FAIRY TALES

Sooner or later
I will have seen it all.
Dirty smoke fills the air and
I can't stop dreaming about
Pain and pleasure.
I'd like to know why
Only the pleasure matters. 

Snow White
Asks me to go home.
Still, death is always possible
And it is too late to stop her report to
The executioner.
The air on this summer night sears my throat and
The choir members who can't stand music
Ask me to join them.
They read their poetry aloud until I collapse and
Beg "no more." 

The fanatics wearing dark roots in their
Brassy hair
Don't care about me.
They volunteer for medical experiments
And gently suggest that I'm mistaken
About their addictions.
The mystery guest removes his blindfold
But this is not the dress rehearsal. 

The Sisters of Mercy
Have disgusting personal habits, my dear,
They are exactly what they seem--
The three little pigs and they
Wear their skin like silk.
They live in dark caves in the mountains.
Be relieved that you only did it for the money
Since I did it for the pain as well.
Listen to the bedsprings creak
And realize how much we want each other--
We have nothing to prove--
We need each other more than ever.
Learn to love your body gently, if you can.
 
And I will follow you since I am
Hidden by the night and
I'm afraid I like the
Pain and suffering. 

Birds have eaten all the bread crumbs and
The ballerinas with blue eyes
Get quieter every year.
They offer to leave you alone
Or invite you to drop dead.
So -- the road looks treacherous.
Be relieved to find
That occasionally you still have desire
As the beating of the drums grows faster and
The warnings of the newspaper editors
Spin into view. 

Look what winter has done to your daisies!
At sunset I can sing songs to my father,
Clench my teeth and keep silent
And pretend I have not seen what I have seen.
I used to be an expert on
The facts in the case
But no more.
And now I know there's no such thing as
Heaven or Hell
And that I paint my dreams in murals or in poems.
That is the only way I can tell about
Snakes and snails.
Surely you might need to know why
Since only you thought it was the dress rehearsal.
Brush away my tears.
At times like these
Bits of human flesh
Seem extremely important
Look into my face and tell the time.
Help me remember my name and
Write that name in flowers
As silently as the descent of a star
Before the final performance
And last curtain call.