NAPOWRIMO 16, THE WEDDING ANNIVERSARY TSL PROMPT based on the Track List of Sufjan Stevens latest album "Aporia"

A LOVE SONG

1. Aporia

What is this strange hiatus
this unexpected aporia
that has come upon us;
me here, you there
with no clarity
about when we shall meet again
a smaller story
in the bigger one
across the globe
of people together
or separated
dying alone
or living
whatever their age
or colour
creed, gender, caste, religion, politics?
It could presage a fresh start
unheeded
but we can heed it

2. Ousia

Yes, we are now one essence
one substance
as the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit
though sundered by time and space;
this cannot dissipate

3. What it takes

is
eros
philia
storge
agape

What it takes
is faith
hope
caritas

What it takes is love
compassion
mercy forgiveness

What it takes is ousia
born of two becoming one

4. Agathon

I am the one
whose poems
on Revolution, Sakhi, and many other sequences
are not remembered
but my name is
and you are the one
who inspired me
so my name lives,
if not my poems

5. Raymond Scott

Another obscure artist
How we artists struggled
and if not for our women
who hurt us or loved us
into creating
would we have existed?
Would we not have merely exited?

6. Glorious you

Glorious you
unclothed
lily of the field
my rose of Sharon
when the light caught your hair
and your laugh pealed
or your eyes smiled
when your breasts were revealed
when you and I were shy
and even now in the middle of our sojourn
glorious soul
glorious you
No one to compare with you
Anna, no one nigh.

7. Lydian ring

The ring tested me
and it tested you
I failed
You won
The crown belongs to you.
Let me now creep in
to heaven under your wing
Be my St Lucy
my Beatrice anew
and make me hope for Home

8. Climb the mountain

We have not come to Sinai
but to a better mountain
on the  top of which dwells
on the top of which dwells
on the top of which dwells...

9. The Red Desert

That is me
I am in it
I weep, holding you
but you are not here
I am not weeping for us
You know it
I am weeping for India
I am weeping as I don't have a gun
I am weeping for Anand
I am weeping, missing your bosom
& that I do not have an army
I would kill all these bastards
Bury their bloody, fucking, bodies in this red desert

10. Matronymic

You are my replacement
for my mother
my Rebecca
but see, my love,
the world has crumbled
into dead bodies;
the sand
of disease
piles them up around us
and now neither any Matronymic
or Patronymic
holds anyone up
except us
as we are made of steel
We are lovers and lovers
are survivors

11 Disinheritance

This is our land
We have only a disinheritance
We are Christians
We are not considered
first-class citizens
in recent times
yet we are happy
as we come to save and not to be saved


12. Palinode

I could unsay that
about the dead bodies
and say we are a great nation
but we are not
We have to look after ourselves, now
not care for this nation gone to the dogs
and it is a matter to be bemoaned

13. Determined outcome/ Misology

Love
let us take wings
and not let fate
or the concept of the nation
or fascism
or casteism
or Hindutva
or class
or gender
or virus or pandemic
or poverty
or hunger
or famine
or death
or MISOLOGY
in things like Islamophobia
defeat us
We will reach
the determined outcome

We will reach Ataraxia!
We will reach Eudaimonia!
We will reach the unlimited!

Our children will be warriors
defeat the runaround
bring about the afterworld alliance of conciliation
Every one of them will be a backhanded cloud
Captain Praxis, man or woman or having autism
We are the army, the fire grows in our eyes
You and me and our children, love
"We're gonna raze, raze the prisons to the ground!"