The following three poems
are from Scot Kaeff's
Tripping Darkly:
The
Drive
Sweet touches
of summer's wane
Wafting through my open
window, the
Possibility of rain,
though it's a clear
Night.
Freshly cut grass.
Cooling asphalt.
Italian food from a
nearby eatery.
I'm listening to Phil
Cody, trying to
Sing along and wondering
about what
Other people sing along
to when they're
Driving for absolutely
no reason.
I don't think anybody's
blues are that
Far apart today.
We're all sitting at the
Same red lights in so
many ways.
Green light, shadows
across the
Dashboard, yellow signs
reflecting
Headlights.
I-75, 85 MPH, drive like
ya got one or get
Out of the way.
The speed drives me;
I just push the pedal.
Phil Cody's still in
my tape deck doing his
Version of The Clash's
"Straight To Hell"
...and I'm singing along
as best I can.
- Scot N. Kaeff
(c) 1997
Check out Phil Cody at http://www.philcody.com
Tripping
Darkly Part IV
(catharsis)
A wish
is wasted if all you give is the words.
Nothing
comes without pain and anguish.
Nothing
is worth waiting for if you can work
And take
it.
A stuttered
step and a limping speech,
A muttered
breath and a whispering glance,
A stylish
threat and a shouted motive,
A working
vacation and a timely death.
We dance,
we shout and we sing and seldom
Do we
ever think about a reason.
We waltz
and swing and move to the rhythm
Of our
blind faith and belief that
The road
ahead is smooth and the bridge over
The river
is steady, time-tested and
Not still
under repair.
Knowledge
is pain, seeing through a lie
And knowing
those uneven parts of the road.
Trust that
the road to salvation is always
A mess
of orange barrels and long delays...
Know your
map well and drive like ya got one.
Love.
Faith.
Hope.
- Scot
N. Kaeff
(c) 1997
Burdened
Looking
forward by looking back at others,
Treading
a path in the already worn snow
By which
salvation is only dreamt of...
And held as dearly as a newborn child.
Dropping
the casualties along the way,
Weighed
down by lost horizons of sun
And forgotten
loves that made the days
Bearable, sweet and luminous.
My memories
will always haunt what I
see ahead.
My heartbreak
will always burn beneath
the scars I wear.
My life
will always be burdened by
yesterday.
- Scot
N. Kaeff
(c) 1997