Canto II

Zephyrs and Hot Air

c. 2019, Olan L. Smith

Hence, I shall whisper words in spiritual force

Upon the zephyrs of my wing-ed muse, all creation

Stands still in the wake of the gods of heaven.

I will fight to my last breath to know my life, until

You take its celebrations away, and I but a blank slate

To write upon once more. I am sad, and I am hurt of the

Wickedness of lost times, but alas, dear Lord, I am at

Your whim. Oh, holy guardian angel, the one I know

So well, you who woke me from slumber to find myself.

You, above all creatures of the divine, keep account of

Days, of my legacy across this globe. You, dear Alinda, gave

Me hope where there was only emptiness, a directionless

Beacons competing with the sun. You showed me that in

Nook of life; the soul is brightest. You wrote me wisdom

That far exceeds all life. You taught me, listen to the living

Bards of this time, and from the graves, those who still

Speak to the listeners, "Stand up and show yourself; show

Your talents before all. The time is ripe; the berry succulent

And tasty. Eat, for eternity begins now!" Read the poets

That live and breathe! Consider their virtues, for they

Will not pass this way again. Read, also, the words of folklore

And understand they were you, in times before, writing to you

In the present, and in far future. Truth-is-truth in any time,

Justice-is-justice in any realm; it is the welder of power

Whose ax beheads the just and unjust, at his whim? Sulfur rain

Knows no right. Will the Naked King rescue you in this hour?

He sits in Washington with no brain to sneeze. But know

The King-of-Kings is not far away. He will lead you to righteousness,

Know the pits of hell have no end and no beginning, and once

Loosed upon the surface of Earth, the end is not far from sight.

The Kings and emperors, the knights of old, the mighty power

Of the Earth will not save what is perishable! Will the sun stop shining,

Because the Naked King so deems? Nay! Only the angels see all,

And only the gods of the heavens know the future. Embrace what

You live in a world upside down, where everything is not as it

Should be. The path is wide that leads to the inferno. They're all

Burnt to ashes, even the soul will not survive its furor. What must

Be achieved to right the wrong, restore justice, and bring the Devil

To his knee. The time is now for the written word to be heard; bards

Must receive, and voices of the grave will turn the tide.

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