Chili Reanus's blog: "MORTALITY ... EARLY EXITS... ETC..."

INNER TRAVELLER

 

Speak to me-

 Shaman of the Cherokee!

 

As one seeking knowlege

 Of the Sacred Formulas-

 Prepare me for my journeys;

 Inward and outbound travels.

 

Though I know the Sacred Cloud

 Will hide me from my enemies,

 What can protect me

 From myself?

 

With my spells to follow,

 I can command Rabbit and Fish-

 Yet I sometimes have no self-cotrol

 Over some wicked, wayward wish!

 

Though I can cleverly conjure

 Spider's seductive and winding web,

 I am helpless- if not hapless-

 When I am the Spider's target!

 

As I've said before,

 When my bold plea for help

 First found it's way to

 The corners of my mouth...

 

Please speak to me-

 Shaman of the Cherokee!

 

 

by Michael Lofton

copyright 2009

You Can Only Type One Word. Not as easy as you might think. Now copy and paste into your blog and tag 5 ppl to do the same. Leave a comment to let us know you have done it, AND LEAVE THEM A COMMENT TO LET THEM KNOW THEY HAVE BEEN TAGGED. It's really hard to only use one-word answers! 1. Where is your cell phone? Here 2. Your significant other? None :-( 3. Your hair? Long 4. Your mother? Georgia 5. Your father? ^^^^^^^ (Same) 6. Your favorite thing? Sex 7. Your dream last night? Passionate 8. Your favorite drink? Coffee 9. Your dream/goal? Survival 10. The room you're in? Living 11. Music? Rock 12. Where do you want to be in 6 years? Texas 14. Where were you last night? Home 15. What you're not? Stupid 16. Muffins? Thanks!!! 17. One of your wish list items? Sex 18. Where you grew up? Georgia 19. The last thing you did? Breathed 20. What are you wearing? Shorts 21. TV? Sometimes 22. Your pets? N/A 23. Your computer? Laptop 24. Your life? Adequate 25. Your mood? Moody 26. Missing someone? Yes 27. Favorite Store? Sears 30. Your summer? HOT!!! 31. Like someone? Yes 32. Your favorite color? Blue 33. When is the last time you laughed? Now 34. Last time you cried? Before I tagged Lil Mz. Leggz, SazzyGal, onehopesecure, FreakyAZtomboy, and Tracy...

I wrote this song in October of 2001... a few weeks after the terrorist attacks. It doesn't address the violent event directly, but it does touch on the general issue of aggression and the loss of life. The lyrics are based on historical fact, and involve an ironic twist; the vicims in the song were Moors (Muslims from northern Africa, living in southern Spain), and the aggressors were Vikings (Crusaders and pirates, pillaging and plundering along the coastal areas). This is NOT, however, a song about karmic cause-and-effect (at least with respect to religion or race in our present time), but it does have to do with the concept that the more things change, the more they stay the same. "GIBRALTAR" Counting clouds today, slowly drifting by- Birds fly away in the early morning sky. Wished I had wings in times like these- Sometimes the safest place to be is high! I can tell The Rock is falling- See smoke from my window... Extra-ordinary day! My older brother- strong and brave- Guards the southern wall, which caught the first wave. Invaders come and go, but not like these. Sometimes you die for what you cannot save! I can tell The Rock is falling- See smoke from my window... Extra-ordinary day... music and lyrics copyright 2001 and published 2005 by Michael Lofton

It was a dreary December day in southern Georgia, and we were visiting my dad's dad's grave. He had died just a month-or-so earlier, but I wasn't greaving, nor did I shed a tear at his funeral. Of course I missed him, with his silly little rhymes and his goofy-ass sense of humor. He had simply been a dirt-poor farmer from start to finish, and he was all worn out... it was his time to go. Because of that, there was no shock, and there was actually a sense of relief for his sake. All of a sudden, as we were getting ready to leave, we all heard a loud screeching of tires, followed by a sickening "THUD!". My brother and I jumped the cemetery fence and raced to the highway, about a quarter-mile away. What I saw over the next few minutes has been etched into my brain for decades by a caustic acid of severe shock, poured over a previously-ignorance-is-blissful childhood. I saw a middle-aged bald guy standing as if catatonic, repeating a sad mantra of "I'm sorry. I didn't see him!"... a large dent was in the hood of his car... a very large woman was weeping wildly... a bicycle was twisted like a pretzel and lying by the road... and in the middle of the mayhem, there was a roughly-10-year-old boy (about my age) on the ground with a caved-in head, with my dad and uncle trying to keep him alive. They were covered with his blood. A few minutes later, an ambulance arrived and whisked him away to some nearby hick-town hospital (we found out the next day that he had died). As the pathetic crowd started to disperse, my brother and I looked at each other as if to say "What the hell just happened here???!!!". What just happened, at least in my mind, was a sudden, unexpected emotional growth-spurt. Mortality finally had a face, and it wasn't looking like that of some old, worn-out dirt-poor farmer... the face looked a lot like mine... a 10-year-old that was suddenly, violently torn away from ignorant bliss.