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The Winds

the winds come
bearing the warrior
lance raised in challenge
only the enemy and glory before him

the winds come
bringing the voice
Hoka hey, tie up your pony's tail
today is a good day to die

the winds come
bringing the voice
the cry of the first-born
whose father lies in the prairie grass

There Should Have Been Music

(how tenuous our grasp on reality)

I often wondered where
all the music had gone
to accompany
the melodrama of my little life.

There could have been
at least a few notes
maybe something from
a forgotten movie or unforgettable.

Where were the
gentle sounds
to accompany
softsummer days of love and laughter?

Why was there
no music
when we touched
for the first time trembling?

And where is it?
Where is the music now
when we lie apart
and I can only long for your touch.

Where is it,
the cynics say
it’s only in the movies
and only a device to move our souls.

Somehow, I always
expected more
than this living vanilla
in the groin of the heartland.

Somehow, I always
expected the music
appropriate to the moment
and from a mysterious source.

How disappointing
to find, in the end,
that the music has all been
played out
only in my head.

Looking back on it,
even a mis-spent life
should have had
a theme, a musical score.

There should have been
music

Isnala Mani
February, 2001