freedom

it is so important
    this
the ability to be
who I am
where I am
-in my own time
-my own place

freedom

it is a treasure
a pearl of great price

some friends don't understand
they want you to be tied up
     like they are

how dare you be free
     (maybe it scares them)

it is also a mental thing
     maybe that's the hardest part

freedom from my own programming
which was done by
Machiavellian people
They tried to turn me into some sort of
Machine
which they could control
ok
I'm not so opposed to this
but now I have a little time
to be myself
to find myself
whatever they have left me
after their try at TOTAL control

slipping through the cracks in their reality
not believing absolutely everything
looking at believing
as a questionable activity
based on centuries of civilization

how can we even begin
to think that we are free

but isn't that what this place
America
is all about
anyway ?

Prince and Princess

Prince and Princess
and Santa Barbara Swami

The day after
The Prince and Princess
    were here

I pass by
the polo grounds
on my way to the
Santa Barbara Swami's
birthday party
-90 years old today-

Signs are still up
    at the Polo Place
No Parking here
No Parking there
No Parking anywhere
    -for the unrich
    -the uninitiated
    -the hoi polloi
         (from Greek; the many--
         the common people, the masses)
               that's me

I drive slowly
past the open gate
carefully avoiding
Sunday bicyclists
-ten speeds and tight pants-
ok

driving slowly
I look through the open gate
Pavilions are still up
    with flowing white curtains
        tied up
Maybe a little royalty
    still
    lingers in the air
If I had known
I could have been there
The cheap seats
    weren't that much
I could have
    dug a dress
    out of the back of the closet
    and worn a thrift store hat
I can
    behave myself
    when I must
I do like tea
    and mother's side
    was British
         -after all

These two
young ones
whose lives
are so subject to scrutiny
(I'm not good with scrutiny)
I much prefer
to meditate
in quiet, cool places
To go on Pilgrimages
-in California-
-to stay in places
with good food
and air conditioning
I find it helps
the contemplation
Which, it turns out,
is difficult enough.
The ego must be dealt with
It is a poker game
She doesn't want
to give it up
(doesn't know when to fold 'em)
-does not want
to be
   silent
        still
-but everyone else is. . .
subject of the lecture today,
Spiritual Discipline
-uh-oh-
On one level
I am in so-o-o-o much
    trouble

People give their lives to things
Royalty or Spirituality
or maybe both

I question myself;
    What have I
    given my life to. . .
Sometimes it seems we have no choice
--taxes, work, and bad relationships--
They say it's all for learning
All a great school
-I wasn't the greatest fan
    of school-
Passing periods and lunch
    were fun
    sort of
-but I never understood
-why so early
-every-day??
    I could have done
    with Cliff Notes-
    I get the concept
    Park the Kids
    Get them ready
    To be workers
     "twenty years of schooling
     and they put you on the day shift"
     to quote the old Bob Dylan record...

But I digress
we all dedicate our lives
to the path of our own lives
-even the worst addict
only wants
happiness,
bliss, and
sweet release

we are all
wanderers in search of
sweetness...

    and it's there
    so close inside
    just beyond the barrier
    of mind
    of opinion
    of me

It is said;
"the perfect way
is not difficult
for those who
hold no preferences"
those were the jokesters
of old
the ones who
walked on air

even though
the air is
everywhere

it is only for us
to remember
its
presence
here