The Higher God
Drops of music fall
upon a water of calm longing,
stilled longing,
like a quivering broken quill,
hovering,
above a blank sheet.
Who shall pat this longing
on its fragmented,
decayed,
sore back?
Multitudes of sweet sounds
tiptoe behind each other like
soft twilight shadows;
they ripple like a bead curtain
rustled into motion,
thrust into momentum,
ripped apart and eaten,
bead by bead, note by note,
by an impatient lover.
Music always swells sooner or later.
We have belonged to each
other; we will belong
to the earth some day,
as heavy-lidded
middle-aged stars
stare tranquilly
at an old, tired earth
rotating
in eternity.
But the string of music lashes
back, hungry and vicious,
sweetly deafening if only
eardrums
existed to be shattered.
The tree will fall,
and slam down hard,
breaking the earth’s back.
Sooner or later,
ears will swing by
and listen.
The senses will thrill
to be inundated,’
glad to be of use,
happy to be abused.
We have all come from music
and unto music
shall we return.
Echoes to echoes,
atoms to pitches,
bones to notes,
if we must.
Music always swells sooner or later.
Beautiful! Absolutely brilliant. I am really happy with all the changes you’ve made. They add a lot to the poem.
Since this is directed towards publishing and is not merely cathartic, I will suggest one thing. “Fragmented, decayed” in the beginning sounds a bit off. how about just fragmented? it conveys the msg, and more importantly, it shows a stark contrast between the fluidity of music and the longing’s fragmentary nature. other than that, great show and like i said, can’t say i’ve done better than that!
Beautiful…awesome imagery and ambience….
what is up, ppl?? y no updates????
Usman,
This is amazing, especially when it picks up pace toward the end, like music itself. The rhythm is absolutely compelling.
I would exlude the last line as it disrupts the flow.
I love it.