The Allure of a Summer Evening // Sample Chapter

The Allure of a Summer Evening by Ashlee Craft - Cover

A Lie Cannot Live in the Starless Midnight, Part I

a lie cannot live in the starless midnight –

which plagues humanity in the darkened crevice hate hate hate darkened alleyways at midnight where soap operatic devices play out on sheets of cardboard caught by the wind & thrown under the tires of a passing vehicle remote & confined & chained away

which hides within the folds of emotions which nobody can bear to look into the mirrors of the changing tides within the brick & mortar subdivisions in the economic train wreck down the line & out the door just as the big boss screams “You’re Fired!” & a mistaken horn blows into the air as the farmer’s market crashes

which removes the common need for good white the clear pure depths of a baby’s soul & teaches them that it’s a dog-eat-dog world & they better be careful & not trust anybody & you can never really be happy because there’s someone out there who’s less fortunate than you / but in truth unless you learn those things aren’t true & you can be happy, you can’t make anybody else feel the same way

which takes our children & puts the guns in the hand & teaches them to kill & that they must keep up with narrow minded escapades of falsetto wisdom & remote lessons hidden in the brainwashing stations on parole & in jail

which steps onto the platform & fires the winner’s shotgun / I read beautiful poetry on the subways just to hear the words echo without sunlight & create sunlight for themselves to be illuminated with

do not be fooled into thinking that love is blind & that you are bound from loving your brothers & your sisters / taxi cabs flit between the buildings beating wings of iron bars & steely teeth waiting to grab you up & put you back in place when you’re trying to get away from

I stood with my hands in my pockets praying for wisdom & holding onto a plastic ticket up against a brick wall as steam from the buildings & the cars in the street mingled with the cool night air / I looked out expectantly into the city jungle jungle of people where everybody was wandering around aimless & unsure of their destinies

moving from the brick wall I stepped off the curb & quietly crossed the street / thoughts crossed my mind I realized I didn’t know where I was going either / fear crept in where was I going where was I go what was I do why was I even standing here what was the meaning to it all / a billboard selling some kind of masking paint lit up sinister upon the horizon / the cars around be honked & buzzed senses on full alert but not knowing anything

I stood confused amidst utter chaos / the cool night air wrapped around me like a blanket & I took a breath of fresh fresh air breathing / breathing / my soul breathed but still I didn’t know which direction to take which street was safe which street I should step onto

breathing…movies playing out in silhouettes across the bricks & garnered thru the mist on the horizon, dancing in the streets without name without a game & without fame / I noticed in the dusk a singular soul stampeding across the street & flinging the shopping bags into the sewer sewer sewer startling the sleeping nun sitting on the sidewalk holding her face in her hands removing the bad habit she once had & letting her hair hang free

the dusk was surprising & sweet & seemingly profound & misunderstood in the misty crevices of the tortured night & like sweet success startled when found under the smooth silken stone in the middle of the forest / the glare of the streetlamp reflected from the tops of the buildings where illuminating the lovers, were like candles floating near the lost ship at sea in the ocean / standing standing alone but connected

a helpless mother clasped the hands of two children while several more were toted behind her not having enough money to take the taxi I noticed the children lagged behind in the street & their mother called them back to return to their safe home / I watched as they entered their tiny apartment complex building blocks strewn in the front yard & I smiled they were home safe / the dark loomed like a monster in the streets but I was not afraid

peeking around the corner I saw a man with one leg limping thru the street rhythmically stumbling over the boardwalk steps on the sidewalk & a tear fell from his eye

the tear landed on the pavement & exploded outwards in the twilight like a star shattering into the night / I saw a thousand crystals shatter many people died unjustly at that very moment & a chill of sorrow passed thru me & like lightning into the sidewalk jolting me awake / the sleeping bum five feet from me abruptly awoke as if struck by lighting lightning passing from me & clearing away his sleep laden visions & he asked me if I could spare a penny / I saw pure humanity & a lost soul in front of me pure pure pure & I emptied my shopping bags into his lap telling him to take it all he needed it more than me

his smile illuminated the city

my heart pounded in my throat & beat with the vibes of HUMANITY as a cloud passed thru the misty eyed buildings growing grey & stony towards the storming skyscrapers tall tall tall tall / soul of the city

peering thru the darkness I could not make my name out or see my face in the crowd of cowardly & desperate strangers I’d always dreamed of being a part of until I saw who they really were the lost souls lost souls lost souls & knew it wasn’t the place for me / they stood huddled in the darkness in the middle of the business street where cars passed by a million miles per hour drunken & not looking & risked their lives to stand there & try to be part of the designated group / I stood under the street light illuminated around the edges & behind a thick but invisible barrier which protected me from the emotionless vehicles / steely teeth & fear invoked in the boom-box-rattle-rattle

