This poem was written to describe/honor a boat-shaped wooden sculpture on which a town was built.

Here’s humanity chucked on that tub
Figure the fuss in the ship’s hold
Roaming ‘round the deck, helm is hell for holding
How come that outland ship ain’t capsizing?

They ****** up their toll of ****** *****
Thrown out, left behind, they’re coping with that schism
Roving ‘round Ocean blue between two small isthmus
Grinning like they used to ain’t gonna be easy fun.

Here’s humanity beating it to starboard
If they had behaved themselves, possibly
God  almighty wouldn’t have batted an eye
Zealous lots in exile on that ****** city-boat

They built up  walls ‘gainst their bitter heartbreaks
Alleys, their homes and even small gardens
On a boat! Oh my, isn’t that tub gonna sink?
The wind-facing prow is a freakin’ chimera!

Such a craft is like a merry-go-round
You feelin’ sea-sick ? Looks like a hiccup!
It’s not rocket science, maybe a bit pitchin’
Here’s these talented convicts’ last resort!

Translated from the original version in French, July 19, 2018, Oullins. Appoline

these dark days slowly fade to dark nights,
we fight now for justice, just to keep our minds right
never blindsided by the limelight cuz in hindsight
whats inside will be decided when we hit trife times

now say it five times
we fight now for justice just to keep our minds right
we fight now for justice just to keep our minds right
we fight now for justice just to keep our minds right
we fight now for justice just to keep our minds right


dark days spark ways to face stress
stuck in this placeless mindstate so we chase death
we face death every day but death is faceless
at best the right thing is just the best guess
but restless minds quickly grow weary
we think big and the truths a weapon we all carry
but most fear to lose and cling to every breath
freedom is not a given the blinds on the deck
what u fight for's what you get
I can't be tortured to give up my fortress
neither bought with fortunes
they can rob my orchard, but cant dig up the seeds,
so I shoot for the stars to make them all bleed
just to paint the picture that one day they all fall,
but somehow the worst of them land on all fours
endorsed by the four horsemen
if we play their game we all forfeit never seeing our reinforcements
the art of war we sell it door to door
there's more where this came from stored in distorted forms
seek and destroy their sin secretly kept under the rug
take their gloves off and dig their fingertips for blood
its all love tho I've been appointed to
present my resentment and my point of view
cause I can see beyond the horizon my eyes went
back and forth in time beyond the lies and advertisements
and found things u might find surprising
it entices u when someone slices you and dices
when someone tries to do you what they did to Christ
you feel the crisis you heard lies you hear the cries
give up the slightest fear and fight along the righteous
keep control keep conscious and don't roll with the punches
it might just work you never know just pull the lever,
be the cleverest than let her go

these dark days slowly fade to dark nights,
we fight now for justice, just to keep our minds right
never blindsided by the limelight cuz in hindsight
whats inside will be decided when we hit trife times

now say it five times
we fight now for justice just to keep our minds right
we fight now for justice just to keep our minds right
we fight now for justice just to keep our minds right we fight now for justice just to keep our minds right.

They’s times when I
Jess cain’t say it good
And times when I am
Jess plain amazing;
Then teachers and snobs
Seem to all agree and
Subject whut I say to
Harsh degrees of hazing.

It seems like they ain’t never
Said the wrong word before
Whatever, they jess don’t
Seem to put me on ignore
And move to importanter things
Than grammarical stuff;
As fer me, I’m jess turnin’ them off
‘Cause I have had me enough.

I only had me an education
Up to the eleventh grade or so
A whole buncht of that silly stuff
I got told  but I still don’t know.
My dad and my mom too
They got taught just like me.
And I talk good enough for them.
Change my perfectly acceptable talk?
Really now, the chances are slim.

We say ain’t and cain’t and acrost
And other such acceptable words.
And some of the more ‘proper’ things
Ain’t nothin’ but jess plain absurd.
Like widdershins and tatterdemalion,
Sequipedalian, octogenarian as well.
If I’m expected to talk like that
Y’all can just go straight to hell.

"I always wanted to wander."
"To wander? To where?"
"From Walla Walla to Uganda."
"That's a wide world to wander!"
"You wanna?"
"Wanna what?"
"To wander?"
"To where, Uganda?"
"Youbetcha!"
"I don't want to onomatopoeia anymore!"

"Are you refusing me?"
"You're confusing me!"
"Do I do that usually?"
"Yes, and it's abusing me!
"I didn't used to be."
"But you see it's no use to me,
So start talking lucidly!
You're coming across abstrusely
By talking so loosely.
You've got a lot of 'splaining to do Lucy."

"It started out grand!"
"But quickly got out of hand."
"But you fail to understand."
"You should have planned."
"Is that a reprimand?"
"You're like the ampersand."
"I don't understand."
"It means 'and per se and';
The pronunciation became bland
And three Latin words became 'ampersand'."

"But, don't you need a vacation?"
"What is the relation?"
"It's a matter of pronunciation,
And sometimes punctuation.
Some words deserve elimination.
Yes, and some deserve illumination.
Thus my original illustration.
In the interest of communication,
Some things deserve enunciation."
"I will accept that explanation."

"But, I'm still hugely fond of
The two of us going to Uganda;
As we internationally wander
I'm sure it will make you fonder
The more the two of us wander."
"But I really don't wanna!"
"Don't wanna what?"
"Go to Uganda!"
"That's what you don't wanna?"
"You betcha!"
"It's okay. They probably won't letcha."