Compass

Have you seen yourself in a mirror
lately?
not hurriedly
running after yet one more penny
not impatiently
covering the wrinkles of your car crash ego
and accident prone self-esteem
I mean patiently
sitting down, staring in the mirror
staring at yourself
until it starts to talk.


Have you ridden the train to Real
and walked to Wirikuta?
Have you tasted the bare feet of the morgue?
the death dirt taste of the peyote
cold and watery, making you vomit
opening your eyes to it all


Have you tasted the bitter sweet dew of the morning
in the honey soaked mushroom
blackened with psilocybin
and seen the World in full color
to feel the Earth breathe?


Did you see them dancing in circles?
did you clap your hands in the Ciranda?
and did you see her body shaking
completely possessed?
You didn't?
You've never crossed that parallel
you've never seen an abnormality
or experienced, first hand
an alternate reality.


But you read it in a book
and you come to tell me about it
the broken telephone story
the moral and the right and wrong
stupidity without inquisition
repetitiveness without reason
everyone is doing it
while I've tasted the bitter earth
and seen stars shift