Confessions of a Mad Poet

he writes so eloquently,

all the proper provenance,

all the MFA’s and PhD’s,

yet reading his work

is like running on a treadmill,

no matter how much effort you put into it;

you always end up

right where you began;

I suppose at one time it was different,

prior to the formal training and academic nonsense,

with all the self-proclaimed knowledge

and airs of superiority,

I’m sure the words flowed naturally and free,

taking the reader on a journey

into never before seen, far-away lands;

but then the education got in the way;

I have tried all the natural highs,

all the mind expanding techniques

and self-promoting exercises,

all the little tricks of the trade;

alcohol and caffeine work the best;

sometimes I almost forget,

then a song comes

on the radio,

I see an old video clip,

something is said,

and like tiny bubbles

in a bubble machine,

the memories rise,

then I remember,

it all comes back;

the loneliness,

the isolation,

the sadness,

the darkness,

all night diners,

coffee and eggs

at 3 in the morning,

oncoming headlights,

the empty road,

the feeling of being unlike

everything and everyone,

the searching,

the attraction to

dark and mysterious things,

endless shots of whiskey,

never satisfied,

never enough,

always wanting more,

more, more,

standing at the edge of nothing,

peering into it’s oblivious perfection,

breathing deep

the intoxicating scent,

understanding the futility,

seeing through the myth,

fighting back the inevitable;

sometimes the strangeness

became overwhelming,

all the differences,

the inner silence,

the unspoken words,

it’s a miracle

I never became a serial killer,

a deranged lunatic

hiding out in public places,

waiting for a single nod,

a lone wink,

singular acknowledgement;

silent peace;

yes, sometimes I almost forget,

almost, but not quite,

it has been such a long time,

but it was never about fortune

or fame,

not about store bought

hypocrisy or

witty, tongue twisting words,

riding on the coattails

of expensive, inconsequential degrees,

complete with lifetime supplies

of picture-perfect, post-card images,

Vermont farms,

summers on the Cape;

it was so much more;

all I ever wanted

was to know that

somebody was listening,

someone saw through

the technical difficulties,

past the political correctness,

beyond incorrect commas

or questionable capitalization,

seeing something more than

paper and ink,

seeing the life

beating within the pages

of endless, mind-numbing sentences,

someone who could grasp the treasure

buried beneath the trash,

all I ever wanted is the same thing

every mad, raving, delusional, twisted

scum sucking, self-pitying poet wants;

to be heard;

I gave them passion,

but they only wanted bullshit,

I gave them agony and defeat,

but they only wanted bullshit,

I tried love,

I tried hate,

I tried darkness,

I tried light;

but they only wanted bullshit;

bullshit,

bullshit,

bullshit,

words to soothe

their bullshit minds,

pictures to fill

their bullshit lives,

paper with which to wipe

their bullshit asses;

self-made bullshit titles,

hiding behind unknown

bullshit presses

ending in ‘ville’

or ‘stanley’,

new paradigms,

publishing for the masses;

bullshit,

bullshit,

bullshit;

we are hanging on,

everyone of us,

waiting for just the

right moment,

ready to leap

whenever the chance

presents itself;

we are all hanging on.

.

.