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The Journal

from Circumlocution Vol II by Bomani Armah

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lyrics

I walk into the venue, and saw this book on the floor.
As distinctive as it was, no one noticed it
I wait for someone to reunite with it
No one does, so I walk close enough to read the cover
“JOURNAL”

I’m curious about autobiographies,
but intrigued by journals
the untouched snapshot of a five sense
one mind
one spirit
emotion

who’s journal would you read
if you could read but one?

I’d read Jesus’ journal
a Nazarene carpenter would be a 1/10 as literate as waka flocka claims to be,
but his pops coulda just flipped a switch like Morpheus
downloading god’s version of Word Perfect to Neo
imagine the ease of editing Jesus’ autobiography
NO fact check,
or spell check.
It would be blinding to read after a while, every word would be in red.

I pick up the book
Hand bound cover
a visionary artisan had salvaged
the ruins of something grand
and left parts of their life inside of it
The temptation grows to read it
At least to see the signature.

The signing of your name creates a historical ripple
Especially when it adorns arduous,
rhetorical legal type
bonding agreements between men,
their government
and their god
words canonized by song and annual days off
words that form a Rorschach formation
compiled of scriptures passed down from
nomadic tribes of the middle east
Each add their biographical moment
A 5 sense
1 spirit
1 mind
emotion

Ideas float around
Philosophies blow in the wind
Nothing adds gravity like saying
“it is written”

we know this, jesus did not have the time,
the motivation,
or understand of its importance
to write his own story
a miracle birth and a crucifix death, the crux of your very existence
passed orally
through whisper
then in exclamation
then under the cruelest of tortures
before being written down
four generations later
giving it the creditability of a community poem

the book is pulsating like the tell tale heart
mad at myself, for being mad at myself
for wanting to know what I should not know
but there are things I need to know

mere accounts of jesus disappear between his ages of 12-30
you know how many questions I have for 13 ear old jesus?
when did he realize his divinity?
How did he interact with his friends?
Did his body ever fail him?
Did he have acne or diarrhea?
…how did 13 year old jesus handle morning wood?
No matter how he handled it, it was perfect.
Did he toss and turn, try to think about baseball or his grand parents?
Did he just say “peace be still”?
I feel betrayed by being held back from the power
he could have imparted this word
starved
world
with just a few journal entries
bronze age tweets on tablets

by now I have determined to read it

What up Bomani! You are now reading God’s journal. Not jesus. His father. God
(flip the page)
don’t be shocked but every single page you turn to will take you to exactly the part of my journal I want you to read
(flip the page)
I know you only have a minute and 5 seconds left so I’m going to skip around to the good parts.

Day 1: I’m bored.

Day 100 million: I went to see the people of Jericho today. They have a new god now, he ain’t even cute. I wish they where dead!... ooops

Day 3billion 85million 211thousand 32: I was chillin with Beelzebub today, just shooting the breeze. He dared me to mess up job’s life, I dare you, I double dog dare you!” What else was I suppose to do?


Now: I am talking to you, I am always talking to you. Don’t ever trust a book that was supposedly written by me, if it has an ending.

credits

from Circumlocution Vol II, released January 27, 2012

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Bomani Armah Washington, D.C.

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