THE BICKER WOMEN .. .
Who wears best this shawl of uncertainty
whose mind is trained of fears furrow
to bow at noon – the bells of the Angelus
when blackened clouds of hell descend
around the fair shoulders of the puissant
burnished shields adorn their defence
within realms of hope and trial, honour gracious
worn heavy-knit her skin battles fields of care
for tis’ only soldiers that do not wonder
who were the authors of their answered prayer
and the Bicker women
not cultural stereotypes or
horror film characatures
taken from some ancient, dusty books
not plastic, elastic bimbos
the Bicker women
local born and bred
born to Bicker
who live long in Bicker
lives until the ‘she’ is dead
her splayed black dress
her woolen scarf
wrapped around her head
she speaks few words
yet kneels to pray
Bicker woman
of highest feminine degree
who went to school at age of five
with childhood peers, all years
her teacher aged
much talked of life
Yet no one teaches Bicker woman
how to be an honest wife
it is inbred, assumed by sight
the law of wolves and nature
understanding, words unsaid
Conscripts travel to their debt
fair soldiers of regret they line
the fields of shame, those fit, healthy
will remain after nights of sordid pain
have robbed their mothers of their love
none revive yet memory keeps all alive
and there the Bicker woman
dressed in morbid black
her body no less fragile
her beauty rests beneath her shroud
of shapely legs and cuni
her chest adorned of breasts
she is not an animal to scorn
or mount within the farmers field
Bicker woman
made of sterner stuff
not given to the vagaries of snuff
or perfumed trinkets
Bicker woman
the least and last to bicker
or to gossip or to blather
she has no time for sentimentality
or lust of thought
she is happy with her lot
The guardian angels who return
carry their dead and wounded
Jerusalem hath fallen for today
there are animals now in trail
who carry broken boys to their
mothers for burial or for death
but then the Bicker women
collecting souls from the glen
where lie generals spent forces
dead and dying in the heather
tragedy haunts the Bicker women
their smiles as gentle as their dead
©edenbraytoday06.10.2022
HOWL TWiCE .. .
Howl Twice .. .
We met this side of dawn
neat satchels on our backs
to search and find Zanadu
people knew as East Ewell
in what was known then as
‘the stockbroker belt’ of the
sprawl that was Lond-on
No one planned which way
that together we should go
each step along the path
was democratically decided
we were a union of brothers
for one momentous day we
spent away from our fathers
.
………
………
.
when did we take a wrong turn
when did the path lead us from the track
HOWL
for the sorrow that now we must unlearn
for what we ever thought was fact
or that we thought was ever true
like capitalism
is the fairest monetary system
like capitalism is fair and just at all
like capitalism shares wealth and opportunity with the masses
with both the haves and the have-nots
whereas capitalism means more than ever
that those who have more for themselves
for their children and their children’s children
will always have more
and those who have less… and their children
will generally always have less
HOWL
that an intellectual mind like Karl Marx was considered evil
or that there was ever such a thing as communism
when Marx was only a philosopher
who wrote a philosophy
much like Charles Darwin had been a naturalist,
a geologist and a biologist who wrote a proposition
it too was originally branded evil
yet now most everyone accepts it is true
HOWL ONCE
that democracy it has been decreed
by those unseen powers that be
provides the accepted key
to determine the fairest form of government and order
yet democracy is a fucking hypocrite
a fucking liar and is often corrupted
by those who stand to make the most gain
democracy continually administers out pain
to the weakest of our numbers
by that same rule of thumb that states
the strongest will survive
the fittest are the ruling class
by capitalism’s order
the weak get transient lift or push
from democracy’s shoulder
HOWL
that writers like Allen Ginsberg have been dredged
their words have been murdered
of what they tried to say
theirs was not considered poetic or decent
who spoke for one week
within the pantheon of the hugest time
because their words did not rhyme enough
or ring just once the Philadelphia bell
HOWL TWICE
that mankind’s religions often hide
the true heart of God
within its schisms, its annexes and prejudicial order
whereas true religion and undefiled
says we should visit the fatherless
and widows in their affliction
and keep oneself unspotted from ‘world corruption’
of capitalism’s disease
of democracy’s hypocrisy
of religion’s deceit
.
………
………
.
When we met the Bluewater
our journey done, we looked
at what 4 boys had become
travellers in space and time
who had fought fear of danger
traversed technologies might
beside roots of nature
We drew maps like geologists
pioneers who plot their route
explorers who traverse trails
carried our supplies in sacks
spoke of where we travelled
when we arrived we were
but 8 years old
………
………
when did we take a wrong turn?
when did the path lead us from the track?
HOWL
HOWL TWICE
for how far civilisation has taken us
for civilisation is not civilised at all
. .. it has forgotten the joy
of being young
©edenbraytoday08.10.2022
THEBEATPOET
Author’s Note: Alan Ginsberg’s poetic write – Howl – still provokes thought, analysis and controversy – surely, the focus of the poet.
I suppose this piece is kind of my vain tribute but there is not a word in it that does not make me want to HOWL – howl TWICE and then keep on howling !!!
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