A Decorated Reef

grey-yellow aged grass
like a cactus' hairy nest behind hooked palisade
polly parrot impaled on a Barbied-wire fence
empty dry sockets gazing South whence
lies the jungle of her origin so dense
she can never return forever hence
we kill a few species for twenty five cents



bus stop sleeper in a surplus coat
gabardine fashion bundled tight at the throat
hauntings of deafening roars and creosote smoke
screeching brakes and squealing wheels
coughing hacking fits he chokes
discarded gargoyles in a sunbeam mobile
dance from civilization's loose ropes



in cold steppe vigil standing tall
still as stone standing at the wall
knee-high rubble won't stop anyone
so there she waits in midnight sun
her eyes like the sea her hair like bear
try to pass her if you dare



shed ye of your need for trust
in her domain the rules are just
as dagger tip is cleaned of rust
bare throat before her throne you must



Segregation is the order of the day
violence plus Repression is the American Way
it's lucky if you're rich enough to avoid the bullet spray
a hundred sirens howl and scream as you're making hay