“You’ve got to be kind”
was once writ by a great mind
I doubt he rests in peace
though in those words I believe
Reality’s more complicated–
between corrupted and complacent,
to mark the spot, the starting shot,
the race was grey, too low the pay
One to ten were the odds–
Oh fuck, I guess we lost
But the death of californication
starts a freshly balanced station
Oblivion’s a tempting treat
My misgivings won’t let me eat
For nine and twenty years I’ve fought it
The rise of every note’s revealed it
Screaming faces reveled in it
Bases dreamed now years abandoned
Bass and strings sound dear abandon
Face the speakers, ears–you’re scared to
For yesterday, we drink our poison–
come what may, we think we’re right on–
toast to memories, and dive in
Try to pray, relief’s denied us
Alive for duties far ahead,
survival strides on hard cement
To size this shoe with heart and head
will take a lifetime in the end
References: "You've got to be kind" --Kurt Vonnegut God Bless You, Mr. Rosewater "The Grey Race" --Bad Religion/Greg Graffin song title and album title "One time out of ten everything is perfect for us all" --Modest Mouse/Isaac Brock Bukowski (song) Good News for People Who Love Bad News (album) "We pulled the trigger but we forgot to cock /on every single shot/oh, fuck it, I guess we lost" --Modest Mouse/Isaac Brock Parting of the Sensory (song) We Were Dead Before the Ship Even Sank (album) "Californication" --Red Hot Chili Peppers/Anthony Keidis song title and album title