Tried And Tested

By the cries of birds
By the lies I’ve heard
By my own loose talk
By the way I walk
By the claws of beasts
By the laws of priests
By the glutton’s feast
By the word police
By the planet’s arc
By the falling dark
By the state of the art
By the beat of my heart
By dark finance
By the marketing dance
By the poverty trance
By the fateful glance
Tried and tested
Tried and tested
By the pressure to rhyme
By the wages of crime
By the drop of a dime
By the ghost of the times
By the spurs of desire
By «What does love require»
By what I waited for
By what showed up at the door
Tried and tested
Tried and tested
By the nation wide
By the tears I’ve cried
By the lure of false pride
By the need to take sides
By the weight of choice
By the still small voice
By things I forget
By what I haven’t met yet
Tried and tested
Tried and tested
Pierced by beauty’s blade and skinned by wind
Begged for more -- was given -- begged again
I’m still here
I’m still here
Tried and tested
Tried and tested