happy b-day pops
To my dad on his 62nd birthday
still savage!
Our Traditions
in tribal cultures there are
rites of passage each male must endure
before he is considered a man.
some of my favorites
belong to the Crocodile people;
in some African tribes,
the whole tribe participates.
all of the young men are packed into a small hut,
strapped down to cots of bamboo,
the skin of their backs, shoulders,
arms, legs, all shredded in
crisscross scarification.
they emerge a week later
with honorable infections.
some of them die, some become patriarchs of the clan,
almost none become civil engineers.
there are tribes in South America
that require tests of strength, stamina and skill.
after a ritual hunt and spirit journey
the young men are forced
to wear a gourd over their dicks
like a penis sheath.
carved by their fathers,
sometimes the gourds
are unfomfortably small
there is some discussion
as to whether or not this is done on purpose.
i wonder what kind of dreams these people have
and how Jung or Frued would interpret them
Vikings raped, pillaged, and plundered their way into Valhallah.
American Indians sweat and fasted into hypoglossic religious fervor,
then they'd eat peyote, trip balls, and get lost in the woods.
the Japanese would bestow armor and weapons upon their sons
before sending their man-children into battle.
In the Middle East, particularily in Iraq,
the boy is spoiled rotten and allowed to tantrum,
he's doted upon and treated like a prince
untill his 13th year,
but on his first tantrum after his 13th year
the whole family beats him visciously
to within an inch of death, and then
he is ignored by the matriarchs of the family.
no wonder even Kesinger said to Nixon
"don't mess with those countries, it'd be like
attacking a hornet's nest with a baseball bat!"
and so from father to son
while not all footpaths lead to the same places
certain vistas become traditoinal scenery
on these human meanderings through the universe
in this tribe
our crocodile skin
our too-small penis gourd
family crest/family sword
is a symbol of learning
we walk campuses hunting ellusive degrees
in the jungles of suburban America
cram all night for the midterm studies
in the sweatlodges of rented rooms.
compared to the other bizarre rituals out there,
at least this one doesn't seem so phsically painful
but sometimes i wish
it was as easy as starving in the wilderness
and getting twisted on hallucinogenic drugs
but there is a place and time for everything
still savage!
Our Traditions
in tribal cultures there are
rites of passage each male must endure
before he is considered a man.
some of my favorites
belong to the Crocodile people;
in some African tribes,
the whole tribe participates.
all of the young men are packed into a small hut,
strapped down to cots of bamboo,
the skin of their backs, shoulders,
arms, legs, all shredded in
crisscross scarification.
they emerge a week later
with honorable infections.
some of them die, some become patriarchs of the clan,
almost none become civil engineers.
there are tribes in South America
that require tests of strength, stamina and skill.
after a ritual hunt and spirit journey
the young men are forced
to wear a gourd over their dicks
like a penis sheath.
carved by their fathers,
sometimes the gourds
are unfomfortably small
there is some discussion
as to whether or not this is done on purpose.
i wonder what kind of dreams these people have
and how Jung or Frued would interpret them
Vikings raped, pillaged, and plundered their way into Valhallah.
American Indians sweat and fasted into hypoglossic religious fervor,
then they'd eat peyote, trip balls, and get lost in the woods.
the Japanese would bestow armor and weapons upon their sons
before sending their man-children into battle.
In the Middle East, particularily in Iraq,
the boy is spoiled rotten and allowed to tantrum,
he's doted upon and treated like a prince
untill his 13th year,
but on his first tantrum after his 13th year
the whole family beats him visciously
to within an inch of death, and then
he is ignored by the matriarchs of the family.
no wonder even Kesinger said to Nixon
"don't mess with those countries, it'd be like
attacking a hornet's nest with a baseball bat!"
and so from father to son
while not all footpaths lead to the same places
certain vistas become traditoinal scenery
on these human meanderings through the universe
in this tribe
our crocodile skin
our too-small penis gourd
family crest/family sword
is a symbol of learning
we walk campuses hunting ellusive degrees
in the jungles of suburban America
cram all night for the midterm studies
in the sweatlodges of rented rooms.
compared to the other bizarre rituals out there,
at least this one doesn't seem so phsically painful
but sometimes i wish
it was as easy as starving in the wilderness
and getting twisted on hallucinogenic drugs
but there is a place and time for everything