Jim Jim
where is our party?
where all member’s held equal
an’ vow t’ infiltrate that thought
among the people it hopes t’ serve
an’ sets a respected road
for all of those like me
who cry
“I am ragin’ly against absolutely
everything that wants t’ force nature
t’ be unnatural (be it human or otherwise)
an’ I am violently for absolutely
everything that will fight those
forces (be them human or otherwise)”
oh what is the name of this gallant group?
lead me t’ the ballot box
what man do we run?
how many votes will it take
for a new set of teeth
in the congress mouths?
how many hands have t’ be raised
before hair will grow back
on the white house head?
a Boston tea party don’t mean the
same thing . . . as it did in the newborn
years before. even the
meanin’ of the word
has changed. ha
ha . . . t’ say the least
yes that party is truly gone
but where is the party t’ dump the feelings
of the fiery cross burners
an’ flamin’ match carriers?
if there was such a party
they would’ve been dumped
long before this . . . who is supposed
t’ dump ’em now?
when all can see their threads hang weak
but still hold strong
loyal but dyin’
fightin’ for breath
who then will kill its misery?
what sea shall we pollute?
when told t’ learn
what others know
in order for a soothin’ life
an’ t’ conquer many a brainwashed dream
I was set forth the forces on records an’ books
from the forces that were sold t’ me
an’ could be found in hung-up style
wanderin’ through crowded valleys
searchin’ for what others knew
with the eagles’ shadows
silent
hungry
watchin’ waitin’
from high mountains
an’ me just walkin’
butterflies in my head
an’ bitter by now
(here! take this kid an’ learn it well
but why sir? my arms’re so heavy
I said take it. it’ll do yuh good
but I ain’t learned last night’s lesson yet.
am I gonna have t’ get mad with you?
no no gimme gimme just stick it on top
a the rest a the stuff
here! if yuh learn it well yuh’ll
get an A . . . an’ don’t do anything
I wouldn’t do)
and with each new brightnin’ phrase
more messy
till I found myself almost swallowed
deep in burden
spinnin’
walkin’ slower
heavier heavier
glassy-eyed
but at last I heard
the eagle drool
as I zombie strolled
up past the foothills
thunderstruck
an’ I stopped cold
an’ bellowed
“I don’t wanna learn no more
I had enough”
an’ I took a deep breath
turned around
an’ ran for my life
shoutin’ shoutin’
back t’ the highway
away from the mountain
not carin’ no more
what people knew about things
but rather how they felt about things
runnin’ down another road
through time an’ dignity
an’ I have never taken off my boots
no matter how the miles have burnt
my feet . . .
an’ I’m still on that road, Jim
I’m still sleepin’ at night by its side
an’ eatin’ where it’ll lead me t’ food
where state lines don’t stand
an’ knowledge don’t count
when feelings are hurt
an’ I am on the side a them hurt feelings
plunged on by unsensitive hammers
an’ made t’ bleed by rusty nails
an’ I look t’ you, Jim
where is the party for those kind of feelings?
how’re the gamblers that wheel an’ deal an’
shuffle ’em around gonna be got outa the game?
from here in
beyond this
an’ from now on