Church Hymns--by any Southern Poet

        So I say ‘a Virginia         in the Subway after

cause she didn’t         feel like makin anythin at home,

just had some sannich meat

tuhmaytahs

                 and breads                 anyways at the house,

I say,

                     or think ol’ Tommy      Mead taday

dropped his Bible                     in the pulpit

            askin for tithez

                                             o come all you

        ten puhcent and all,

 then shakin,

                  shakin his arm           sayin It’s numb!

until he falls        down next the purple IHS

                       screamin I-cain’t-see!,

                                           his fingers all shakin

tearin at the buttons of his blazer

 and cryin like he’s back

                       stubbin his toe on a bottom bunk board,

             his wife,

 Martha er name,

                         skinny diabetic legs chickenin to his side

 wi’ that big          hair helmet always

           smellin like airofsaul

 usherin’

                             “Keep it down Tom!”

Then the preacher     just sittin

     tappin his old finganail        against his chin,

                                                               ‘ose old

                                                lone yella finganails,

waitin until old Alva      and Andy

          done got up from the pew

rushin to his side

           Martha already chickened       over from beside the pianah

wi da hymn book still     iner hand.

I say,

wha you think bout that Virginia

and she dutn’t say nuthin but

look at me wi her face all screwed up.

I say,

           here’s old Tommy Mead

used to be in the war,

            been in the church for yeeahs and

he gets struck bline

the middle a church

falls down

and the preacher just gets

that old chicken take im out back in the social room

and wait on the amblance

then continue on wi the service

sayin its time to siehng

and pray and keep

ol’ Tom in our thoughts and prayers

      while he’s out back cryin and sayin

I’m bline!!

         while we can

still hear im over the pianah

and the And He Walks

with Me.

I say,

       that sure ain’t no Christian way

do things,

sit there siehngin

while a member of the flock

out back struck bline,

that preacher always

been somethin wron bout im

I say, somethin wron,

make us all sit outside

but nobaid wan be disrespectful an

get up the middle a the service.

Well Virginia put down her sannich

and look me in the face.

I see she been thinkin

bout what I been sayin

and she start askin me

why I thought that was wrong

              and I said

I just don’t

see why there’d be reason

make us stay outside like that and siehng

when there wouldn’t no reason a siehng,

                      specially then

and for a matter a fact

I told her then and there

I ain’t had no reason a siehng

em songs in ten years,

             I done lost my faith,

feelin like I’m gonna cry

thinkin bout Mary

been dead these ten years,

                       our daughter and her husband

car crash out on 85

and Virginia take my hand

and just look at me

         

and I feel like I’m bout

a cry,

but she say wi one of

those smiles made me love her fohty years ago

             wi the curls bout her fohhead,

                     

such pretty teeth,

she say,

What else there

for one ta siehng about?

Days a water

      exist

in yeeahs a drought.

She always knew how

quote the scripture

         and I just looked at er

been ten years and taday

            wi Tommy Mead,

a lone lone time,

days a water

I think,

and yes

been a lone lone time,

an always a drought,

so much can’t even

spray the flowerbeds.