Xmas at
the Xroads
From the
roof,
the
stone kicked over the edge
falling
falling
is
invisible.
You
should never have made the mistake
of
putting me in such
a
shallow grave,
where I
could still hear the goatman
blow
blues sax in the christmas cards,
see the
monster truck,
dirtyred with primer,
smeared with tiny reindeer
towed
from the wreck of a seventy-six sleigh
pileup on the lost highway.
You
should have taken
the time
to speak the words
to keep
me from walking (or
at least
buried me
at the Xroads)
because
when Miss X (the prickly Virgin)
slammed metal
door number nine on
the
announcer's chickeny neck
rather
than pick which one might open to glory,
the
building got ugly-empty.
Your Xmas lights
just
made it look cheap.
All the
tinsel stuck to
all the
hard work you stole,
all the blueprints gone toxic;
no one
could save it,
so that the roof
falling
was
invisible as a stone.
~January
2013
Posted for Poetics at dVerse Poet's Pub
Brian's grabbed the mic today to get us to tackle the topic of mass media, mass communication, etc. I think all my regular readers know just how much I love the Xmas season, so that was where I went.
Images: Same to You, by lalawren, posted on flick'r
Christmas Stable Decration, by rockbadger on flick'r
shared under a Creative Commons License
christmas is a good example of how mass media can turn the real into a farce in some ways... tight lines...the shallow grave part...where he could still hear the goatman blow blues sax in your christmas cards....being my fav part... also....Your Xmas lights
ReplyDeletejust made it look cheap... great write hedge
X marks the spot here - and the smearing of tiny reindeer is a kind of awful metaphor for the muddying of Christmas. Let's Make A Deal never looked so dangerous! Someone has been slain here - and won't stay down! I found those rising up stanzas - what they should have done to keep her in the grave--and that primer red truck most compelling. k.
ReplyDeleteX mas lights and X mas gifts look cheap under the X glare of the media lights ~ Which reminds me too of Valentine's Day, turning this day into one circus of ugly-empty ~ This is a good one Hedge ~
ReplyDeletehaha...xmas is def the mass media season of the year...bombarded as trimming, and tacky as tinsel...ha...love the monster truck...and the goat man...buried a litte deeper this mascarade of a holiday might not make the resurrection....our holidays all blend together anyway...valentines is already on the clearance and its not even here yet...
ReplyDeleteYou know I share your distaste for the crap-crappiest time of the year, though I suspect that the title of Queen of Xmess haters goes to you.
ReplyDeleteIt's a stone cold fact that they didn't bury this speaker deep enough or in the right place, or with enough rocks piled on top. Good. Turn her loose and watch it all go down.
Easter has become nearly as bad. Our local supermarket had Easter eggs on the shelf on Boxing Day. I was not impressed.
ReplyDeleteMass marketing has cheapened almost everything - and the use of guilt to motivate us into buying, giving and receiving things neither we nor anyone else actually needs makes me sick.
Nice write Hedge ...
Damn, girl. You are freaking feisty. ;)
ReplyDeleteLiteral chills, right here:
"You should never have made the mistake
of putting me in such
a shallow grave"
You' 'bout ta get all gangsta on somebody's backside. ;)
"All the tinsel stuck to
all the hard work you stole,
all the blueprints gone toxic"
Sheesh.
Okay, here's the story I see:
I think this dude cheated on his wife and either literally or metaphorically killed her to continue having his way with "Miss X." I think you're taking the cross from Christmas and turning it a bit sideways. It's not "X-Mas," but Ex-Mas." Ex more maybe. Either way, the speaker is this guy's ex, and the new girl (Miss X, the hot young virgin) is going-to-work on this guy, distracting him by slamming a "door" on his "chicken's neck." I think that's a metaphor for ... ;) But I'm a little crazy in the head, so I see everything in some sort of twisted way.
But while he's off fooling around with the new girl, his ex is climbing up out of the grave to ex-act revenge. :)
That's an amazing take, girl. I'm wholly captivated by the idea, even though this poem is about religion, more or less. But what do I know? I kind of like your version--it's like the spaghetti western version of Midsummer Night's Dream, or something--a thing of art in itself. Thanks for reading, and flying with it.
DeleteWow, the flow in this keeps you glued to the page. This is one powerful piece. I had to really think to get what it meant which is good- I loved this.
ReplyDeleteGreat flow - powerful writing
ReplyDeleteI have nothing against Xmas, except that it begins in October, encourages greed, stimulates mass-produced commercialism, allows for bad music and devalues the gift of giving...
ReplyDeleteYour poem kicks Santa's obese butt, and opens the door for the rest of us to run out into the clean snow crying "Freedom!"
I am rolling these r's like a half-mass crazy woman:
ReplyDeleteBr.r.r.r.r.r.r.rr.rr.rr.rr.r.r.r.illiant!
strong piece Hedge. Great to see you tonight. Love how this piece is relevant to the theme yet done in such a way where it's different in such a creative way. Love the reference to a lost highway and how cool was it to read about the seventy-six sleigh pile up. Awesome read. Thanks
ReplyDelete...the innovations in mass media made everything sound & look real but, oh, emotionally unreal... and it sucks... great write..
ReplyDelete..smiles...
Hmmm, this is one of those poems that I can't follow but enjoy.
ReplyDeleteI guess it teases me enough to make the think-- "If I hang in there, I will get this." Or perhaps the great phrases and images -- even if I can't tie them together.
But I enjoy it, look up at the title to see if it offers clues I missed, and then read again.
It is embarrassing -- "Damn, why can't I get this. Who is in the shallow grave? A Christmas tree? Nope. Hmmmm, if only the afterward had a hint. Nope."
Phrases I loved:
"dirtyred with primer"
"the prickly Virgin"
"the announcer's chickeny neck"
Looks like everyone else gets it: Sabio is so dull
Great lines...so true!
ReplyDeleteWell that is truth right there...and I loved every word.
ReplyDeletethis is clever joy, and i liked the rhythm, and filled with tension, enjoyed it very much. liked these lines best:
ReplyDelete"a shallow grave,
where I could still hear the goatman
blow blues sax in your christmas cards,"
Ah, Hedgy, thanx for the e-mail hints.
ReplyDeleteYou're very welcome, Sabio--thanks for caring and spending so much time with this poem.
Deletethe spaghetti western version of Midsummer Night's Dream, or something . . . YES!!! spliced with a Voodoo xmas Carol with
ReplyDeleterevenge in my mind . . .
Woody hits the nail with tension, the noise of a slow snare
trapping a Wild Turkey fuelled Santa-impersonater . . .
whatever the details may be, the festivities were ruined
before they even begun (we could only hope) destined to drown
in the depths of contaminated blueprints . . .
always keeping me on the (h)edge tip . . .
some mystery, some reality
much poetry :D
Wonderful! I found myself saying "Amen" to almost every line.
ReplyDeleteyou're certainly not buried
ReplyDeletei can picture ugly empty =)
dirtyred with primer. In this xmas rant you nail/paint it to the x with that visual. I enjoy your recurring burial theme. I can see this done on stage---JC played by a long-haired liberal wearing carhartts, whose day job is spelunking.
ReplyDeleteHa! Thanks for running with the surreal/satiric, here, Jane. Very few have caught that the speaker is JC himself, so good eye there as well. Thanks for reading, as always.
DeleteXcellent!!!
ReplyDelete♥