
i was born to kick against you
never declare war
on something you can’t pronounce
never go into the woods
with a man carrying a shovel
if you find love
copulate as much you can
cultivate that desire
or watch it fade
rage as often and as much as you will
there are many things in this world
deserving of your rage
but ensure you choose your targets
with discernment
and ensure that you have the data
to back it up
generations get old
generations get sold
generations think they are
generation that is key
they are wrong
and they are right
every generation
gets old and sold
every generation is key
learn to mind your own business
learn to say no to crap drugs
travel all that you can
but don’t drink the water
never tolerate
lapses of respect
by house-guests
they are in your lair
their behaviour
should be impeccable
if it is not
expel them from your lair
thou shalt not kill
unless you are in a war-zone
you can admire
the beauty of a flower
without needing to pick it
never perform love spells
never sleep with somebody
you have to work with
or buy pharmaceuticals from
never complain about anything
to which you need not subject yourself
summer is always done with you
don’t entertain
that summer is your friend
it isn’t
learn the constellations
know that they are alignments
and not positions
know why you see them
as constellations
understand this point
and you can forget the others
it is all you need know
about anything
anything but your prayers
everywhere i step i see ghosts
they jostle me wherever i go
some of them are me
some of them are other people
this world is a land of the dead
the crushed remains
of four billion years
share our soil
our rock
our air
the human dead of earth
far outnumber the living
a hundred billion
compared to a meagre eight
we are living on a planet
populated by spectres
all history always around us
every locus so thick
with past event
one can scarce breathe
people have lived there
loved there
touched there
fucked there
cried there
died there
there are few locations on this globe
where phantoms don’t edge
shoulder to shoulder
the din of it is deafening
enough to drive us to the asylum
and as for the gods?
believers
worshippers
are fickle
they migrate pantheon to pantheon
from the one true god
to the one true god
leave their former divine
to fall behind
to fade from view
dead gods are numberless
once to die for
templed and storied
where are athena
enki
ishtar
osiris
now?
what of quetzalcoatl
el
juno
shamash
tangaloa
baal hammon?
rendered museum exhibits
textbook footnotes
their former dominions
dust and ruin
the destiny of all deities
our current clutch take note
.
Darren Francis
Picture Chris Bill
.