Piss on Arson
He's tired of competition
tired of the fire it takes to sometimes win
tired of firemen's balls and forced grins
black sooty booty calls and hairpin turns of conscience
tired of the collateral damage they can cause.
He knows sometimes it takes competition
to bring out the best in folk but fuck
if it doesn't also bring out the worst
and burn the dry woulds in every direction
and on closer inspection he wonders
what weapons fashioned by fiery men
are worth in the water hose long run.
*
tired of the fire it takes to sometimes win
tired of firemen's balls and forced grins
black sooty booty calls and hairpin turns of conscience
tired of the collateral damage they can cause.
He knows sometimes it takes competition
to bring out the best in folk but fuck
if it doesn't also bring out the worst
and burn the dry woulds in every direction
and on closer inspection he wonders
what weapons fashioned by fiery men
are worth in the water hose long run.
To me, the issue of competition burns up like "the dry woulds" when one places it in the light of vision. That is, the artist's vision, if he has a strong relationship with it, if he is confident in it and with it- has no analogue/no comparison. His two set of "eyes" bring into existence a universe that is different from the pair of "eyes" next to him- or miles away from him. Thus- no one could do what I am doing better than what I am doing not because they are not "good" at what they do, but because no one has these pairs of "eyes" that I have. No one knows this same sequence of events, experiences, and imaginings that lead to this moment "NOW" in my life. It's my life, thus making inimitable the creations that come through me. I like the analogy of sports which even though acumen in SPORTS is objectively measurable (can be counted), it is still in the end, in the moment of truth about one's command of one's own game (vision). For instance: when Tiger Woods looks at his ball, he is looking at HIS ball, playing HIS game. The other golfer's ball, whether it be on the green, or in a pond, is of no consequence at the moment he is eyeing up his shot. That is, I suspect, one thing that makes his game so damned good.
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In other words- Tiger Woods is not beating his opponents so much as he is attaining and actualizing his game at his (high) standard. The only people who feel he is "beating" anyone are those who don't understand what it is to be focused on one's own standards... and, perhaps, those who he has "beaten", who may have lost sight of their own standards because they were too busy worrying, feeling threatened about what the "other guy" was up to.
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I've read this several times through the day.. and like it more and more each time I read it. And I liked it right from the start.
Can't wait to hear it read ... because hat always opens it up a little bit more.
I really like this one a lot John.... lots of layers.
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Competition is a burning lattice that can help you turn the competitive impulse into ashes upon analysis, maybe
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Took me time to read all the comments, but I really enjoyed the article. It proved to be Very helpful to me and I am sure to all the commenters here! It's always nice when you can not only be informed, but also entertained! I'm sure you had fun writing this article.
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The presence of such high quality posts is very rare these days over the internet. I personally liked the information
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i give up - i'm missing what the title means and can't tie it to the poem so need a clue. been trying for days to decipher. it seems sportish, which leaves me at a disadvantage since i follow nothing sports. back in the day i played most everything but never watched. if it ain't sports, then i'm juts dense.
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I appreciate everyone's comments, apologize for not responding sooner.
This poem is not directly related to sports - but these are words I put into the mouth of someone I know - imagining how he might eventually feel if one day he wearied of treating poetry and mating as competitive sports.
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poetry and mating as competition - what an odd combination, though they are both precreation.
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I especially like the phrase, "hairpin turns of conscience."
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