ODE TO A SACRED CLOWN

I saw you, Heyoka

Known in our Tribe, Lakota, as the revered one 

Presenting yourself in the form of a crow, a survivor

Your resourcefulness, curiosity and adaptability

Masked by your mischievous showmanship

I saw you, Heyoka

When you scaled down the ropes of other’s egos

And danced on the Plaza

Acting the clown, the crazy one, the trickster

I saw you, Heyoka,

Through your eyes of a child

You showed the strangers in the crowd

For what they really were

Tyrants, exploiters

I saw you, Heyoka,

You ripped apart prejudices

With your strange antics

When they threw coins at you for your performance

Little did they know

That you are the king of hoarders and shining objects

I saw you, Heyoka

Regal in your midnight cloak

Shining in the firelight

You were the magnificence of all good things human

The discounter of all things gone wrong

I saw you, Heyoka,

When you acted the idiot

Prancing, dancing and feinting

Showing us, those who know

That you are the Wise One

July 12, 2013   Robyn Makaruk

VIDEO vs AUDIO

"A picture is worth 1,000 words."

This old cliche guided my concept of communications

At that time, my mind was young  and full of empty spaces

Pictures seemed the right solution

But then I met a poet who upset that notion

He penned metaphors that encompassed 1,000 pictures

In a mere handful of words

He painted the pictures in my head

For that enlightenment,  I thank John Field.

Dave Lewis  July 12, 2013

John Field
Member, Sonoma Friday Writers