Kill The Snake

Dealing with life can be a very overwhelming experience.

I am thinking I'll go out to the desert. Far away. Serene and silent. Maybe take a gun.

An eagle soars with the grace of saints, suddenly shooting down into the canyon to pluck a life from the river. Life and death displayed poetically.

I've seen with my own eyes the desperation of need across the globe, and still I find myself thinking only about one person selfishly.

What is wrong with me?

Caught inside the addictions of a society, beyond all reproach until my own intelligence dwindles to the size of a negative bank account. Am I choosing to suffer?

Why? Why would any life form choose to suffer?

Was the salmon suffering before the eagles claw took him?

Atrocities permeate our consciousness daily, and we never turn off the news. Is this the actual gun... Or just some lame excuse.

The crossroads exist in every town, sell yourself or stick around, just realize before you do, it's only your own devil inside of you:

Play your song all along, you decide if it's right or wrong, love outside and make it better... Love inside the trickster's the table setter.

We try to be like the eagle. Full of grace and choose our kill. Soaring above ever still. I am a desert snake.

Low. Belly scraping earth, slithering around in dust and dirt. Poor.

Will the world be a better place? Is weakness always disgrace? Or are some so overwhelmingly defeated they give freely... An offering to the survival of the fittest really.

I am thinking I'll go out to the desert. Far away. Serene and silent. Maybe take my camera.

Shoot the snake.

Todd R. Joslyn. 2015

Reviews

[dan]

You had me worried for a minute there, Todd. Mentioning taking a gun...talking about life and death. A camera is always a better vessel for shooting on a walk through desert flatlands. Can we not kill the snake? Can we instead kill the demons inhabiting said snake? I'm challenging you to write one of humility and love, introspection and curiosity, radiance instead of darkness. It's in you...go find it. Good luck. take care...dan

[modtoddinc]

And finally we have Kill the Snake. I am the snake... I was born in 1965, the year of the Snake. I this poem I am recognizing my state of depression and realizing I am the only one to really be able to do anything about it... I am fully aware of where the path leads, and even though circumstances have not improved, in fact they have gotten worse: I choose Life. My writing is always submerged in truth and I try very hard to write honestly. A few years ago my cousin, Brett, whom I idolized as a kid, did actually walk out into the desert and shoot himself. Tragically sad. (I wrote a poem, posted on this site, that was read at his funeral) I used to be a photographer, until my eyes and camera equipment started wearing out, but going out to the desert to "shoot" the snake with my camera is my testimony to life and perseverence. I will find my way somehow, someway, someday.

[AaronFreitas]

This is an awesome write with so many thoughts shared. I love the way you bring the circle of life into this write briefly with the eagle and the salmon. It seems that the way life is today is so vastly different than life was maybe 100 years ago or so. "Atrocities permeate our consciousness daily, and we never turn off the news. Is this the actual gun... Or just some lame excuse. " I love those lines... tells how we feed the addiction of needing to see worse and worse thats displayed daily on the news. This could be what poisons our minds, our hearts. Amazing write my friend... it is always a pleasure :)

[astraladvocate]

"I've seen with my own eyes the desperation of need across the globe, and still I find myself thinking only about one person selfishly." This resonates so well :) And I loved your desert snake metaphor. But why would you want to shoot the snake?

[ANTO]

I love the Jim Morrison-esque musings here Todd. My reiki practitioner used to tell me to not watch the news because it creates such negativity within us and she was probably right - as you are probably right about the news = the gun. But we cannot help ourselves and those who would manipulate us with the media are well aware of that and keep feeding us the fear with a spoon so big that it barely fits into our 'mouths' now and like starving hatchlings we cry mouth agape for more.

I like where your poem took me.