ODE TO THE HUMBLE-KING

Martin Luther King nominating Thich Nhat Hanh for the
Nobel Peace Prize.In the public domain.

By Stefan Schindler

Note from Kathie MM: Today, tragically, is the 50th anniversary   of the assassination of Reverend Martin Luther King Jr., whose courageous leadership on behalf of peace and social justice has been receiving renewed attention this year on this blog and elsewhere. Today, please immerse yourself in this new ode to the  King from Stefan Schindler.

                    ODE TO THE HUMBLE-KING

“Wealth, poverty, racism, and war. These four

always go together,” said Martin Luther King.

His words ring with urgency and truth,

as we applaud the awakening of youth

from the nightmare of parents in the voting booth

choosing more of the same: carnival of greed,

devoid of shame; goes by the name “land of the free,

home of the brave,” but is in fact Plato’s cave.

“He not busy being born is busy dying,” said Dylan.

And yet, “toy guns that spark” will never kill

the “flesh-colored Christ that glows in the dark”

who still teaches compassion. “There are no passengers

on spaceship earth,” said Buckminster Fuller.

“We are all members of the crew.” This is something

John and Robert Kennedy knew. John Lennon too.

Meanwhile, the dream … is not over. We continue to …

Imagine: a Peaceable Kingdom on earth, free of strife;

where music … is the medicine of life.

These are, indeed, “times that try men’s souls,”

Thomas Paine declared, not really all that long ago,

when the country was young, and sought to be free

from the oppressive grip of tyranny. And now it falls

upon you and me to keep the faith, shine the light;

keep the fires of peace and justice shining bright

for all to see; as Buddha did on Eagle’s Peak.

Yes, we seek: the triumph and the glory of The Good:

planetary peace at last, in a spirit of … universal …

brother-sisterhood. I believe we can; I believe we will;

inspired by the life of Martin Luther King, whose words

still sing, and legacy still … shines like the sun.

You may say I’m a dreamer, but I’m not the only one.

Spreading, now, the Golden Fleece upon the beach

that is the shore to the dream come true, we know who

carried the torch and lit The Way. Each day,

what a sight! Precious, with beauty and delight.

In the sacred hoop of the Peace Abbey School

of Life Experience, gathered in Unitarian ring,

we celebrate Gaia, Gandhi, Romero,

and remain inspired by … the spirit of

Martin Luther King.

 

Stefan Schindler; Peace Abbey Cottage Celebration of the Life and Legacy of  Martin Luther King; The Life Experience School; Millis, Massachusetts; April 4, 2018.

Stefan is co-founder of The National Registry for Conscientious Objection, a Woodrow Wilson Fellow, a recipient of The Boston Baha’i Peace Award, and a Trustee of The Life Experience School and Peace Abbey Foundation, Dr. Stefan Schindler received his Ph.D. in Philosophy from Boston College, worked one summer in a nature preserve, lived in a Zen temple for a year, did the pilot’s voice in a claymation video of St. Exupery’s The Little Prince, acted in “Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf,” and performed as a musical poet in Philadelphia, Boston, and New York City.  He also wrote The Peace Abbey Courage of Conscience Awards for Howard Zinn and John Lennon.  He is now semi-retired and living in Salem, Massachusetts. His books include The Tao of Socrates, America’s Indochina Holocaust, Discoursing with the Gods, and Space is Grace; his forthcoming book is Buddha’s Political Philosophy.

 

 

Remembering JFK: Voices from a Smoldering Grave

John Fitzgerald Kennedy, Official White House photo. In the public domain.

MEMORIAL PROSE POEM

 by Anthony J. Marsella

John Fitzgerald Kennedy  (May 29, 1917 – November 22, 1963), President of the United States of America

I.

I cannot rest,                                                                                   My spirit rages;                                                                      Incomplete truths, lies — remain.                                               My grave smolders!

 

I seek escape,                                                                                                                                    From casket, eternal flame, defamation,                                                                            Contrived by scrupulous minds,                                                                                                Penned by stained hands.

Conspiracy!                                                                                                                                             Protection for villains,                                                                                                                     Safety from condemnation.                                                                                                                    I was assassinated!

A grievous, immoral, illegal act!                                                                                          Complicit forces: Government, military, corporations, criminals!                                           No remorse, forced tears, false sympathies;                                                                               “Your Daddy was a great man, Caroline!”

