different kinds of redemption

may there always be somewhere you can go to refresh the spirit

 

This town closes down at nine

So we sit on the curb

Drinking 7-11 beer.

Some b***h about work in the morning,

Others ramble on about the girl in art class,

A few say nothing at all

And puff cigarettes

In the warm summer air.

Gathering myself,

A drive to the country

Is the cure for any ailment

Real of Imaginary.

 

Jesus stands

At the fork in the road,

Arms spread open in acceptance,

Redemption in each hand.

Instead, I throw the car in reverse.

I can not look in the mirror.

Snake fangs slice my tires

Venom melts my wheels

And the future confronts me.

 

His heel crushes their skulls.

He grabs my ears

And there are only white shores.

My mouth tastes juicy

As I regurgitate my evil

In a puddle of putrid

Greens, Yellows, and Blacks.

 

A kindly man

Marked only by chains

And a bottle opener

Hung from his neck

Raises me from the dust.

He touches the fire in my skull

His hand cools down

The remaining demons

Howling inside my ribcage.

They twitch within my flesh

But for now, they sleep.