 |
Codependent history stings
Growth groomed to stagnate
Better wake up before it’s too late"
This collection of poems is a manifesto. The selections are the same length and format on each page, which is decorated with the same sword-pierced flag icon. The poems say that the time is ripe for an angel-warrior narrator, whose wings were clipped by the world’s wars, power-mongering, and conformity, to look inward for the strength to fight back in love and freedom. This idealistic message, the narrator admits, is at times dreamlike, too good to be true, and too simple to believe. Images of springtime, affection, and astral wonder, though not as plentiful as images of ways the world has let the narrator down, still outweigh them. The tone is indefatigable in both its righteous anger and its faith.
The mysterious narrator reveals a history as a soldier, as well as a life of crime. A craving for women is also confessed. One poem addresses a brother. However, the majority of the poems are impersonal. They are rallying cries for anyone with a message to wake up, as the narrator does, from the past, from old ways, the deleterious effects of following the world order of greed and killing (people, animals, and environment). Conformity, seen in organized religion, is another trick the world uses to betray people and keep them back. Most poems include some recognition of these problems as well as solutions in the form of expression, relaxation, and true relationships.
Slang and rhyming couplets cut through the seriousness with a rap-like quality. The rhythm and wordplay display a delight in language and in life. While the time for a revolution is urgent, the poems’ levity suggests that, in some ways, it has already come. Taking time to love and pursue art, such as poetry, shows freedom in action. GoForth’s poetry both intrigues and cajoles.