THE CURE by KLAUS J. GERKEN I The dream was not the dream I'd hoped It was, but vaguely of another hope That came upon me unprepared; As when the shrouded fog, dispersed, Unveils amazement how the past Disrobes to form the future. We Can only cope with what we know... The unknown spreads its wings upon The winds, to sparkle, glaze, adorn The ugly into splendid stars That robe the fear of God away For us: - yet there we are, and almost, There we stand upon the edge Of time itself, so utterly confused, Abused by what we should accept, But now reject, collects us in- to what we are become: the dream, The hope, the fading of A bold unknown... 18 April 86 II I came upon, what gain! what truth! What vast incredible profundity! A Rose that was so beautiful, It touched my life immeasurably! It gathered truth into a ball Of small infinity: recall The hope one has when death draws near? An understanding naught can fear... An essence of indelible Experiences, that time is young Compared to what lies touched Beneath the surface of this viable Component, sometimes hidden so aloft, That few have touched it. I have touched! 18 April 86 III Falling falling falling This abyss is appalling Darkness through a tunnel Sifting through a funnel Voices out of nowhere Try to guide us hither And thither Deep through the unknown Light we do not own Cast aside the thunder Cast away the rain (This is what we're under Terror, death and pain) Tear these chains asunder Here we must remain. 22 April 86 IV It's not that I am one year older; But one more year of life that I have won. 22 April 86 V The truth does not develop life, Life develops truth. And truth does not develop dreams As age grows out of youth. It's Time, presaging everything That shadows our reprieve. We falter. If we win at all, We bow to disbelief. The wind disperses all our truths As lies become the norm, To weather when the times get rough The quiet of the storm... It holds us to the quick and stabs Us with our own...unborn burden. 24 April 86 VI No total commitment Should tear down the flag No country united Should ever renege No journey that's started Should ever be left To sailors who falter When they are bereft No enemy lurking Should cut them in half We fight to the finish A sacrificed calf A total commitment To god or to man Should set up the freedom That chains could not ban A prisoner always A sigh of relief With nothing at stake There can be no grief So come all you masters Of futures, address The present commitment And make it a test Of what we've accepted To be what we've been. To be what we want to Is always the dream. So come all you faithful Who've taken a stand To find what you're after Your own promised land. 25 April 86 VII I would not presume to know Presuming that I do not know The knowledge that is there to gain Hidden in the mind of God Consumed in time and fear And ravaged by it's own creation Through the hidden ecstasies That rage through human fantasies. So, this and that, and what is next And what is written in the holy text We hardly understand the more For having read - I guess the core Of what we know or mean to know is not The obvious but something much more real More obvious than obvious itself Life immersed in living - and to be Made aware of what it hold... The possibilities unfold... 25/04/86 VIII What is Zen? Accept and have no doubts. 3/09/93 (Written in the margin) IX When late at night it comes to pass That something's good but cannot last Like beams of moonlight polarized Into the silver shadow, hide Away your fear, the time has come To resurrect the unicorn Through mythical stability Illumed by a fantasy... Come! A voice that calls is naught What we have wanted or have sought; It hangs upon the nail of time Suspended like a falling star Alone, resplendent in the sky Of darkness overwhelmingly. 26/04/86 X Collusion in excelsior Glory to the high Famous and the mighty Lie - Off the side to centre Adam tempted Eve Naked, bestial, sighing For the Lord's reprieve - Scavenging for their supper In an arid land Why does God not lend his Mighty hand? Hope is not conclusive Hope is lost to Hell All they ever wanted Was to do things well... All they ever gathered Was an empty shell... 30/04/86 XI Waves upon the ocean Heaving like a clown Gulls make a commotion While sailors make a frown Soon the day is over Soon they will head home Hoist the sails and follow The breakers and the foam Soon Cuxhaven's harbour Will be in their sight Soon good friends and lovers Will gather up the night Joy and celebration Will conclude a hard day Their lonely journey over Life pulls them away... 29/04/86 XII "There is not so much disaster Can make us fall apart. Devastation error Strengthens both our hearts." But lately I despise it Despite the state we're in Disaster has collected Every sin - Why all this commotion Why this still abuse Should we try the harbour Is it any use? If we play "Deception" We can only lose. 30/04/86 XIII You can't make nothing out of something You do the best you can You scream at me "Surrender!" Do you expect to shake my hand? I can't tell you what you want I don't know what to do Why dear do you panic Does the world owe you a due? I run around in circles My head is in a spin You come to me in anger Where do I begin? Why can I not calm you? And death creeps slowly in... 30/04/86 XIV Not to be outdone, he jumped into the flames. The pain was less than life he would endure. But to his own surprise (and everyone else's too), His body was not consumed - His soul was just too pure. He walked away without a sound. The air was still, the sky was clear - He walked to where no one could see His face consumed in fear. To face this life's adversity's To face the odds against this life; For when we're born we know the truth Then in the end, of suffering, Death's a welcome sight. A white goddess in a clear blue light. 30/04/86 XV A cloud of gas beyond our sight Threatens every form of life We know not what it is or how It came to be - but now It hovers silently o invisibly, without the slightest show - although We know it's there - it forms and unknown calm before the storm. Silence. Silence when the sun explodes; When no more the earth erodes from nature, but from man-made woe - We presumed - presumed that we were of God But were not any - we were naught - except, that, our own nemesis we wrought. 30/04/86 XVI What difficult deception What terror cannot tell What dispirited reception Leads us down to hell The darkness of the terror The what-we-do-not-know Forces us to cower In a tearful hellish hole If life vanish completely An atom breath's reflex Will carry on the future Which we will not have met But what have we collected In wisdom that was not We desire absolution In terror now are caught I hope that those who lead us Chose the hardest way To lead us through experience Rather than hearsay For all that we've been given Has taken us aback In gratitude we've striven To master the attack But greed is ever empty It holds us down like lead It strangles us like poison No heart has ever bled Shade of shadows forming A pit of human blood - To drink of this divinity Is drowning in the flood. 30/04/86 XVII I wish that I could terminate the world as is Before the lust rapes all too poor to live. 30/04/86 XVIII I cannot carry this around much longer, My heart grows weak as my despair grows stronger. I who find confession good, cannot confess; Love's confusion form the basis of my stress. I hear such laughter in the hall I want to run,- but something makes me stall. I stop, and see her lovely face; A goddess worshipped by an unknown race. I want to run, - to flee, to hide away - I curse the dawning of another day - I wish I had not seen such precious gold That glow within a madman's dream! I'd sell my soul to Satan gladly If only I could be her dream! 5/05/86 XIX I have died a thousand times again Never thinking this could happen Through time the oak and cedar fall But love goes on forever It fells the strongest men, no less The weakest in the crowd And i have fallen like an autumn leaf In the springtime to the ground My thoughts disperse like so much smoke Upon a hazy day I try to speak but only choke In desperation's sway And i am yet to close, but far away from gaining this bright star! 7/05/86 All Poems copyright (c) 1986 Klaus J. Gerken