Four o'clock in the afternoon.....

[Pete]

Today
I sat in the sun.
It was four o'clock
in the afternoon
and I closed my eyes
and listened to 'Love and Hate'
through my walkman,
yes, my walkman,
and I was back in 1971
when I first listened to 'Love and Hate'
on the Dansette
and I had not heard of this Cohen before
and the songs ate into me
with relish
and I stood on the edge
and I didn't know about the elephants
and I wasn't sure if the cold was running thin
and, as far as I was aware, my vision wasn't growing dim
and I'd never seen a funeral in a mirror
and the girl I knew did not have chestnut hair
but suddenly everything did seem a long way down
and I stooped to find it
and fell
headfirst
and wandered the streets of Ivory Town
and drank hot water from cracked cups
and turned on the electric lights
to evaporate the dimness
and my reflection stared back
immortal and knowing
and the girl I knew
fed me berries and dreams
and I climbed back
to the edge
today
at four o'clock
this afternoon
and the last thirty-nine years
have been a dress rehearsal
and for that
I am grateful.


Pete

[margaret]

Lovely, Pete.

Margaret

[Teratogen]

Did you join the Rosicrucians?

[Judy]

Thank you Pete, it IS lovely ... I've been thinking about it on and off all day

[Cate]

a walkman!?

I've read this a few times now Pete and like it more each time. I especially like the surrealistic feel that develops after your Leonard Cohen discovery - that's great.

[Pete]

Did you join the Rosicrucians?

No ... but I feigned interest