poem

8 ball

(inspired by Gorillaz lore)

[2022]

I have been up and down this road
I have laid upon its asphalt and concrete
I have felt bruises and blood clots
I have had my brain and my eyes rattle around like 8 balls.

Of course it's painful
Not one, not three, but two times
But oh, no matter how painful it is to crash through the windshield
I forgave him anyway.

At first I wondered what the hell was wrong with me
Why would I tell him it's okay?
Even more perplexing, why would I say sorry instead?
Even after curling up in the middle of the street waiting for yet another car to pass

Engines run on fuel, there are parts that are integral to the design and structure
And for most people, those parts might be a brain and a pair of eyes
And as those pieces of my puzzle rattle around my head like 8 balls
I feel as if I am a vehicle in disrepair

I forgave him anyway.
I stuck with him, I moved my keyboards into his apartment
I brought a microphone, I brought a box of clothes
I brought something for him to take, I brought him myself

He hit me with his car
Not once, not three times, just two
Just two times, he ran me over twice
But all the hours he spent with me while I was out cold are all gone now

Of course, I'd never have the privilege of knowing
What did we do together when I wasn't there?
Across my rattling eyes danced bright colors and psychedelics
But in the real world everything was simply green

Oh, the color green
The color replaced by blacks and grays
When green skin is all covered with cigarette-burned clothing
And green meadows are all covered with asphalt and concrete highways

I have been up and down this road
I have laid upon its once green meadows, now ugly and blackened and polluted
I have felt bruises and blood clots, my skin just as ugly and blackened as those streets
I have had my brain and eyes rattle around, all ugly and blackened 8 balls.