tread marks and dead rabbits

I pop my ride into first gear
and peel out into the woods,
raising dust into the air
the rabbits have no chance
not fast enough, dead rabbits lie in my tracks
I leave tread marks on obscure paths
a buffet for animals who normally hunt these rabbits
today, the work has been done for them
by my 4-wheel drive machine
with enough horsepower to equip an entire Roman Army
and of course luxury leather
damn that shit is comfortable
to sit on and ride through the woods on
and leave dead rabbits in my tread marks on
while listening to Rage Against The Machine on.

hope, eventually

tick tock
the bombs drop
blood spills, oil fills
wells and pipes
women cry
men scream
children dream
tick tock
round the clock
guns and bombs
empty palms
end in sight
nowhere near
in the streets
death and fear
tick tock
Middle East
freedom fighter
terrorist
CNN
al-Jazeera
criminal, or people’s hero?
all day, every day
war that never goes away

tick tock
losing hope
tick tock
growing dope
tick tock
Uncle Sam and Taliban
leaving bodies in the sand
all year, every year
on the ground and in the air
in the cities, on the streets
hardly any food to eat
peace outside
fantasy
peace someday
or anarchy?
people pray and people hope
but their hopes
hang from a rope
minutes hours days and weeks
tick tock into centuries
my one hope is to be wrong,
to see hope grow wide and strong
only then can this war end
only then can these scars mend
until then, the hope for peace
hides within deep enemies
they are one day bound to see
hope ends wars, eventually.

[photo lifted from scrapetv.com]

Layers Part 2 (Grand Canyon)

Somewhere in the distance, the spirit of a Navajo chief sings a war cry.
His face shows self-assurance and strength
"We will defeat these poisonous visitors" he says to his flock
But in his heart, there are layers of questions and doubt
"I love you with all my heart and I will die for you and our land" he says to his wife on the night prior to his last battle.
He never says good-bye, but she understands.
Somewhere, between the layers of the Grand Canyon, his spirit watches the river stream carve deeper into the Earth, and smiles.
"They could take my life and extinguish my people" he whispers into my ear, "But they could never take me from my land."

Layers Part 1 (Jerusalem)

beneath shawarma stands with armies of people lined up for a taste, there are streets replaced by new civilizations
the romans had it all until they got swarmed and saw their churches reformed into mosques
after dark, ghosts rise from between the layers of Jerusalem, which one by one reveal traces of ancient places
bricks remain from walls while the temples they were built to protect are long gone,
conquered and rebuilt into the image of the new king
whether it's caesar or skeikh, they all wanted a piece of this place.
so they came and went
leaving eternal footprints in the sand to remind us they were here
between the layers of Jerusalem
they were here then like we are here now,
and one thousand years from now others will come here to see the layers we built
and the ancient graffiti we left in the old city of Jerusalem.