Don't you try, try to tell me what to do

 Find this clip very, very MUCH. Old, crippled man singing, raving, dancing a young man's song. Sad, joyful, disturbing, profound. Can you feel it?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BL9p-GhnEVE

Today's Verse: 26 June 2025

Suffered enough

Not hurting anymore

Unless I move

Unless I think

Talk's distracting

Compresses the wounds

Sleep's a relief

Question Mark

Black ink on the sheets.  Be careful now.  Grab it as it drops, falls into the net.  Becomes a bark.  Not a bark in the street but a bark on a river, smoothly, grably, only as it dips.  Clearly tracing five parallel lines.  Staff, key, clef, time, all falls.  A rest or a black note.  The paper boat in a puddle will yet make its way to the sea.  Untie the knot and let it go.  And then the smell of mushrooms on the page like rotting bark, like the scent of a question mark

Oily eddies swirling. Look in deeper: creatures in the shallow tide pool, a kingdom of sea monkeys reciting stories of the mad ones, the ones who fill their pockets with pebbles, each one like a word in a note, bent and meant to weigh them down. That’s how they drown or float on notes, on white notes without words.  The blank notes, a whole note wrapped in black that’s scarcely a gift at all.  The note’s been stained all inky dark like a question mark

And why is the house filled with crows now? Everybody else went to the park.  I couldn’t stay up that late.  The birds pick at my hair, they pluck.  They’re grooming me I guess.  Floating like tomatoes.  You squeeze in and pop ‘em.  But dark tomatoes, not ready for the table.  And look: plastic forks and knives. It’s all set now, I’m being fed like a baby bird, finding words in my mouth like chewing gum I didn’t know I was chewing.  And plop, a glob, a horrid clump bent and twisted like a shark, in the shape of a question mark

All that my squiggle-body hides then reveals.  It’s like that game, making the monster you don’t need. The body laid, displayed on the altar.  Burn the words. Burn the message. A prayer of sacrifice, an offering, even the question of an offering.  The smoke rises up, twisting around on itself.  See? Look up.  Printed out in the sky, there’s a question mark made of stars.  The Big Dipper, the Great Bear, pointing to the lode star, the True North.  Oh ha ha what a lark.  Just a big old question mark.

Farewell

 

Little Ghost Live

https://youtu.be/ib0O3dNNeM4 

2024 Effigy

 

Little Ghost

Little ghost, little ghost

Come closer, little ghost

Don’t be afraid. I’m glad you’re here.

Jump up, Little Ghost

Go ahead.  Fly home.

I thought you’d knock things over 

when you came, Little Ghost

I thought you’d be very loud.

You’re quiet though.

Very quiet and gentle

I know you’re here, though.

Jump up, Little Ghost. Come on.

You’ve been knocking to come in

But now it’s me knocking on your door

Maybe you’re not even there

It’s OK, come closer.  I miss you.

Your life brought me joy.

Let’s not end in fear.

Your life was a mountain

Your death was a mountain as well

But there’s a little valley in between

Cross through there, Little Ghost

Cross through the valley.

You walked on water, Little Ghost

What I mean is, you walked on the ice

It didn’t break, Little Ghost

The water held you up

As if we were on a boat on a canal

And then I realized that I’m on the boat 

and you’re there on the pier, Little Ghost

I’m floating away and you’re folllowing

But soon you’ll be gone, Little Ghost

Or it’s me. Maybe I’ll be gone and you’ll be here.

You don’t belong here but I’m so happy you are

It’s so nice to think you were picking flowers

Once you were picking flowers

Now it’s time to go, Little Ghost

It’s time to go home. I don’t want to send you away.

I don’t want you to leave me.

Jump up, Little Ghost. Fly home.

Goodbye, Little Ghost

Goodbye