Would You Die For The Song That You Are Singing Poem by Mary Angela Douglas

(dedicated to Susan Boyle because she sings just this way)

would you die for the song that you are singing
would you go down with the ship
to set it on dry land-

critics are always on hand
true audiences are few
but you can go on only

at one price: just being you
even if the stage is bare
speaking your life into
more than just the wind

beyond the approval of
yesterday's friends-
auditioning for the living God

even with nothing with no one
to show for it - belonging - nowhere-

weeping, weeping only into
the brightening air

with no one and nothing left to forgive,
if you would die for the song you are singing,
lo, it is written
you will live

mary angela douglas 24 april 2009; 29 september 2023