BALDWIN NOTES

Been working on a trilogy of books about James Baldwin entitled BALDWIN NOTES. the first book will be a book of poems called "I HEARD RUFUS SAY". here are some of the poems from the manuscript.






The bridge
For Albert Ayler, who died along the dubious lines.

The mouth of a river,
Hold the soot of a country
And this city of bridges
Knows no mercy for thinkers

And if it was Bessie in the morning
Then its was, drifting he thigh at night.
So after it was guilt in the mirror
For the push to love weighed terrible
And these angels gargoyle the mystery

Temples are on fire
His beautiful mouth
His sly sugar walk
His tell in of a Rufus
The ashed Icarus
No wings.

And the soot of the city
Hidden by the fog
Faggot call words burst mountains
Jump.
Jump.
Jump. They never saw you.


The call

And for stars who die
What of their light?

I imagine, you the late riser
Chasing a hangover, last night’s
Pages in hand, a cig dangle
Lucien asks you if you are ready for coffee

You kiss him, full and bold mouth
For you are not of Harlem,
Even as its nightstick remembers
And the phone rings,
A shiver rises up the spine
Snuggle the sweater close, the fourth ring
You make it-

Your brother is whisper
Says
“they killed Malcolm come home.”
The receiver never finds the handle
As Betty’s face cuts your cheek.



Times Square, 1940

There was the palpable tension
For the earth too separate
Jews dying. The beginning

None of it mattered
The burn in my heart
The search for my place

I took him full on in the mouth
Rough kiss, he grabs me short curl
And I can see my father’s eyes

To blink, alley light swinging
Against the brick, “relax. I’ll do you.”
Spit trickles to my ankle

I wonder how I smell to him
If he can see my black skin
Underneath all of this shame

I finish, and he gestures to me
To return,
His eyes blaze and it hurts to hood them

The belt, fumbles
My hands feel dumb
The zipper sound of a thousand lions
His hair smells of sweat
Sweet anticipation
A beautiful indecision, I swallow.