Still Wandering
Still Wandering
(Still Wandering," the two words that inspired this poem were used in several sources to describe Orestes as he was being driven mad by the Erinyes)
The quiet moments never come
No not for I, Agamemnon's son
Accursed mother and accursed young
I am still wandering on when the day is done
The sisters hound me day and night*
I gave them all that which I had by right
Where is justice for a mariticide? **
Oh how the gods forget the joy in Troy's burning light
Alecto whips and Megaera wails ***
I can't get a moment of sleep
Tisiphone howls of endless suffering
And I am still wandering
Tell me o Zeus on high, what's a son to do?
If not kill his father's adulterer and his murderer too?
Unjust are they who would condemn me
And so are you
Yet I will not die for your injustice
I will not kneel for you to countenance
Orestes lives in defiance and rebelling
Still wandering!****
*"Sisters" in this line refers to the Erinyes
** mariticide is the murder of one's husband, referring to the murder of Agamemnon by Clytemnestra. Today mariticide refers to most spousal homicide, doing away with the lesser known uxoricide
*** These three names, Alecto, Megaera and Tisiphone are typically used to refer to the three most famous Erinyes. The inconsistency of ancient texts leaves us grasping at how many Erinyes there were or what was their genealogy. Contemporaneously, the perception of the "trinity" of sisters is said to originate with Vergil.
**** not being an excellent artist myself nor wanting to leave no imagery, I used an ancient Greek pythos alongside this piece. It's in the creative commons and hey, I imagine a nearly 3,000 year old artist wouldn't be a huge problem in court.
Wettlauf Um Afrika
Wettlauf Um Afrika
Africa is known for its wildlife
But is it attracted or given birth?
When lots are drawn by foreigners
Who is it that decides our worth?
Your map of Africa is very nice
You're not interested in seeing mine
Take a victory lap and claim ownership
Frenchman, Arab, Englishman and kind
It is not that we were born without silver spoons
It is what was attracted by their glow
Brothers became masters and other slaves
Sometimes the Nile floods with bodies, don't you know?
The rubber man took my hands so I can't salute,
The civilizers left me barren and destitute
Across the gulf my sister was sold as a prostitute
They fight over who's evil was less absolute
What does your guilt even constitute?
Surely men who cherish their good repute
Do you even see me in your charities and institutes?
(Do you even see me in your charities and institutes?)
The desert winds move the sands
They cover what misery was built by hands
You might scramble for Africa
But is it you Africa wants?
Post script - not being neither African nor of any of the colonizing powers, the poem is really more about trying to embody something to understand it. The title, “Wettlauf Um Afrika,” is German for “The Scramble for Africa.” The reason why I decided to use the German title is as a reference to the Berlin conference. Initially this piece was going for my drawer but after being told it’s a strong one, I decided to post it here. Draw your own conclusions and by all means, ask.
Diplomacy - Persian Cats
I'm not a diplomat
I just lie a lot
I spoke the truth
But had to stop
Persian cats don't meow
They're censored very hard
They look but aren't seen
Their survival is a complex art
Persian cats don't hiss
They send missiles instead
And when they bite into your tuna
They'll bite it through proxy bread
Persian cats are not a monolith
And make no mistake
Simply because a cat is Persian
Does not a Persian cat make
And the Persian Cat sat across from the Israeli Cat,
Feeling he could take to no end
Really they are quite similar
In another world they might've been friends
Winston Loves Big Brother
A poem about 1984
Broken mind, seeing blind
There's not much I haven't left behind
Comrade O'Brian,
I apologize for the traitor I saw in my mind
Hard control by soft means
The leash is just what people need
And should you relent your grip
They'll beg to have it back it seems
-------
In my dream, where I am a man
I love Julia and no other
But as the digit I've become I must admit-
Winston Loves Big Brother
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We were always at war with Eurasia
A lengthy and bloody euthanasia
They want to take our unfreedoms, allegedly but incidentally-
We were always at war with East Asia
---------
"Freedom isn't free"
But contented for too long, I can't bother
in shame which long became pride I'll admit-
Winston Loves Big Brother
What is a man but... I would't know
Something which I did long but smother
I am but the symptom of his glory
Winston Loves Big Brother
