July 21, 2012
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ElectricPoetry: New poem sadly presented
“A Dark Night is Slowly Rising”
Poetry by Michael F. Nyiri
7/20/12 6:24am pdtAwaking to the morning
After a night of clear, bright dreams
We never know what to expect anymore
As Father Sun rises around the worldTerrible news instantaneously presented
As soon as we tap our touchscreens alight
Connected calamity indented
Terror happens right here in plain sightCan a day ever pass without strife?
Can a night soothe in safe slumber again?
Or did days and nights always bear burdens
Of bad news, bad taste, evil sin?Something is dreadfully wrong
Something so powerfullly strong
A strong wind is blowing
And no one is knowing
The terror is lasting how longControls and restraints not the answer
The righteous will pray to the sky
But the evil ingrained in our nature
Causes us to ask the eternal whyI shudder for humanity again
To the Universal Consciousness I pray
The day’s just beginning for this simple soul
But it’s a mystery and common sense may strayIf we awake, we are safe so it seems,
We breathe, perhaps a sigh,
As we cry, and others die
Terror lurks in both shadows and light
And it hurts as it screams,
As calamity sets in it’s sightThe evil in our nature turns the common
insane
The quiet kids and the bullied
The intelligent and the sullied
Has it always been like this?
Perhaps it has.
Instant news cycles compound
terror’s message,
And that message is loud and clear.
What do we as a society do here?And are we a society,
Or a bunch of conflicted souls without direction
Or somebody to listen to our problems?Evil begins as misdirection, misapprehension
Mistakes of mammoth proportions
And grief stricken collateral residueOnce the trigger is pulled
Once the mind sheds all common sense
Once the other voices start to babble
All is lost for those involved
(And oftentimes the victims are innocent)The smoke clears
As it always does
And we open the door and begin the day
And as always for humanity I pray
BEHIND THE POETRY: It’s the start of Ramadan, Islam’s holy month, and somehow, because I am a student of world culture and a news junkie, I somehow suspected to be reading stories in the news this morning about strife and terror. For instance, there were bombings in Thailand. This kind of news upsets me greatly, but it seems I’ve been reading this kind of news for a long time. Another story completely knocked me off guard. Yet another lone shooter (in Colorado, a state that never seems to get a break, it’s the state where Columbine High is located) went on the rampage last night, as I was safe in bed, opening fire in a crowded theater in the town of Aurora showing a midnight showing of the new Batman film, titled “The Dark Knight Rises” (hence the title of my poem).
My heart sinks. My life is full and wonderful, but it can get cut down at any moment by the terror of evil. Like any other. My prayers are directed toward the innocent as always, in harm’s way whether they know it or not. My prayers are also directed to the poor lost souls who are triggered somehow by something so terrible that they feel they have to perpetrate such evil. I don’t believe the individual souls are inherently evil. I don’t believe Satan is wispering in their ear. Humanity is inherently evil. Obviously our spiritual leanings and common sense don’t seem to help. We are reduced to tribal skirmishes, and acts of instant terror are abounding.
As I have written so much that I could possibly just copy/paste the phrase into my entry. I don’t know the answers, but I think endlessly about the questions.
It’s a beautiful day here in sunny California, but my heart is as dark as the night that rose in a darkened Colorado theater last night. 12 people were murdered and 50 injured by the 24 year old shooter, who is currently in custody. On the Yahoo posting of the story (to which I link above) at least I didn’t see any snarky comments like usual (To tell the truth I didn’t look too closely, cause I DIDN’T want to see the usual terrible jokey comment strings I usually see on Yahoo stories.) One commenter did remark that if “it were legal to carry our guns, someone in the theater would have put a cap in this guy’s a**” or words to that effect. This disturbs me too of course. When Wyatt Earp was sheriff of Tombstone (which was in Arizona, not Colorado, but both states qualify as the (wild) “West” he collected the firearms of all those who entered the town.
Michael F. Nyiri, poet, philosopher, fool
Originally posted July 20, 2012 7:11 AM
Comments (5)
love the poem very deep and fantastic
i ave kept u in firends list as want to keep reading your peoms if u want to be on my firends list let me know as im on private funtion
Well done Michael.
As to the heartbreak in Colorado….it just never ends. You and I have seen it over and over again during the last forty years or so, and of course, any child’s life taken is a scar on all our hearts. Well written my friend….Charlie
Wow, Michael. That is a very powerful, evocative poem, especially relating to the horrible event in Colorado on 20th. Even before, I read your text following the poem, I made the connection. I posted something about it today (Saturday), but had a hard time finding words. The frequency and repetition of violent events as we’ve learned about in this year and past ones is beyond comprehension for me. ~~Blessings ‘n Cheers
A poignant telling of the uncertainty of our times. These senseless things seem to happen more often. It’s heartbreaking. peace always
Oh shit brugh, you is one deep dude…you made a nigga tear up.
Go on wif yours, not too many “real” ass dudes left speaking the truth on Xanka.
Mostly some bullshit ass hoe shit.
But you is real, big homie.
Imma subscribe to this site.
You touched a nigga’s heart.
peace