Introspective

A found poem by Laurie J. Kemp
Inspired by Natalie Merchant's album Retrospective


Who told you that nothing about you was alright?
How painful it must be to bruise so easily inside.
Hiding from the vicious world outside.

Have I been wise to shut my eyes and play alone?
No chaos, no frenzied shrieking crowd.
Have I been blind, have I been lost inside myself,
in my own mind?

I realized I compromised,
sacrificed far too much
for far too long.
Never again, not in this life.

Should I raise my face to the heavens above
and tell G-d with love, with patience, with faith.
First gently and sweetly keep me safe.
Lullaby me to sleep

Sweet flowers blossom in my smile.
Fate smiled and destiny laughed
Letter script in careful hand, hungry for the word,
finding sweet relief in knowing it won't be long

Starting out from here today
take one last look behind,
the worst of it has come and gone.
It's high time you decide in your own mind
Build a dream.

Don't disrespect yourself, don't lose your pride
I tell you life is sweet.
Look in the mirror and what does it show?
Breathing in, breathing out...
Look at you, you're beautiful.

Angel of Mercy (A found song lyrics poem)

I'm not sure if this poem works. My friend Helen challenged me to write a found poem from a favorite song and post it with the video of the original song. I have always loved James Taylor, his melodies and acoustic guitar, his warm smooth caramel voice, and his story telling.

Several years ago, I either heard an interview or read an article about his song "Frozen Man" from the New Moon Shine album. It's one of my favorite albums and this song is uniquely haunting. JT had read an article in National Geographic about a body that had been found buried in ice and therefore was relatively well preserved considering how long it had been there. I think it was this story. He wrote the song in first person from the perspective of the exhumed body. I liked the song first time I heard it, but once I knew the story behind it, I liked it even more.

Here is my found poem, all words and phrases from the lyrics of Frozen Man. I added nothing of my own, as tempting as it was. Below the poem you will find a video of a live performance of Frozen Man with a brief explanation from JT about the origin of the song.


Angel of Mercy

Lose
a little
life
with
every
breath

Say goodbye
to life on earth,
swallow me whole!

Shock to my body
Mercy from God
Next words spoken to me
Walk the world again

Angel of Mercy
at
the
foot
of
my
bed

Come around again

And the children
when they see me
cry.