collab

Saturday, August 10, 2019

REVELATION







Revelation


Standing there at the corner of 3rd and Main today, I had a revelation
It burst upon my shattered mind and war torn soul like the sun coming up
Over the Rocky Mountains
Or the tides of the Atlantic Ocean hitting New England in October
A revelation............
Standing there gazing up at the azure blue sky and the flashing DON'T WALK sign
Hypnotizing me into zombie somnambulism, I began to walk into oncoming traffic
As a dozen cars and their impatient drivers honked and screamed 
"You idiot! Watch where you're going!" Honk. Honk. Scream. Scream. 
I waited for the crash that never came
And found myself on the other side of the crossing safe and sound 
But lost in the relevance of the revelation
A blind man with a white cane rounded the corner and whistled 
And motioned for an invisible seeing eye dog that never came either 
And I had a sudden ache in my heart for him because I realized 
That he had forgotten that his dog was no longer there.

A flower vendor selling tulips and star gazer lilies caught my eye 
And I walked over and bought a Stargazer on impulse 
And thrust it into the startled blind man's hands, saying "I know you can't see this 
But it's beautiful and I want you to have it." 
Then hustled away when I saw a tear begin to fall down that leathery face 
From behind his dark glasses. "It's a Stargazer, right?" he called to my back
And clutched the flower to his lean chest as I hurried away, 
Softened by unexpected emotion.

The revelation kept rising up in me like a well too full of water and at the same time
Gave me visions of an old hotel wired for implosion and imminent devastation
Boom! Boom! Rumbling like a subway car in the belly of New York 
Boom! Va-Room! in the dark or a silver jet streaking across the midnight sky.
Instead of going to my dead end job, I found myself entering the downtown city park
To find the worn bench where I used to sit and feed the pigeons
And listen to erstwhile musicians and small time hustlers running their mind games
Looking for instant fame and fortune in someone else's pockets
Where I had lain in the grass sometimes, arms folded behind my head, 
Watching for animal shapes in the clouds and dreaming of yesterdays
And tomorrow mornings
Dreaming of revelations that never came and that I had long since given up 
On ever getting. Always questioning and never getting answers. 
Never getting answered. Never getting noticed by man nor God. 
But ever always questioning.

My bench was occupied by a little old man and woman dispensing day old bread
To greedy birds and shooing away devious squirrels who looked more intelligent 
Than most of the park's noon time visitors
I was momentarily disappointed and turned to walk away, perhaps to discover 
An undiscovered bench somewhere and stake my claim on it, knowing that it
Could never really feel like my old bench, like mine.............
"Excuse me!" the lady called out to me as I hunched my shoulders and began 
To hike down the trail edged with carefully planted daffodils 
And the odd purple unidentified flower. "This is your bench." she said as I looked back
Over my shoulder in restrained wonder. "Isn't it? We were saving it for you." 
"Saving it for me?" I asked, repeating the phrase like the human parrot that I was 
"Why would you save it for me?" Kind of disdainful like......

Walking back towards the bench and the beaming old couple sitting there
Surrounded by pigeons and squirrels, I put my hands in my pants pockets 
And stood there staring at people I'd never seen before in my life but people
Who felt oddly familiar. "Do I know you?" I finally asked and met the woman's gaze 
With a defiant but weakening glare. "No, but we know you, dear." 
She said sweetly, then, "You've had a revelation today, haven't you?"
"M-me?" I stuttered and threw my head back to get the hair out of my eyes
 "How did you know about that?"

"Oh, we know." she said and briefly touched the arm of her elderly companion 
And they smiled at one another in a way I've never seen two people smile. 
"We've been sent to bring you your answers." "My answers?" I almost shouted
And felt a thrill go through me like a kid on Christmas morning
Opening up the box of his dreams. "For real?" I whispered 
And began to tremble and melt and rise up and fall down 
And soar and expand and die and be born again in an instant 
That seemed to go on forever
became and decreased, gathered strength and released 
All at the same time, flashing through time backwards and forwards, falling and flying 
Dead as a stump but more alive than I have ever felt in my whole life!
And then, before my jaded eyes, I saw the little old couple begin to glow 
With an otherworldly countenance.

Seeing but not believing but believing anyway, I reached out to touch them 
But couldn't seem to make contact with any earthly flesh
"Soon." they said to me in unison and bestowed upon me the most magical 
And marvelous of promises emanating from eyes 
That could have only come from Heaven. "Soon." they said 
And vanished from the bench, seemingly unnoticed 
By the hundreds of other unlucky ones who could not see 
"Wow!" I said and collapsed upon the bench 
Reveling in the strange power that flowed from it's rough planks
Into every fiber of my being. Love like I have never known it before 
Rippled through me, up me, down me and all around me, cascading like fireworks 
And dissolving me into helpless tears. Washing me like a hot bath 
And like fire on a potter's plate. Refining fire and water. "Wow." I repeated

And sat back, unable to move my arms and legs and not really caring 
If I ever moved again. The world around me disappeared
With all it's noise and confusion, cynicism and scorn
Taking it's cold evil tentacles out of my heart and out of my mind
Where they had always been. I felt the world release me. I felt free. I felt loved. 
My earlier revelation had been a veil falling down from my eyes. 
Blind eyes opened at last, seeing Truth and knowing I was different 
Now knowing beyond a shadow of a doubt that God was real 
He had sent His angels
                      My answers had come................





