I reached enlightenment going 75 on a highway on a summer night No visions of Blake Only spirits of Kerouac and Thelonious Monk beside me as I sat glued to the wheel The psalms read as tail lights The night smelt like memories of Boy Scout camp in the hills I saw all of the kids of the American night as they should be O holy angels Fresh cut sunflower souls Finding cute boys in Nashville or Indiana Breathing in every ounce of childhood nostalgia with cigarette whispers The only cigarettes I smoke are the secondhand whisps from close friends The smell of cigarettes reminds me of lost love No tears of Marx Karl Marx is asleep tonight and all is quiet Josef Stalin sits in an alley Gut rot drunk and weeping Somewhere in South America Trosky weeps through holes in his head the shape of ice picks O American children Drinking 100 proof distilled American passion A stronger high than all the drugs I have never taken A stronger kick than all the boots of the ones who won't put up with apathy any longer Tonight we are the ones who are holy and crying The chill of the night seeps into my bones and I shake with the earth and with drums and saxophone and everything sounds as it should Paul Robeson my heart goes out to you wherever you are tonight I stand watch so the skeletons of Babylon can throw stones at you no longer The shattered glass reminds us the struggle isn't over O American Angels listen to me ramble I have sat in ecstasy and seen the smile of God and everything will turn out ok Death comes when it has to Don't rush it my friends Until then raise whatever glasses you have as high as you can Use the stones they throw to build your foundation Kiss the ones you know in your heart to be holy Don't worry how loud you are yelling This is America and you don't have to be sorry This is as beautiful as we allow it to be This is as many tears as we can afford Only saints cry on Thursdays And tonight the wisdom of sages are written on bathroom stalls for whoever cares enough to read it Bless everyone who sneezes Don'tΒ Β tell yourself that you aren't enough Don't fool yourself that there is an enough You are already as complete as you can be You are the sunflower soul You are enlightenment Going 75 Down a highway In the American night