there was no place for me against the rough & tumble beat up beat down dead lonesome empty streets / lost souls filed out from the bars & gambling places while others in their pain & moaning about the state of the wall blocking their path thru the streets stumbled & fell / people grabbing onto the bricks of the buildings as the sidewalks around them fall fall fall down into the sewers & they do everything they can to reach away from the bottle which threatened to slowly blind them but still, they take what they can get / those who steal from the pockets of the innocent passerby & then stand alone crying over the troubles & hurt pain pain pain piano wood smashed crushed under the feeling of the passing truck whizzing thru the tarry sandpits, those who know nothing but the thievery & do nothing to stop the demolishment of most of their souls but still a tiny speak grain of sand in the middle of the ocean fed depths remains & lives / but like a flower must be nurtured before it is TOO LATE / I could do nothing to help these lost souls if I too were one of them / a white dove wearing the sign of Pieces walked ahead of me & somehow guided me towards a golden storefront from where a street front harmonica player played from an amplified cardboard box / tune floated magically & somehow into my ears where it traveled the English Channels & hit the core of my emotions like a ship gently reaching land after impossible journey in my outer visions which haunted me in my dreams

I stepped into a coffee stop seeking something profound it was midnight almost & streets were still so dark even after I stood in the spotlight & I needed to be somewhere but where should I go I wandered thru the night

the musician took the stage & strumming his guitar recited the sacred poetry my ears came alive & time froze / I heard everything in his song – love hope poetry music life death forgiveness joy sorrow desolation loneliness darkness light fraud lies irony freedom peace a spiritual experience to say the least & everything seemed light I saw an eternity which I’d been seeking for so long but never found, never grasped gently in my hands & held to my face gently so gently never did I feel more connected & I’d found a friend / somebody finally really understood me the depths & caverns of my emotions & I was in love at the deepest level who I could relate to more than anybody I’d ever noticed & was sure I would never find somebody more my twin / I listened with my soul the circle was completed as I drummed the rhythm on the underside of the ebony table before me / my eyes noticed it was daylight out & my feet knew where I had to go suddenly I knew where my destiny laid I walked from the coffee stop & picked up the sacred guitar sitting in the golden case outside the door, which waiting for me all along I just never saw it / poetry came alive thirty-first day of the fifth month / my eyes were awake my mind was awake my emotions were awake a new world was awake / I was destined to discover myself as I watched my soul being born again / I strummed the guitar with the rhythm & beating of the heart in my chest & suddenly everything was profound & possible

raise me up raise me up raise me up raise me up raise me up raise me up

Drinking Up Silver Silence

I sat in the silver silence & ignored the fellow man standing reprimanding on the rum jug simplicity of ruthless anger the jug hits the wall & shattered into a hundred stars which reflect the moonlight in the brown borrowed tavern / the roasted smell of summer time duties & hollowed wardrobes forgotten & financed & held at arms length in front of the poetic supposition & the supplemental watershed greatness & TORNADO alleyways & gemstone sitting on the glass eyed steps of the coliseum beneath the towers & the helpless Rembrandt painting being carried away by the hawks / the flying sound in the forgotten alleyway paves forth the removal of the simple human qualities & brings in new lies deceptive dirty dangerous darkened / the glass shovel sands beneath the dark eyed monk at dawn in the college ground castles forthcoming thru the evening windmill yelling into the wind to no avail greatly stopped up by the supple & stumped disease of LIES & trapped beneath the WINDOWSILLS hidden in marigold penny boxes & piggy banks all over the USA

plasticized lottery yoyo in the haiku waters under the desolate bridge jumpers prepare for suicide & trade quarters with ghosts & embarrass the directing wind with the scent of melted sunshine sifting thru the deepened waters & the yellow alleyway sunrise bright & naked / jaunt thru the flowers & pledge & parade thru the park carrying your protest posters & stomping on the holiday wind speed ignominy & property of the gifted distance / the runner stands in silhouette outlined in the rising sun & runs thru the rampant sprinklers as the farmers emerge from their burrows & crouch along the pansies to keep out of the light / I stood at attention & removed the lost city from Sicily’s depths.

trials & tribulations laid out on brick stone hard-to-see nonsense carried out in the dead of the night with only the white moon hiding in the sky / jumping thru the water stream in the household of wisdom / trespassing thru the showers & under the turned tables

far out wonder greatness yodeling down mountain top streams under the dreary design of emperor tornado trash can triumphs & totaling the damage with a silver pen with golden ink on the side of the building / graffiti & groaning down the building’s ledge under cigarette smoke halo golden city golden bridge mistaken hand & warranting the stream down stream meaningless mess / several merchants & mistaken mailmen fraternize against the breeze as truck stop warrior jumps out & throws the golden flame into the sea & drives off into the sunset / hurried heroes rush forward & realize they are not saving they are being saved / the drama unfolds as suddenly the protester silences them all when he says the truth & everybody follows him & listens to what is really happening in the forest / Northwestern loggers fighting & rumbling down hills on bulldozers & then reconciling in the middle of it all – wind up women & traversing tramps remodel LOVE & silence the HATE in the mindless harrowing adventurer’s joke stand / tv remote 100 things in a book 200 things left behind & 1,000 mistakes laid out on golden paper exploded & smuggled into starry cosmos extraordinaire / newspaper newscaster secrets on the golden idol’s demise worthless paper worthless paper worthless paper worthless papered sunset pampering the pretty pretense perfect falsity in golden gown revealing

 

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