And I dance

[qimissung]

And I dance
My feet stamping
Raise the dust of ancient civilizations
Of elongated heads
And bodies decorated for war
And love and beauty
The god with the elephant head
Dances divinely
In my clattering ventricles
And life begins with a dollar bill
And a ball
My tongue is as razor sharp
As a surgeons knife
And the grease hanging heavy
In the chattering air
Is my mathematical proof
The molecules of friendship
Are my art
To the godhead within.
Civilizations are born and die
You can see them in the mote in my eye.

Qimissung
January 2011

[PrinceMyshkin]

Among other reasons for appreciating this is the fact that it's such a rambunctious poem! Brava!

[Delta40]

It makes me want to dance wherever I am and under whatever circumstances! It's a more detail version of 'dance like nobody is watching' and much better too.

[qimissung]

Thank you, Prince, and Delta! I was going for a celebratory mood.

[firefangled]

Quimissung, you cover a lot of ground in this, historically and metaphorically.

It is a testament to dance and what binds us all together. I love the rhythm.

[Bar22do]

It has just given me energy for the whole day, qim!
I can see you as you dance! your movement stirring old times' best, your stamping feet force a new era in, make tangible the renewal...
You haven't posted for a long while, what a pleasure to read you again. Best regards, Bar

[qimissung]

Thank you, firefangled and Bar. I was sort of going for those things, fire. This poem is a testament to some, um, people, that I work with. I use the word "work" loosely as they use every means available to get out of doing it. But they are good at something, and that is living in the moment, and even though I'm going back tomorrow and tomorrow to try to convince them otherwise, privately I wanted to take a moment to commend them for this. Who am I, after all to tell them that their chosen way of life isn't good enough? It is for them.

And I do believe that everything in them is possible in me, and that everything in me is possible in them, and from that belief, this poem was born.

I can't dance, and I'm not that much fun, Bar, but thanks for thinking that I am.

By the way, anyone who would like to learn to dance can do so here:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PfDVnX4j3-w

And my "friends" personified, here:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ehu3wy4WkHs

[hillwalker]

Reading this at first put me in mind of some primitive 'rain dance' as performed by a shaman - then taking account of the wealth of mythological references there's so much else that can be read into it. Good fun but also giving pause for thought between the drum beats.

H

[yuka]

glad to see your post here. really love the rhythm.

[Haunted]

Very robust opening, the dance is almost bigger than life!

[weltanschauung]

"and elephant's eyes smile
mountain cherry blossoms"

[firefangled]

I can't dance, and I'm not that much fun, Bar, but thanks for thinking that I am.

"If you can talk, you can sing. If you can walk, you can dance." —African proverb

[qimissung]

I shall sing, firefangled!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OoktzdzCwMg

What a beautiful saying. Thank you.

[qimissung]

Thank you Yuka, Haunted, and Hill!

Weltanschuung, I am speechless. That is exactly what I was writing about! Thank you for this radiant addition to my humble writing!

Ganesha is, somewhat ironically, the Lord of learning and letters. But dancers and musicians often begin performances of the arts with a prayer to him (Wikipedia) (also, my apologies to anyone who is Hindu if I got anything wrong in my interpretation).

[qimissung]

And this makes me think of my friends on lit-net.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zlfKdbWwruY