between the poet and the poem

between the poet and the poem

is a place of promise

a sade adu singing

“by your side”

holding you in a tender embrace

 

(seriously?)

 

i’m watching the cold un-calculating concrete

and the last thing i believe in are promises

 

a cop was driving by and saw me in an alley

urinating by a dumpster

i could tell he was coming back

i got urine on my shoes and leg

in my haste to zip

and disappear

 

the night is clear

and cold

my cigarette hates me as much as i hate it

but my beer buzz is professing undying love

 

my back against a concrete wall

crouched, a sidewalk fixture

watching

hands in hands walking by

 

they say one in five people

suffer from mental illness

imagine what they would say about me

but i’m not crazy

sometimes i feel as if i’m the only one

who sees clearly

 

and i really hope you are not waiting

for me to get to a point in this poem

because pointlessness is my pontification

 

that is why i like these dark cold streets

wandering

an animal on the prowl

seeking pleasure

 

it all appeals

no progress, no purpose

even if i really wouldn’t mind

sade adu holding me amid the hurt

 

but truth is not circumvented

when there is no truth

 

we’re just trying to rationalize

give meaning to the motions

“it all means something

so therefore it is worth doing”

 

have fun

 

i know i am

and yes

my reality isn’t real

just perceived

and yes

your reality isn’t real

just perceived

 

well, i need another drink

fill the emptiness

that most people try to fill with love

at least alcohol exist

 

***