Day 304: Day of Birth

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i had gone to sleep with nothing.
the hearth was hollow lead.

i ached with hunger
bending
’til i bent upon the bed.

my dreams were made of stories
of days i’d lived before;

the recollected quarry
of always wanting more.

there i tossed and twisted
’til i was tangled in the sheets

and there was no love to lift them.

and there was no kiss of peace.

 

i woke upon a sleep-walked prayer.
it issued from me, unaware:

“give me not the riches
if they cost what riches cost,

and lead me not the ‘right way’
if right ways leave me lost.

speak to me in riddles
so the answers come more plain

and like me as i’m made to like
and do not interest feign.

nor need me for those manly means
of chore and labors labored

for when i’m struck with all those stones
i’m cruel and blue as jay bird.”

⋅

it was my birthday
that day
so i thought i’d better leave;

there is a gift in all this birth
too often, unretrieved.

shall i choose to starve by ditches
where wild mushrooms grow

or wilt in cushioned corners
where apathy is sowed;

am i so frightened by the road?

God help me,
where does it go?

where does it go?

∴

 

 

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