Tales From Café Apollinaire
Variations on Distilled Dreams
Part IX- Ancient Sage
the Ancient Sage
reads poetry to the converted
at the Café Apollinaire and other
dimly-lit smokey cafés
wears a prayer shawl
thumbs his rosary beads
meditates on a Zen Koan
cries out " Oh Jerusalem"
sings a couple of verses
of the wild man William Blake
tries to explain the three fold
and four fold visions of poetry
wears clothes from Tibet
dreams of Nepal
carries a photo of the Dali Lama
and the Pope shaking hands
and one of the Sacred Heart
places crucifixes around his room
chanting facing Mecca
seven times a day
refuses to drink wine
refuses to eat pork or beef
prays to the Ravens in the tree
outside his window
prays to Krishna and Vishnu
and Shiva and Brahma
asks the Buddha for a sign
prays to Gloosecap and Manitou
and the Sacred Buffalo
burns incense and sweet grass
fills his room with the statues
of Gods and Demons
hoping for inspiration
to keep the world at bay
waits to be transported
in a trance in a state of Grace
to Golgotha to Mount Sinai
in Elijah's chariot of fire
to Mount Olympus
to Nirvana or Shangri-la
to paradise or Valhalla
he must be sure
he must be certain
so he covers all his bases
or maybe he'll get to go
on the package tour
to visit all the lands of the dead -
the ancient sage says
the world is filled with wolves
hungry about to devour us
at any moment
demons of all sorts
dance about us
invisible taunting us
waiting for us
to make one false move
then to the lower realms
of Hades or Hell or the Isle of the dead
we will descend
or be reborn to suffer even more
or just to relive it all over again
and so he hides in his room
and in his books in his own head dreaming
having visions of a dying world -
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