We walked the lands our feet first knew
where sun carved stories into stone
where rivers whispered secrets of old
and stars counted the nights we called home.
They came with walls and laws and chains
told us our voices were too small
but the earth remembered our songs
and our hearts refused to fall.
We were shaken by fire and fear
our homes stolen, our names erased
yet in the shadow of every loss
our roots dug deeper into this place.
We rise in clicks and in whispers
in laughter, in dance, in stubborn flame
we were shaken, not beaten
our spirit forever untamed.
Finally, the options are revealed
The appeal is second to none
Tantalized by various speech patterns
Shocking, awful, and mistaken
Chills travel down the spine
Afraid of what's to come
At the behest of one's empathy
Words cut through obvious defenses
Crying to no one's delight
The weakness can no longer be withheld
Shaking uncontrollably, violating the hollow ground
Confidence is shattered into a million shards of dissonance
Never to be heard from again
Mister Milligan Funk
A Dad and a Deacon
Went on a massive drunk
Relatively speaking
He staggered to and fro
From bar to bar he went
But soon he had to go
With all his money spent
Talk about unlucky
As he was heading home
Passed out in Kentucky
But woke up drunk in Gnome
Sleep shook my shoulder
I ignored her as long as I could
Inside my dream I was fascinating
People wanted my opinion
I was revered and esteemed
Not royalty, but treated like one
Sleep threw me into the mattress
I woke up gasping, struggling to understand
It felt like a meteorite had hit my chest
My breath was expelling at a rapid rate
My dream was dissipating
Sleep was satisfied
Harsh sound of the alarm clock
No one wanted my opinion this morning
I am invisible here
An old dried-up woman
No one hears or sees
Wistful wisps of wan whispers wound her,
She looks withdrawn, weary and wrung out,
Staring blankly, not a word to stir
this uncanny silence spread about,
Grim as if a stone had crushed her heart,
Unaware of others' tears and cries,
It was as though her mind did depart
to another world behind her eyes,
Melancholy like a shroud cloaked her,
Suspended shock at Fate's cruel game,
Life passed her by in a blinding blur,
Shaken, her world would ne'er be the same,
Something darker than depression crawled,
Gloomy, clueless about her future,
Her husband's death had left her appalled,
Feelings that couldn't be healed by suture.
I will not be shaken I will not be shaking
Nor will I be forsaken I keep my eyes on Him
I will not be rebroken I will not be a token
I am a prized creation and I keep my eyes on him
I look upon the one the Creator of all creation
Blinded in my lust haunted by my mistrust
Whose of who I am
I am the Son of I AM
Praises from dust to Dawn praising for all He's done
I keep my eyes always on the Lord
With Him at my right hand I will not be shaking
In Him He's my all N-all in all in awe I am behold behaving
I will not be shaken I will not be shaking
Nor will I be forsaken I keep my eyes on Him
I will not be rebroken I will not be a token
I am a prized creation and I keep my eyes on him
I keep my eyes always on the Lord with Him
At my right hand I will not be shaken
6/5/23
Written words by James Edward Lee Sr © 2023
Wings of silent pristine perception
Glide through and over
Infinite fields and states of vibration
Noumenal and phenomenal
Shaken is the ground of being
Volatile conceives
Unity diversified
Nothing is what seems
Easier to run the risk of death
than ridicule damned
Easier to face an army of men
than a single man
Easier to write a thousand lines
than only one
Easier to quote the wisest sage
—than self become
(Dreamsleep: September, 2022)
Soup Creek Toasts
Marmite cocktails are delicious I've heard
They are the hippest cocktails being served
So to raise a toast
Tell Jenna the host
Mayor Tom's sure to be shaken and stirred.
6th September 2022
The last days and the bright sunshine setting
You can see the stars in fading sunlight.
When the sun fades, moonlight lever shining.
Not as mates, more as buddies we're waiting.
Not just cautious buddies or close friends sight.
The last days and the bright sunshine setting
Wildlife takes time and quaint is quieting.
Birds nest in treetops as cascade the night.
When the sun fades, moonlight lever shining.
Don't miss this time; on my shoulder leaning.
Autumn leaves turn auburn and frost soon bright.
Ending day and glaring sun are setting.
Stick together like a blade storm darling.
When the moon moves, the sunlight remains white.
When the sun fades, moonlight lever shining.
Laugh when you write about river bending.
You and I in each other's eyes peering.
The last days and the bright sunshine setting.
When the sun fades, moonlight lever shining.
Written: July 11, 2022
Faith shaken, when earth life tests jest
Real’s the pain we feel
Our weary bones now seek some rest
Suffering needs to heal
Gone’s our burning yearning
Anguish we bear’s searing
Feeble faith upturning
Forsaken
Faith shaken
20-May-2022
Quietus
Notes:
https://lonerwolf.com/the-dark-night-of-the-soul/
https://www.christianity.com/wiki/jesus-christ/my-god-why-have-you-forsaken-me-meaning-and-importance.html
My demons: are awakened;
They're lurking around inside my mind
I've become so bitter, shaken
These demons somehow keep me blind.
These demons are trying to get at me;
Throwing obstacles in my way
My writing these words, be mistaken
But it's just my demons wanting to play.
I find myself in grips by my demons;
As if they had chains on me
Thunderous yelling at myself
In the mirror that sat on the shelf.
Gaps in time unaccounted for;
Missing what had just taken place
I know I have some memory problems, face it
But, this is more like it's Alzheimer's disease.
There are these days I forget my name;
And there isn't anything to blame
Sometimes forgetting where I am
Or are these my demons trying to shame me again.
Writing of this makes me uneasy;
I keep telling myself or is this reasons
I ought to choke you to make them stop;
Sometimes, I think my head is going to pop.
What is paranormal to some people is our norm.
Everyday stuff to our family.
He stared into his grandmother’s brown eyes.
They had golden flecks, he noticed for the first time.
I know your dreams, she told him. We shared one last night.
Of other lifetimes, right?
Her sixteen-year-old grandson was silent.
Hoping she had not shared his other dream.
skeletal remains
bleached white in the sun
shaken lose by dog
startling his owner
stuck in a snow globe
shaking up in love with you
stuck in a snow globe
~
snow sparkles surround
those signs our hearts snowy bright
shaking surroundings
~
subject stuck in glass
a bulb surrounded in love
showering snowflakes
~
caress smuggling us
so in love we are stuck in
a snow globe snowing
5/28/21
Written by James Edward Lee Sr © 2021
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