WALKING THE MICHAELTREE

 

SIDEWALK SNOWLINE SONGLINE 

FOR MICHAEL S. HARPER

WHILE WALKING THE MICHAELTREE

What is there but the walk--

walk breaking the cage

first step

of liberation--

What the poets don't get

writing, walk--Quixote broke his

cage when all his world

wanted to break him

when they broke him

he died, this came to me

as a gift walking

the development

yesterday listening

to Michael Harper

read his poems

with Gwendolyn Brooks

and Robert Hayden

I had never heard

Gwendolyn read

We Real Cool

before I took

that step, Quijote’s

cage pulled

by oxen

and led

ahead and behind

by his barber, priest

and censors

inquisitive, but

this about Mr.

Michaeltree

as his godson

called him

Michaeltree

Songline Michaeltree

who comes live

from Library of Congress

found by Ms. Brooks,

found by Mr. Hayden,

keeping Sterling

Southern Road

A. Brown, raconteur,

(more Cervantes

than Quijote),

Lem, Slim Greer, Lou,

others laughing

in telephone booths

finding southern

renaissance road

where ever tracks

outside of Harlem

cross, this Harper,

what a name!

If you know musicians,

it’s in the search

imagine the image

church song

secret to Coltrane

all this come to me

free listen

to anyone,

Anyone!

In the world,

easy, easy, listen,

walking the development

Jim Bodeen

17 February 2021