Fear of contention:                                                                                                                             End wars, reduce military,                                                                                                            Prosecute criminals,                                                                                                                          Restore national identity!

Accept faults,                                                                                                                                           Confess errors,                                                                                                                              Compensate victims,                                                                                                                           On your knees, America!

Democracy disguised!                                                                                                                     Secret State, Shadow State, Deep State, No State;                                                                 Cabals, factions, sects, cliques, clans, tribes, Parties!                                                                     Plots, plans, intrigue – cowards –conspiracy!

II.

In death, I remain:                                                                                                                    Timeless beacon,                                                                                                                                      Truth image, of truth,                                                                                                                      Hope symbol!

Evil continues!                                                                                                                            Relishing roles,                                                                                                                               Celebrating deceit,                                                                                                                           Valorizing schemes.

Know this:                                                                                                                     From each grain of earthydust,                                                                                    I will continue to speak,                                                                                               Silence impossible!

 

 III. 

What madness possesses you?                                                                                                       What fury grips your mind?                                                                                                                What passions drive you,                                                                                                                 Justified betrayal!

You kill your own,                                                                                                                        Oblivious to consequence,                                                                                                     Hardened to suffering,                                                                                                                Grinning demon in morning mirror!

Patriot Act, DHS, NSA, FBI, CIA, DEA . . .                                                                          Acronyms cover vile purpose.                                                                                                         You crave dominion;                                                                                                                          My God, you are evil!

My assassination insufficient?                                                                                                    Family deaths: Brother? Son? Lovers?                                                                                         Each death whetting appetites,                                                                                                   Pleasuring for more?.

Plausible deniability!                                                                                                                            Cover: National Security!                                                                                                                    No fear! No constraint.                                                                                                                       No limit to menace.

IV.

Eisenhower saw, warned, escaped.                                                                                          Shocked by knowledge and participation,                                                                                      His image now safe!                                                                                                                           Kansas!

Johnson burdened by graves he dug!                                                                                         Carter repentant for Christian compromise . . .                                                                    Reagan, smiling, failing, vomiting.                                                                                            Nixon, mad with paranoia.

Clinton caught by semen splashes,                                                                                                     1. H. W. Bush enamored with elites, oligarchy, Skull & Bones;                                                   2. W. Bush, “You are with us, or against us.” He is both!                                                   Obama, election promises, lived lies!

These our leaders!                                                                                                                               Cry America! Shout enough!                                                                                                         They please:                                                                                                                                         War machines, coffin makers, gold collectors!

Libraries, shrines, sacred places to preserve names.                                                             Marble slabs inscribed words, images, reputations.                                                                 Keep alive presidential cults, designed to mollify,                                                                Penance for sin! Atonement for lies!

I claim no special sanction,                                                                                                        Beyond my mapped death!                                                                                                         Dismiss me if you will,                                                                                                                     Flee, if you wish, from hypocrisy!

Know I walked corridors of power,                                                                                             Know I stood amid whispered gatherings,                                                                                 Know I tolerated secrecy;                                                                                                                  For this, I suffer in death!

Mea culpa, mea culpa, mea máxima culpa.                                                                 “Oh my God, I am heartily sorry for having offended you . . . “                                                      I learned, too late, lessons of betrayal,                                                                                                 I learned, too late, trials of victimhood.

No longer! I speak now for those killed,                                                                                    Home and abroad, young and old,                                                                                             Across time and place.                                                                                                            Memories cannot be bought!

V.

Fascism thrives!                                                                                                                                Who won? Homeland, Fatherland, Empire, Kingdom, Amerika!                                         Uber Alles! Deaths in vain!                                                                                          Surveillance, archives, fusion centers!

 Drones, robots, androids!                                                                                         You defile warriors!                                                                                                   You dishonor soldiers.                                                                                               You glorify war, dismiss death!

I am cold in bone and body,                                                                                    Shriveled from age and decay,                                                                               Scattered dust on coffin floor,                                                                                 Guarded by impervious flames.

Like John’s Brown body,                                                                                                          I smolder in my grave,                                                                                                      When will it end?                                                                                                                     We are fodder!

 Words rise from flames:                                                                                                      You command, kill, destroy for naught;                                                                       Ask John Brown’s Body! “. . .                                                                                         Truth goes marching on!”

 

Anthony J. Marsella

November 22, 2017