MENTAL DIS-ORDER

There’s a dividing line
We’re on the other side
There’s a different gravity here
The air is thicker
or is it thinner?
Ghosts wrap you in their wings
or are they angels?
There are voices all around
Are they inside
or outside?

We’ve all got scars here
Miles of red rivers, crimson like sin
Bodies pass us by
floating bloated on the red rivers
The ones we killed
or wanted to kill
The ones who got killed
who died on us while we weren’t looking
The ones we thought died
who rose again from the dead
Loss and fear so deep in our eyes
we’re afraid to look at ourselves
afraid we’ll fall in

All our words floating by
on red rivers
Words stretched out of shape
distended
puffed-up
over-used
overrated
overexposed
words
like pain
like sadness
like love
sick
stoned
empty
words
What we’re supposed to say
want to say, can’t say
don’t know how to say
are afraid to say.
Words like broken windows
in vacant houses, screaming

Invent something, will you?
Another way of
telling it.



c.copyright Marlene Azoulai2003