©Voo
December 24, 2004 
12:30-2 a.m.
copyrighted




LIKE A BABY




Like A Baby



touching you today with gentle hands 
I wanted to hurt you but could not
the pain of the memory twisted my heart into wreckage
 and made my beauty
unrecognizable to your indifferent eyes. 

you didn't even see me, then. I was merely a wraith
standing there in that doorway watching you
 slow dancing with a perfect stranger
I felt like a once welcomed kid looking in the candy store window
 now locked Keep Out!

 I didn't know quite what to feel or where to look 
or where to stand
your eyes caught mine and you gave a cold little smirk
 as the knife plunged deeper
and icy hot tears began to make their way
down my cheeks in betrayal.

damn it, I hated you then! 
I wanted to rip you to shreds 
and torture you and make
you feel the way that you made me feel 
but all I could do was watch you dance 
and cry like a baby.


©By Voo
Sometime ago


The End Of The Line





The End of the Line
.
.
I can hear it coming
But I can’t see it come
It’s coming straight on through the dark
And I’m waitin’ here at home.
.
.
A big black train, a nightmare
Coming down the track
It’s taking my soul on a trip
But it ain’t coming back.
.
.
It comes for those a’ dying
It comes for those who weep
For those who don’t know it’s the end
As they lay down to sleep.
.
.
But me, I know I’m dying
I’ve known it for some time
And I will ride that big black train
To the end of that old line.
.
.
And where that end is, I don’t know
But I hope it’s Glory bound
I ain’t got nothin’ here to pack
Lord, ain’t that a lonesome sound?
.
.
I’m just a hobo in this world
Not really known for much
But where I’m goin’ we’re all the same
No highs and lows and such.
.
.
My brother is the favored son
He’s tall and fine and proud
The squeaky wheel always gets the grease
And well, he squeaks real loud.
.
.
Nobody ever notices me
They won’t worry when I’m gone
I’m just a no-good lay-a-bout
That likes to ride and roam.
.
.
Well, here it comes, that awful train
So long, Old Pop and Mother
Say what?! I’m still here and alive
But the train done took my brother.
.
.
©by Voo
copyrighted
May 12, 2011

I Don't Believe In The Devil






I Don't Believe in the Devil



I don't believe in the devil.......
But the devil believes in me
I don't look into his midnight eyes
But in mine I know he sees
I don't care how he wears his hair
Or if he dresses in a little red suit
I'm not impressed at the size of his chest
Or the tip on his pointy-toed boot

Believing in him has a price
The rewards of which are seldom nice
And if you're tempted, you'd better think twice
Cause the Dude, he's destined for Hell!

I don't believe in the devil.....
But the devil hates my guts
He wants so badly for me to trust him
That he tries to drive me nuts
He slanders me and scandals me
And he insults all my dreams
But when I ignore his endless taunts
You ought to hear his screams!
I don't believe in the devil.....
But the devil believes in me

I know he's real, that's not the deal
But he's the Father of Lies, you see.


By Voo
sometime in the past
copyrighted

I DIDN"T LOVE YOU THEN





I DIDN'T LOVE YOU THEN




I DIDN'T LOVE YOU THEN.........
WHEN THE SUN WAS WARM
AND SHINING ON YOUR FACE
MY HEART KEPT IT'S DISTANCE
EVEN THOUGH YOUR HAND HELD MINE
AND KEPT ME CLOSE THROUGH
PICNIC, SAND CASTLE AND 
SUDDEN THUNDERSTORM
NOR WHEN WE RAN FOR SHELTER
LAUGHING LIKE CHILDREN.

I DIDN'T LOVE YOU THEN
WHEN THE MOON
BATHED YOU IN HER SNOWY GLANCE
LIGHTING UP YOUR SOULFUL EYES
AS YOU LIT A CIRCLE OF CANDLES
AND ASKED ME TO DANCE
IN THE FOREST
WITH ONLY THE SONG THAT BURST
SPONTANEOUSLY FROM YOUR LIPS
FOR MUSIC.

I DIDN'T LOVE YOU THEN
AS I READ VOLUMES
OF YOUR LETTERS FILLED
WITH PROSE AND PASSION
PLEDGES OF UNDYING FOREVERNESS
AND PAIN.....
I COULD NOT...
I WOULD NOT...
AND I DON'T KNOW WHY
MY HEART WOULD ONLY BID ME RUN.

BUT TODAY IS A DAY I COULD NOT SEE
LIKE YESTERDAY WILL ALWAYS BE
THERE IN MY MIND
A MEMORY, CAPTURED, HELD IN HANDS
CLASPED SO TIGHTLY, THEY HURT
THE SAME HANDS THAT COULD NOT 
HOLD YOU TO MY UNFEELING HEART
BUT WATCHED YOU WALK AWAY
ALONE AND PUZZLED AT MY NONCHALANCE
I DIDN'T LOVE YOU THEN BUT.... I DO NOW.

MY LOVE, MY LOVE, MY EVER LOVE........
I DIDN'T LOVE YOU THEN BUT I DO NOW.



©BY VOO
NOVEMBER 2, 2006 
11:37 P.M.