call

[Bradley F. Koetting]

8/12/2011 9:31 PM - sacs

 

 

call

 

 

i don’t mean to preach to you

for i am neither a prophet nor a teacher

i am uneducated and without broad travel

you are not beneath me

nor are you my god

you are my friend

and our lives mean something to each other

our knowing one another is necessary

 

we both listened when it was deadly and quiet

we made teas from grass and shot pregnant rattlesnakes in the road

we changed things together

and together things changed us

we were the other’s missing link

breaking over the bow as life’s anchor plunged toward the seabed

 

i wanted you to understand that love is a surrender of freedom

and that nothing hurts more than the loss of liberty

but this is how we grow

pain is often veiled in the cold porous stone beneath our footsteps

and the disapproving thoughts of others

are no more meaningless than their praise or approval

 

should another’s thought influence those thoughts of your own

abandoned that sinking ship of rabid fire

and kick for deeper waters

 

none of us know who we are

but we all know who we are not

and it’s just another falsely proud and bloody Monday morning

we’ve gone off to war in foolish haste

unwisely abandoning our resolve to kill

 

now dawn’s fingertips of rose poke and prod me further up this rocky hill

as for you my dear friend

i bid you fair seas

[Kristine_ES]

there's much to think on here. i think i like "kick for deeper waters" best

[Angela]

I read this a number of times.  I thought the the final line of each stanza was beautifully strong, and your piece pleaded with me to be read aloud in a man's voice.  I enjoyed the numerous references to nature, as they were completely not contrived.   Overall, I think this is a fine piece.

[Edward Dean]

Most excellent warm reflection Brad.

Sentence 5 is fantastic!