LISTEN

Listen to me now and heed my voice;
I am a madman, alone, screaming in the wilderness,
but listen now.

Listen to me now, and if I say
that black is black, and white is white, and in between lies gray,
I have no choice.

Does a madman choose his words? They come to him,
the moon’s illuminations, intimations of the wind,
and he must speak.

But listen to me now, and if you hear
the tolling of the judgment bell, and if its tone is clear,
then do not tarry,

but listen, or cut off your ears, for I Am weary.

Reviews

[John the Baptist]

The capitalized I Am in the last line indicates the speaker is divine. The previous verse mentions a judgment bell, so we must be hearing the angry voice of God. Seems as though He may be going to break bad, and soon. Listen.

[Michael R. Burch]

The speaker admits that he's mad, so it's up to the reader how to take the poem. Some of the biblical prophets were considered to be mad, including John the Baptist. ;-)

[John the Baptist]

Eat a few wild locusts and suddenly they want to commit you. There is no justice.

[Michael R. Burch]

So true! There has never been justice for prophets or poets.