a prayer

methamphetamine coughdrop lies
in their
aeroplane graves of 9 to 5 corporeal
cries and the foundations of the united nations
gymnasium in the television says

, "I've seen many nations crumble."

the man of the
stumbled word at the blunt edge of the
world and the unpronounceable morpheme
feigning Almighty, lowered.

Hey Job,
where ya bin?
whatcha sayin?
where did ya go when I laid the foundations
of angry topless standing ovations?
the man in the three-piece suit cryin

, "I seen all this before (but my wife she don't know)."

so where were you little man
when every creature ate from my hand?
when the copper sky ran blood red?

where were you
when they preached all their bullshit on the side o' th' road?
when they told all them faggots where they should go?

where were you, Job?
At the din of an aborted howl
or the body's eternal yowl:
to wallow in self-pity cryin so sure

, "oh but I ain't never bin nothin but pure."