"I'll Be Coming Home for Christmas, Mama"
[from behind prison walls], by Buzzy Martin
Jesus Christ's Christmas in Solitary
At Christmastime it seems so cold
to lock sick people in the hole
Mental illness is their crime
Over a million doing hard time
We sing carols about Emanuel
and His blessed Mother Mary
But Jesus' left the manger now
He's locked in solitary
"Whatever you do to the least of these,
you do also to me"
Christ shivers in His lonely cell
Every sick prisoner is He
What will we do to rescue our Lord
and save Him from His plight?
God gave His Son to restore us all
Let's treat His brethren right
by Mary Neal - all rights reserved
EMPTY CHAIR AT CHRISTMAS
That was yours to fill
It’s been ten long years since you left us
And we don’t know why – still
We’ve asked year after year
But no one will answer our query
"Why was he arrested – why did he die
Please tell us what happened to Larry"
"No explanation! No records! Stop asking!"
This is the official reply
From all the government offices
“He’s dead – let sleeping dogs lie"
But we’ll not give up, my brother
Until we know what is true
There’s an empty chair at our Christmas table
That should have been filled by you
We'll have dinner together again some day
At the Lamb’s great Wedding Feast
You’ll have a sound heart and clear mind
No longer last and least
Until then we’ll help those like you
Befuddled, confused, afraid
In jail for mental illness
May our commitment never fade!
It’s been ten long years since you left us
And we don’t know why – still
We’ve asked year after year
But no one will answer our query
"Why was he arrested – why did he die
Please tell us what happened to Larry"
"No explanation! No records! Stop asking!"
This is the official reply
From all the government offices
“He’s dead – let sleeping dogs lie"
But we’ll not give up, my brother
Until we know what is true
There’s an empty chair at our Christmas table
That should have been filled by you
We'll have dinner together again some day
At the Lamb’s great Wedding Feast
You’ll have a sound heart and clear mind
No longer last and least
Until then we’ll help those like you
Befuddled, confused, afraid
In jail for mental illness
May our commitment never fade!
by Mary Neal
written 12/2006,
published 12/2007 (all rights reserved)
published 12/2007 (all rights reserved)
Website: http://wrongfuldeathoflarryneal.com/
In solidarity with prisoners and their families, happy holidays.
The Human Rights for Prisoners March
Mary Neal, director
"I'll Be Coming Home For Christmas, Mama"
ReplyDelete[from behind prison walls], by Buzzy Martin
http://youtu.be/1hKHzJRzx18
(embedded video)
**Jesus Christ's Christmas in Solitary**
At Christmastime it seems so cold
to lock sick people in the hole
Mental illness is their crime
Over a million doing hard time
We sing carols about Emanuel
and His blessed Mother Mary
But Jesus' left the manger now
He's locked in solitary
"Whatever you do to the least of these,
you do also to me"
Christ shivers in His lonely cell
Every sick prisoner is He
What will we do to rescue our Lord
and save Him from His plight?
God gave His Son to restore us all
Let's treat His brethren right
by Mary Neal - all rights reserved
(photo)
**EMPTY CHAIR AT CHRISTMAS**
There is an empty chair at our Christmas table
That was yours to fill
It’s been ten long years since you left us
And we don’t know why – still
We’ve asked year after year
But no one will answer our query
"Why was he arrested – why did he die
Please tell us what happened to Larry"
"No explanation! No records! Stop asking!"
This is the official reply
From all the government offices
“He’s dead – let sleeping dogs lie"
But we’ll not give up, my brother
Until we know what is true
There’s an empty chair at our Christmas table
That should have been filled by you
We'll have dinner together again some day
At the Lamb’s great Wedding Feast
You’ll have a sound heart and clear mind
No longer last and least
Until then we’ll help those like you
Befuddled, confused, afraid
In jail for mental illness
May our commitment never fade!
by Mary Neal written 12/2006,
published 12/2007 (all rights reserved)
Website: http://wrongfuldeathoflarryneal.com/
In solidarity with prisoners and their families, happy holidays.
The Human Rights for Prisoners March
Mary Neal, director
I don't know why NSA prevents the spaces between the lines of my 21st Century Slave Songs from formatting appropriately. On the cell phone view, there is a line space between each line of both poems except for the first two stanzas of "Jesus Christ's Christmas in Solitary." In the first comment, you will see how the poems should be situated. The first poem has four stanzas, four lines each. The second poem has six stanzas, four lines each. What will they do when I have these poems set to music, I wonder. Censorship is so tacky. Merry Christmas.
ReplyDeleteFacebook won't let me publish my poems on its site. They are apparently censored. There is no nudity or profanity in these poems. There is only loneliness in solitary confinement torture, misuse of mentally ill people for prison profits, and murder - circumstances that prisoners encounter. I think that prison profiteers should get out of social media so that people can advocate freely online about the prison industrial complex.
ReplyDeleteI resent being censored. I resent my poems being presented on cellphone view differently than I posted them. I do not understand censorship against these poems which I wrote in a matter of minutes a few years ago. They have been published repeatedly. I think it is silly to censor poems that have already been so widely read. I will publish you two new poems to censor, NSA. How about that?
ReplyDeleteNSA is Nazi
ReplyDeleteNSA agents smell bad
NSA needs defunding
Their bosses are all MAD
*"Mad" as in "crazy, elite white supremacists" who plan to conquer the world through worldwide surveillance by way of the American taxpayers.