"you know so much about the blues."
she pursed her lips speaking that color.
"you know so much, them blues
gonna just rub up off on you."
still, her lips needed no primping.
the color just stuck.
"one day you gonna be at the bluebird,
with them blues socking yo' ears
and you ain't gonna hear the bell
marking your time to pass"
smacking them lips, sucking some
back teeth, she made a smuglike noise.
"and all them pallbearers gonna be
wondering why they arms don't be hurtin',
it's cuz you stuck back there still
listenin' to some blues off 'n there"
she smile big now, her lips pushed
back, and red color on her teeth.
"we all gonna be laughing, say how you
missed a free ride to allelujah cuz you got
held back diggin' them beat black blues, and
the ole preacher left to pray over
an empty pine box"
her mouth all open, head throwed back
and neck wide as earth.
copyright 2007 tammy melody gomez
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2 comments:
this reminds me of the funeral they had for lady pearl johnson when she passed
three, count 'em, three preachers, none of whom (you could tell) knew her in life as anything other than a bad example to use in their sermonizin'
talking about how "the lord cometh like a thief in the night" and how "you'd better have your house in order"
imo the real funeral for pearl was the one they had later on, at the 40/50 club
or wes race's ludella small, who's "gonna be dancin' in hell someday...at least that's what her mother says"
oh good, you found it: the poem i wrote after reading on Stash Dauber for a long minute. inspired by your jan.29 wes race blog posting.
a twist of suzan lori-parks
also informed Poem #28.
(i like funerals in parks and bars,
weddings in bars and gardens---went to ex-Derailer Tony Villanueva's wedding in an east austin cantina with music by a conjunto band fronted by a blonde czech accordion player.)
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