The exemplary display of virtue's joys, the respect
For the divine; and the tools we exercise in our daily
Tasks, you see, all reflect the codes, the "asking," the
Tradition, that will other than our own; that silent
Companion of thought, whose intrusion means trouble
For stable minds, and pushes the edgy fellows toward
Abandonment of sense; where connections from our
Savage forebears is much more evident; it's showing in
Primeval scorn for current practices; that sneer of
Cold contempt; that ferocious disdain for wisdom's
Advice; to spark the snarling primitive; to disconnect
That puerile sense of civic jurisdiction; and look, to
View as the beast what presents itself, only as
Prey; the need prevails; a murderous attack does
Subdue, and mercy is only the memory of corrupt
Evolution; there is that joy, I admit, in throwing
All caution to the winds, to feel free, no longer, see,
Tied to inhibitions; the shades, the disguises, the
Shallow pretense of civilized mentality. It is death, too,
In another form; it arrives like the thunder from
Heaven's distant skies; it rumbles, it shakes to the
Very core; it is the carrion, (what we are) waiting
For that descent that envelopes all consciousness. That
Carries the "soul," on its fateful journey, and ends
In the abyss. The edges surround us; we grasp
Them but inevitably, we slide to our doom, the
Cries of pain resounding throughout all of time; we
Hear the ancient echoes: they warn us, remember?
Medium: oil on Masonite Title: St. Pierre, Avignon Size: 30" x 24"
excerpt from Modern Odyssey, Journey of the Mind