( I • a voice in the night )
for some of us
perhaps
it came as a drive to power
to do
to control
to reshape the world
for others of us
perhaps
it came as a quest for wisdom
to know
to understand
to contain the world
for others of us
perhaps
it came as a call to worship
to adore
to venerate
to glorify the world
and who will say
that one alone
is the one true way
or that all of these together
are the only ways there are
for some of us
for me
it came as a quiet voice in the night
listen
it said
i have a tale to tell you
i have a verse to recite
i have a song to sing
i have a tune to play
listen
or
look
and i would wake up with that whisper echoing in my ears
or see upon the black ceiling of my darkened room
words spelled out in glowing crystalline letters
lines that brought tears to my eyes
and half-choked sobs to my throat
lucky i was
if i could write them down
before they faded from my sight
i have wandered in the dreamlands
and brought back these souvenirs
but how could i have a drive to power
there of all places
or seek to chart and map
where even the roads shift about
or glorify
what has all the glory it will ever need
i am led
by the hand
by the word
by the song
by the dance
through the unutterably fair
through the unspeakably foul
through the many-coloured land
through the land of no colours
and if the dance leads to a pleasant summer grove
or over the edge of a tall sheer cliff above rocky terrain
should i complain
who chose to follow
[The Suno AI has composed and performed a tune for this song.]
( II • Dreamlands )
I hold no title
in the Dreamlands
no lord or master
there am I
only a visitor
tourist or guest
but I know the language
a little
and the natives speak with me
sometimes
and I listen
every chance I get
and write down
all I can remember
and repeat what I learn
some of it
which is to be a poet
Come see my souvenirs
These words here
I copied from a scroll of flame
on a high cliff
where light danced along the mountaintops
and the stars stood like warriors
arrayed against the dawn
Whenever I read them
my fingers burn
And these I found
in a gem the size of my fist
that glowed pale blue in the night
If you breathe them as you sleep
they take you to a cavern cool and deep
where a river shines in the dark
its water glows in your cupped hands
and if you drink
it gives clear vision
to find your way
Here now
these I found
written in water
on the surface of a sea
roiled and stirred
by great flukes
and seaweed beard
and craggy crown
and league-long trident
sloshing ocean
like a narrow tub
These fragments
are left of what I heard
to music of pipes playing
deep in the woods
they faded in the distance
but I did not follow
I was afraid
it would not be me
that followed
Names shift in the dreamlands
shapes and faces flow
meanings alter
selves blend or fade
from some roads
there is no returning
unchanged
Things I did not know before visiting
I knew afterward
Things I knew for certain before
I could never be sure of again
People I have met in the Dreamlands
what their waking form was I do not know
one man dark and brooding
another whose brow shone like a star
a woman who laughed and sang of love
another shy and wistful
who turned and ran when I approached
Their songs were lovely
heartbreaking and pure
but upon awaking
I did not know their language
and could not write them down
Sometimes I flew
black-feathered swift-winged harsh-voiced
to carry messages
a favor for a favor
strange messages
for stranger folk
a rock-sprung shining soldier in a cap
a one-eyed grey-bearded lord
ice-fishers woodsmen and hunters
or creatures of clouded shapes
never quite the same
between instants
More happened than I can tell you
more than I can tell myself
some things cannot be told
you must go there yourself
There is no passport I can give you
no golden needle or graven plate
but when you go there
heed me
watch carefully
listen to all you hear
and upon awaking
write down
all you can remember
and repeat what you learn
some of it
[The Suno AI has composed and performed a tune for this song.]
_________________________
© 1993 C. M. Joserlin, “Raven”
No comments:
Post a Comment