Lethe

I drank of the waters of Lethe
Near a cave where slept Hypnos
Couldn’t sleep from the memories
I beseeched the waters to save me

By the cave I made vigil
Wakefulness not departing
Every wrong I had committed
Swirling in my mind, not parting

Sleep deserting me
Memory withstanding
That place refused my entreaty
The waters ever flowing

A chevalier of Saint Gregory
Came down over to see me
Sleep in his every step
He drank from the waters of Lethe

Sleep found him with his first sip
I had drunk litres of it
Memory left him real quick
I had drunk litres of it!

A passing troubadour came next
Singing songs of valour with great grace
Lively, though he was two steps in the grave
Sleep found him in the next minute

The waters took away his song and music
The waters took away his reason of being
The waters took away his tribulations
The waters took away his everything

Is this my penance for past sin?
Where is the grace to free my binds?
All is lost and all is gone
And I am cursed to never forget

I drank of the waters of Lethe
Near a cave where slept Hypnos
Couldn’t sleep from the memories
Couldn’t forget my life’s journeys

Cocytus springs from my eyes

The Longest Journey

Ego and pride
A most dynamic duo
The groom and bride
Wedded suo moto

They take you to strange places
Where the value of life drops
Like an operated penny stock
To new and uglier spaces

Better to crawl on my belly
Take my dose of humility
Rx: before meals thrice daily
And then maybe
Reach an epiphany
And play it loud on my ukulele

From pride’s peak
To the bottomless pit
The longest journey

Shedding in the Pit

Peeling his scab
Like a shedding snake
Trapped on a granite slab
He feels like he will soon break

New identity without chain
Away from all the madness
Away from all the pain
Away from the badness
To keep himself sane
That’s all he desires
Away from all the liars
Away from the quagmires

He sheds, but the scars remain

Shadows and Masks 4.0 (A Thought in Progress)

A glimpse of the Collective
A brief change of perspective
Mandalas instead of gates
Drawn by scryers of the Fates
Auras of red, green and blue
Combining to form all hues
The world of spirit and man
Still lacking something in the scan

Zoom out then for a wild ride
A roller coaster backslide
Neither mask nor shadow can hide
Within the light of All Life
Where there can be no strife
Where social mask and bestial shadow drown
Where no heads wear heavy crowns

A place where things are what they really are
Where you don’t wear a special face to the bazaar
An honest reply to a ‘how are you?’
And asked because you really want to know it too

What is this place? Can it sustain?
Without lies can society maintain?
Truth and honesty are well and good
But what happens when you introduce a crook?

The design compensates, truth depreciates
And everyman puts on a mask for his own good
The mandalas turn and the auras change
The cycle of fate revolves in greyscale space

Deadly Sins

Oh sin of Pride
You never hide
Hubris is tall
Like a great wall
Before a fall
My gate within
Crushed like a tin
I am broken
Pride has spoken

Oh sin of Wrath
Always my path
A quick temper
Acrylic distemper
Vile tempter
Painting my gate red
Losing my head
Brief moments of heat
Burning up my peat

Justice gone astray
Pride and Wrath do stay
My little gate within
Buried by rubble
And coloured crimson

(And then there’s Sloth
Too lazed to plot
Meh)

 

Raindrops and Choo Choo Trains

Sitting on my rooftop
My feet are dangling down
Best ignore the sheer drop
That I’ll break fragile crown

I sit and watch the town
As thunder booms above
Sky’s having a breakdown
And onward flies the dove

I watch a couple play shove
(The drizzle begins then)
Engrossed in their puppy love
Oh to be young again

I hear a noisy train
My view is obstructed
I try to look in vain
The condos won’t allow it

The lightning closely hits
I feel the roof vibrate
It rains like the Blitz
Not time now to ruminate

I need to insulate
(A hot shower beckons me)
A stumble near seals my fate
Heaven in a hot cup of tea

Shadow Veil (Persona)

Better to keep the shadow locked away.
Paste a smile upon your face, and say ‘g’day!’
Keep within the bounds of propriety.
Laugh and smile while everything’s damnably…

The masks are necessary, a light step,
A joyful spring filled with zest and with pep,
When every footfall feels like a ton,
When ev’ry moment makes you want to run.

Truth is best swallowed on the rocks.
Until the time’s right hide it in your socks.
Let it flow then like some fine single malt,
And find a way to take off from the asphalt.