Revelation 2:16

"Therefore, repent. If not, I will come to you soon and war against them with the sword of my mouth."

Revelation 2:16

It might take a lifetime
to learn the secrets of an empty moment.
That we could look at the clock and be Ok with 2:16 AM.
That we could battle depression without pills.
That we could bet on happiness and win.
That personal identity would not be over-rated.
That we could escape our thoughts and be intact.
That we could feel truly sorry for someone.
That we could feel truly sorry.
That we could survive without Liquid Crystal Display.
That we could see the world by seeing the world.
That we could learn to forgive fully without forgetting.
That we could understand perfection as self defeating.
That we could understand which drugs we need to give up.
That we could acknowledge the need for at least one drug.
That we could live our dreams and pay our bills.
That we could pay our bills using only money.
That progress did not always mean technology.
That the heart was beating analog not digital.
That we could love completely on one leg.
That we could love completely.

Copyright (c) 2010 by Vincent John Ancona

Aphorism

Close your eyes and start with black
Now, strip away the barriers, the dead zones
and catalogue each layer of humanity
Let your hands become outrageous flashbulbs--
isolating, capturing each psychic apparatus
every brilliant action or devastating effect
Look for dialogue in silence
Think short thoughts
Disappear with a trace
And by all means seek the meaning
behind every atom

Copyright (c) 2010 by Vincent John Ancona

Untitled Copyright (c) 2010 by Vincent John Ancona

you want
disease without suffering
cows without disease
milk without cows

trust us.
trust us.

you want
grey fabric walls
memos on stationary
carpal tunnel vision

trust us.
trust us.

you want
food grown in labs
people born in tubes
wars waged with casualties

trust us.
trust us.

you want
his heart to beat diamonds
her face to go down
it to be what’s in movies

trust us.
trust us.

you want
a president who cares about you
who worships your God
who lies but won't swear

trust us.
trust us.

you want
a mental bunk-bed
one for you
one for You.

trust us.
trust us.

Copyright © 2010 by Vincent John Ancona

Maybe If I Keep Reading

Maybe if I keep reading
I’ll become more and more like THEM!
I could use words such as
floccinaucinihilipilification
and feel like I’m really (no really!)
contributing something important to the world.

Maybe if I keep reading long enough
my brain will feel like an egg
that unwillingly erupts its yolk.
giving way to creative birth pangs
which sting like a wasp in fall
and cover my ivory skin
with that special slime only ugly truths
(and eggs) can leave behind.
Maybe if I keep reading
I can learn time management
so I can eat, drink, piss, shit
write and sleep all at the same time.

Maybe if I keep reading
I can learn to pray the gay away…
or maybe, just maybe, if I keep reading,
I’ll stop feeling like living is dying
like working is sleeping
and loving is lying.

Maybe if I keep reading
I’ll believe in Jesus or Buddha
Or maybe I can stop wondering why
I can’t covet my neighbor’s wife--
But what about her husband?

Maybe if I keep reading
I can quit smoking, quit drinking--
perhaps even stop feeling.
Maybe if I keep reading I can master
cunnilingus, fellatio and abstinence.
Maybe I can learn how to self help myself
or cook 30 minute meals
or do chemical peels…

Maybe if I keep reading I can
let poetry course through my fingers.
Maybe I can stop connecting
with bone and blood
and make contact instead with
heart and soul.

Maybe if I keep reading
I’ll see what it means to be empty
so that I can be whole.

Copyright © 2008 by Vincent John Ancona

I Have Learned

I Have Learned



I have learned
In this life
That greatness
Is a careless whisper away
And is found where you least
Expect it.

I have learned...

I have witnessed that true love
Should be experienced, not sought after.
Nor tempted through the wreckage of impatience
A black worm through the apple

I have seen...

I have felt that life is short
And must be cherished
That the clock stops for no one
Not even the planets
And that time presses forward.

I have understood...

I have noticed that an indigo dusk
Is not permanent
That all creation's wonders pass by
In the blink of an eye
That all men's struggles
Are not in vain.

I have remembered...

I have seen how small I am
And how great the Universe is
How the cosmos so briefly grace us
With its solar impotence
And how one person can change so much

I have struggled...

I believe that kindness is important
And is so frail and fleeting
I give freely of myself
To nurture the human soul
To count my blessings or sheep

I have believed...

I have strived in this life
To be humble and accept all praises
Great or small, to be glad for my fellow man
To not be dismayed by failure
But to rise up out of the ash

I have built...

I have seen it with my own two eyes
Life, Death and Re-Birth
I have seen terror, toil and tumult
I've seen the center crash
And the bodies remain whole

I have pressed on...

I have looked in the mirror
And seen disintegration
Paired with peace and understanding
I have been confused and confident
Ignorant and wise

I have risen...

I have imagined a better world
Where everyone is equal
And no one is treated cruelly
I have seen it perfectly in my minds eye
And know it can exist.

I have dreamed...

I have known terror and elation
Unrest and Peace
I have seen it all thrown away
And the pieces swept up,
Reassembled like some awful puzzle
I have seen where they go

I have learned...

Copyright (c) 2008 by Vincent J0hn Ancona