I walked away from home so early

Set out across the nation wide

I found in sorrow life’s true measure

With just a thumb I hitched a ride

City parks with tramps and strangers

A welcome to a fire’s side

Lurking eyes just beyond the shadows

Swept away in realities tide

I met a welfare lady dancing

Around a bush to praise the sky

Her six kids had almost nothing

Yet bathed in love they smiled wide

She said she saw that I was hungry

And took me to her family’s home

She fed me love by the spoonful

It was like an amusement ride

The ganja gods their mist seductive

Lured me to a twist of fate

a monkey appeared on my shoulders

and always stayed right by my side

Illusions cast a strange new vision

A supple state of unawareness

Neon flowers and melting faces

A psilocybin and acid tide

The monkey used his hands as blinders

So lost became a natural state

Family was little more than a memory

yet hidden deep were seeds of strength

I met a man who promised pleasure

And money too it seemed a deal

Piercing my soul to bind my spirit

He carefully spread my defenses wide

Soon it seems my senses found me

And struggled hard to clear the fog

storms wreaked havoc and confusion

and when it cleared I still was lost

the man he said to seek redemption

to call on him when I was through

the monkey said he’d make it better

his claws dug in to stay and ride

Fears and frights soon came upon me

And secrets tore my soul to shreds

Yet I held tightly to the pieces

yearning for some daily bread

Staring out from behind the curtains

Paranoia held me in his arms

Assuring me that they were coming

And ever staying by my side

Somewhere inside a seed had sprouted

And for a moment the skies grew clear

A ray of love some how had found me

To warm my soul my mother’s touch

Strength grew fast in fertile soil

My will somehow had found it’s voice

reaching out I grasped for security

resisting hard the under tide

I pleaded for some help from Jesus

And demons came in robes for me

Openly they praised the glory

On the altar robes held open wide

Yet in the darkness of their secrets

They stole the very best from me

Without esteem and bound but anger

I vowed to let the monkey ride

I turned away from God and heaven

And danced among the living dead

Waiting for some insightful moment

And dying slowly no heart inside

Then came a voice that brought back anger

And a hand reached out from in the fog

It grabbed and grabbed ‘til it caught me

And pulled me from the relentless tide

There on the beach I found redemption

My eyes were finally open wide

The monkey left and found another

Because he always likes to ride

The storms were raging all around me

Yet my mind was clear on every side

I walked the beach and picked up morsels

Left behind by the raging tide

12/10/2003

Posted on 12/10/2003
Copyright © 2024 Brian Francis