Shaking It Down For The Universe Poem by Romella Kitchens

Day light comes walking on by singing songs as it glides about the way the world should be instead of what we keep toying around with and breaking.
Daylight moves between the clouds, spinning sunlight light into a cross body then full turn brilliant rays...

Home for a few brief hours between shifts in a world that offers little, I take off my shoes and go back, back in my mind to Africa, past the lashings and the
segregationists and the sirens that scream
demon red and chase then capture
and KILL....

I put on Bob Marley and dance from the kitchen to the dining room, to the living room,
dance within me and without, to this soft,
painless, rape-free, loving, pure white sand shore
in me.
I dance all the way up the stairs then back
down.

I remember seeing Bob Marley in concert, his last concert before his death, how my boyfriend loved me then died himself years later,
how he held on to me and danced...
The sweet scent of his soap fresh sweat, his strong back.
The sensual nature of freedom roaring like a lion.

I drink orange juice then dance some more.
I supposed my neighbors damned the music, damned me playing it but
then I heard a woman singing along from her home with "Three Little Birds."
She was laughing and knew all the words!
She was White but knew the song, enjoyed it.
When healing comes, always know the song.
Everyone else is fighting, threatening war, going to battle, plotting mass murders and destruction.
Everyone else is teaching with high powered weapons, the fear of dance, teaching dance
as death. But, you know dance is life. Life is dance. Freedom is true life. You know
that..
Dance like Jesus at a wedding. Dance like a child hearing music the first time.
Dance like David!
What if we can reclaim Eden by just being decent once in a big, blue earnest moon.?
I took off my shoes and went back past hatred, past people not knowing anything about you but your race and found that place within we all need to keep.
Dance.
Dance like the skylark does.
Don't be a race or a material need or a job or
a greed or an anger.
Don't try to be perfect or have to right car,
home or clothes, DANCE in YR BARE FEET.
Put on music. Play music you love and sing!
Find your songs that set you free...
And, just float. Fly on your soul's wings and
then flutter down and say to heck with all
the abusers and users, this is liberation time
for me, within. Be elated, without guilt.
Cleanse this world with your dance.
PRAY for more sanity in this world with your dance.
Extract the evil from the evil doers with your dance.
PRAY mountains of scars and pain away, not denied
but AWAY w/ Your DANCE.
Shake the gelatinous waves into your steamy, wanton hips then laugh about it.
Take a stand every dance, every day, every soul-born
Rhythmic PROTEST
for a better, safer world.
If you move enough, you will break the chains
everyone else seems so violently determined to
place on you and a world that would be free.
If when you are done that world that is ugly still remains --
remember the dance in you regardless and NEVER
let it go!