for Stretch a.k.a. Randy Walker
Recall our young dead. The Fall
Visits us like a sickness,
Blood dying beneath more blood,
All of us waiting for shawls
Of light to cover the mud-
Rich earth, wet from rain, graves slick-
Ened. This is not about end-
Ings, but the style a death brings
Forth in a song. On the 4th
Time I listened to Pac rhyme,
I watched his immobile eye
Cast into darkness. A sad
Quiet. Why disturb silent
Air with a Prince’s hum, heir
To slaves whom were the heirs to
Kings, whom were slaves to something.
There’s no world for our Kings. There
Are just those who rule them. Carve
My name in a stone’s flesh, lie
And give me reasons to stand
Above the dirt. Tell me, love,
What is it that makes you shut
Out the noise for more noise? Shout
your god’s name. He begs for more
Songs. I know he longs to long
For you. I know he longs for
Longer times to long longer.