songs of the sumday

black lightning                                             
begrudge the sunlight influence on sight
blaring bright rays blindfold blocking boundaries of perception
but Lady Universe performs her striptease in the night
to the restless unquenched questioner’s delight
/
a telescope positioned well conditions right will space enhance
a microscope and petri dish detail expose clues missed by glance
in darkened hall a tricky task from wall to floor the flower dance
in alley back smoke rocket fuel to lightspeed jump the mind expanse
at touch the cheek feels warm and soft despite the August evening chill
her laugh sounds nervous out of depth uneased among the unfamiliar
city girl or so she thought with address high atop Nob Hill
unmarked by map now finds herself where late night joints will not deliver
rooftop perched on Hotel Hartland following the smoke he looks
skyward guessing constellations unrecalled from long-shelved books
unimpressed he then descends to where dim lamps ignore the nooks
where owlish eyes like zippos burn their lighthouse beacons warning/ calling/ daring
modern Lews and Clarks to find their private northwest route
unblazeable while Helios awashes all the eyes can see
deceptive tease of foottrod trails a shellgame short the hunted pea
not sight but lost the sense most critical to read the legend key
not bright but blocked the role preferred for solar flares that burst esprit
as dusk hints close break fast your camp and leave behind what can’t be carried
drop dead weight of doom predicts and carcass discard fears unburied
when the night has fallen full and dangers rustle nearby brush
inhale two-lunged the scent unknown embrace complete that danger rush
wait not for ground of solid rock before you into darkness step
waste not time for flying high on walkthrough drills for landing prep
celebrate not guarantees but genuine mind blown surprise
know you’re close to cliff edge sought when certainties destabilize
near to rocks daredevil dives confident in wax-glued wings
birds on bridge with nods applaud as arms spread wide she airborne sings
peaceful smiles and swiftly soars as mercy wind last second lifts
cosmic reward for reckless risk her flight fate fortune shifts
spinning round in search of peaks or landmarks sure to recognize
he slips down slope on gravel loose howl cursing “not-my-fault” demise
the night ignores the weakling’s cries and mocks the gambler’s chance despair
don’t roll the rocks across the felt if weight of loss backbone can’t bear
nor enter night with torch ablaze and auth. experience impair
nor morn excite as rays return and stifle inner trapped Voltaire
/
I survey the gaps between the starlight for twinkles from ships yet to cross the abyss
Pheidippides messengers fleet footing secrets to color the void and inform the amiss
past the horizon where black lightning strikes in concert with thunder that rumbles my soul
outside of the spectrum the kodachrome captures where patterns kaleid beyond Painter’s control
I spur the beast ‘neath me to galloping speed and we breakneck across the terrain
we’ll circle the hills and hurdle the streams with be-damned disregard for the meteor rain
charging the storm with the fiendish intent of summoning bolts from clouds blown in drifts
until that black lightning grants our request and blesses the effort with heaven-sent gifts
I search for singed earth still smoldering burnt as for gold at the end of a rainbow
my beast loses nerve and broncos me off with a shirking coward’s innuendo
sprawled out and busted and choking on muck in a three inch deep mud puddle sludge
the battle feels lost and the errand a fool’s labor wasted on dream induced drudge
yet up to a knee I rise from that muck as I sense a surge buzzing nearby
but black lightning ballets at a speed devil quick in a hue out of range of the eye
my chase has no chance my strategy flawed the unbottled-yet bolts out of reach
I abandon the hunt and move without thought like a tide trickles slow up a beach
only then as I wander directionless free from the need to self-justify turns
I’m suddenly seized by a shock of adrenaline equal parts sizzles and burns
the moment exists out of time as I bask in a clear yin-and-yang comprehension
as I feel the unfelt and hear the unsung halfway ‘cross the Styx to a deeper dimension
/
before I can cross the jolt fast departs gone to ground at einsteinian speed
my supernova white dwarfs euphoria usurped by need
impossible to further dwell longer at lower altitudes
or sun sent glow consent to after lightening blessed beatitudes
thus the quest to scour the dark with desperate scavenge appetite
and skyward gaze against the odds in prayer for manna from the night
thus the tempt to compromise with vices teasing magic-lite
and habit haunt strange alleyways with anxious actions uncontrite
convinced of fated symbiosis moved to arts by light untaught
the guidance of an alchemist as last resort I desperate sought
swearing secrets kept til death techniques to the tomb concealed
I summoned bold that lightning black that big bang origins revealed
/
for the pleasure of a permanent surge
for the thrill of a dynamite charge
the reverb of gold notes choir sung
and the lingering taste of truth charred on the tongue
because the descent is a scene uninspired
a reflection routine for beat monks mind retired
black lightning alone proves my night-prescribed med
wine devine fed from breast for the Bacchian-bred