Rice
Pudding***
I see that hot sun shining through them pearly clouds.
Squintin to the acres I see the dark men comin in.
Their boots breathin heavy, like that heavy fog from
the near mornin’.
The warm wind stingin’ my workin hands, but not as bad
as they.
And the cry of the billy goat preachin from the top of
hills.
Let me take a look at em’ before I gotta kill’un.
Real close, I see the hair all curl and bleet is goin’.
My little goat as whole as a fresh pitchah of
lemonade.
They think him sweet and tangy, served for dinnuh.
Since I was a lil’ un’ the goat’s been good to me.
Singin me songs of whole rice pudding on a half eatin’
day.
Oh his days are numbered this I know.
And so does he, so does he.
Swingin down near my ankles are those tears I cry.
Price paid for makin these words
Known to one kind.
Now chillun’ crying, innocents dyin.
Can we take it slow?
Can we
take it slow?
And eat rice pudding till the days come cold.
Rice Pudding (Narrow and long) ***
I see that hot sun.
Squintin, I see the dark men
comin in.
Their boots breathin heavy
The warm wind
stingin my workin hands.
But not as bad as they
The cry of the billy goat
on the top of them hills
singin me songs
Of whole rice pudding
on a half-eaten day.
Oh I knows his days
are numbered.
And so does he.
Can we take it slow?
Can we take it slow?
And eat rice pudding till the days come cold.
Rice Pudding (without intro and ending)
I see the dark men
comin in.
The cry of the billy goat.
Callin out bleets
On them warm windy
hilltops.
It's stingin my working hands
but not as bad as they.
Comin to eat rice pudding
till the days come cold.
Narrative
“Dailiah, come an’ roast this pig!” scowled my
mistress from the house. ‘Oh Lord, them poor animals are goin to the grave,’ I thought
as I rolled up my burlap sleeves. But we all gotta eat. Miss Nancy thought we
needed to eat in the next half an hour or else her household would go to Hades.
She tapped her clean feet, standing at the door with her long fingers on her
hips. Those frilly curls danglin beside that pretty green brooch was
swayin in this wild wind.
The ocean was bringin in the high tides about now,
which hovered over our rice fields. The smell met my nose ‘fore the sound
of the squished mud did. Swamp. That putrid grassy mush, mixed with the blood
of mosquitahs. A smell that penetrates yo’ thoughts before you eyes even see
it. The dry whip whistlin along with that bitter salty wind. Not bustin anyone’s
back today, but a threat that it coulda have been.
Miss Nancy cringed at it
too. I saw her, and she thought hard. And spoke to me again, sayin, “I don’t
want the pig anymore, I want that goat instead. Yes, that’ll make a fine
supper.” My baby goat! “Oh no, Mz. Nancy, you don’t want that goat, he’s got a
bad bleet, and he’s a gettin old, not fresh meat no more,” I said tryin to stop
her. “Uh, uh,” she said shakin her head. “I want him, even better, he’s not
good for anything else.” Now movin’ down the steps she set off to stand in the
little bit of sunshine left, right next to the barn.
“But Mz. Nancy…” I
pleaded. “You questioning my orders? You are to listen to what I say!" she yelled. She
grabbed a lil’ whip from the side and started to me. I turned, ready for my
back to be stingin. It would match my hands done from the wind. But she sliced
it across my ankles. Still bringin tears to my sorry eyes. “Now you go get that
goat,” she mustered, droppin the whip and movin back to the house.
No comments:
Post a Comment