TUMULTUARY

i, who MADE THE MOUNTAIN

i, who MADE
THE MOUNTAIN

bleeding into lakes
God, a prairie makes
fertile flush
rivers gush
and soon a mountain rises
bleeding into lakes

illusion, please comfort me,
satisfy everything,
i can live peacefully
if you curtain the window
that i had flung carelessly
on the day i was sure
that i had seen everything
plainly in front of me
heaven and hell were divided
unevenly
but there i saw certainty
standing across the street
crossing was heresy
‘if only’, i told myself,
‘i hadn’t seen anything.
the curtain i’d drawn
were a wall to stay stuck between’
sure, i’d lose purpose
and with it gain apathy
but apposed to uncertainty
purposeless living is
sort of like being free
where heaven and hell
are divided by you and me

LA

1/3

flick another cigarette out of your window
like an ornament
the city, a prince,
detests and pretends and sighs
/this is what i am now isn’t it/

2/3

god, this is what i am now isn’t it
a boulevardier,
just another star in the sky,
i, this great city,
am a cactus planted in the median of an interstate

3/3

LA, a miracle
an oasis
a paradise lost
and rediscovered
LA, i need you
unreasonably
and now i feel lost
and undiscovered

CHRIST / brother

CHRIST / Christmas Songs

b r o t h e r

in your new shoes
you
practice singing songs
at the piano bench
she was with you
too
in her new shoes
and she sang along

Father, my dear
hear
blessings in a song
as they call your name
beckoning you near
here
keep them in your arms

and as i write a poem
i hear you sing
i hear you laugh
so i write it down
in my new shoes
in my own time
and if you hear me now

sing her a song
give Him your prayer
rest in His arms