tears and fears,

and yet you are too youngto have anything to be arrogant aboutyou are in mortal perilat the midpoint of a lifewhich is not a lifewhich has no past and no futurefor you are not present in ityet grace aboundsand with it, poetry

and that of my partnerwith pills and extensionsgiving night-long passion –now, do you have a curefor arriving at the office in the morningexhausted?It’s a tale of two sacks –hit the sack, or get the sack…

among the high hills,among the white-crested waves,does it move?or is it unmoving,this graceful vision of it?it seems unmoving, yetfaster than the mind moves;ahead of all your senses;even roaming wild and joyfulamong the high hills,its white mane flying free,somehow it’s stillwithin its movement,within your stillness;can you see the tracks of fish,or the airy passage of the…

the big words thrown in like some hot currywhere you’re short of good solid meatso rap a few more big words in andanother spoonful of curry powderor sex, or some current buzz-worddenoting a lifetime of youthful intelligentrebellion and independent thought…but not this time.This is a famous poet of a famous timeand he’s just written it,…

in a great, glorious performanceof wraparound scenic splendouras if it were the last day of the world(we’d sue)and all around the worldpoets who’ve been chewing on their pencils all dayor gazing steamy-eyed at an empty screenwithout as we poets say, the Muse whisperingan ode we’re owedas poetswonder if it could be one last chanceto write…

Is it a fair game? Are the teamsequally matched? Have theyboth got wealthy sponsors?Can they both afford thoseinternational mercenaries?Is it – excuse the metaphor –a level playing field? …Some say it’s the oldestreligion in the world, withthe largest number of currentdevotees.. even those of uswho say we’re agnostic, atheist, ornever got the voting paper,secretly keep…