David James
Start by attending a funeral.
Stare long and hard at the powdered face
in the casket,
but picture your child there, a lover, your father,
imagine your own head on the cushion to replace
the dead, like a rotting melon in a basket.
Remember, and number, all the hours
you've flushed down the drain,
all the friends you've forgotten,
the utter nonsense you've devoured
in the name
of living your own life. That's bullshit.
You know it, they know it, this dead guy
knows it. It’s time now to raise
your weeping face into the moonlit
sky, pray for the strength of grace to crucify
the past on the closest tree.
Those who live from this moment on, win.
Those who grind a path toward next week
or next year get blown away like human debris.