into a film
a wonderful thing about philadelphia is
it’s not new york city parts of us
are real they stand on the ground
which is not an idea tops of churches
stick out, feathers in caps backwards
frontwards sideways some fly
some don’t sundown sunflower
squirrels down town eat up the night
pick a fight pick a fight choose your
battles it’s a free country love it
leave it come crawling back back
to mama flag a cab flag a cab
tip the driver he works hard works
hard for shit shit shit shit watching
my mouth trying to get in as my mouth
watches it back watching the flags of
common currency “the 6th borough”
quivers on your lips mist in the exhaust
of road rage that settles into a film
the film stars us we’re in it together
you are a history stuffed w/ fables
i’m mere patchwork we’re trying
to be real through fatal slumbers i
lumber i lumber am i in a fatal
slumber? i feel “patchy” like south
philly it’s patchy, they say you gotta
watch out you don’t know who’s real
around here who’s real that we may
pursue determinately some fixed object
that the mouth may talk and be worth
something to go for a ride w/out
being taken for a ride
– Ryan Eckes
***
