Yo Yo Yo!!!

(In the words of Martin Lawrence) WAZ UP....WAZ UP....WAZ UUUPPPPPPPPP

Yo, dig, this aint gon be no long post - just a notification that Im starting a new series called 1 Kings and Things, which eventually will segueway into 2 Kings and Things!


YO, YO, YO, Chickity Check it Out YOOOOOO!

Meant To Be (An Analysis)

*dedicated to Darlene, Katie, Jennifer, Jan, Meghan, Cynthia, Shannon, Alexis, Kina, Lisa, Bethany, Kara, Mindy, Camille. To all the girls I agonized over but eventually concluded I should have never even pursued - because I was too unworthy, and never really had a chance....


So all the guests who were with Adonijah were afraid, and arose, and each one went his way

----------------/ 1 Kings and Things Chapter 1 (Part 1): Meant To Be - The thoughts of Adonijah as Solomon is coronated and everyone flees.


The choice:
legacies left behind or
legacies you choose to bequeath to the world......
.......
melancholy rejection (from love, from self, from expectations real and phantom),
always attempting to recoup or compensate for missed opportunities;
this is a story about letting go
and not always chasing after frivolous things
every whim of fancy
and wishing that things would be what they patently are not.
we (my supporters) fell too far too fast
precipitously rejoicing in things that were never meant to be
and we saw our aspirations rise in that smoke
towering towards heaven
Zoheleth was to be a monument to perpetuating a contingency
I guess
and in delusion hoping façade would supersede reality
of being second best
of never being esteemed the way you always wished you were
too many brothers
too many mothers
too many mouths clamoring throughout the kingdom
of their grandiose intentions to be king – someday ruling the world
shackled to envy, and perceptions and perspectives foisted
at such a young age
and feelings that
there will be a collective sense of deprivation
if you aren't what everyone purports you to be
and I apologize to the sheep and oxen
filled with regret and shame for making martyrs out of
bystanders, dolefully dying for deception
screaming out lies, feigning wailing in anguish
so that their families too would be able to find dignity
in the life and the memories,
the sanguine heritage to be passed down to their babies
destined to live a life in squalor, used for meat
some worthless, immoral guests of the king never choose to eat
though seasoned with the best spices. wretches.
and maybe Solomon is the better man
and my life better for the royal court
but sometimes you just don't realize these things till its too late
and you dont truly mourn for things until theyre taken
and when your hope and your optimism, friends and cohorts
(and some self-serving opportunists, no doubt. But doesn't every
great leader have some storied panicked past with parasites? Bittersweet but poetic)
dissipate and disband as quickly as they assembled
you become an adolescent again
sitting on your mother's lap listening to fawning stories
about how her baby would enable her to be "Queen Mother"
someday
and you just want to keep holding on to that vision
closing your eyes time and time again
trying to make it come true
trying to make everyone else believe it too


(because as you age, you find out its all you've got....all youve ever had)





---------1 Kings 1:5-10;41-49
Then Adonijah the son of Haggith exalted himself, saying, "I will be king"; and he prepared for himself chariots and horsemen, and fifty men to run before him. (And his father had not rebuked him at any time by saying, "Why have you done so?" He was also very good-looking. His mother had borne him after Absalom.) Then he conferred with Joab the son of Zeruiah and with Abiathar the priest, and they followed and helped Adonijah. But Zadok the priest, Benaiah the son of Jehoiada, Nathan the prophet, Shimei, Rei, and the mighty men who belonged to David were not with Adonijah. And Adonijah sacrificed sheep and oxen and fattened cattle by the stone of Zoheleth, which is by En Rogel; he also invited all his brothers, the king's sons, and all the men of Judah, the king’s servants. But he did not invite Nathan the prophet, Benaiah, the mighty men, or Solomon his brother; Now Adonijah and all the guests who were with him heard it as they finished eating. And when Joab heard the sound of the horn, he said, "Why is the city in such a noisy uproar?" While he was still speaking, there came Jonathan, the son of Abiathar the priest. And Adonijah said to him, "Come in, for you are a prominent man, and bring good news." Then Jonathan answered and said to Adonijah, "No! Our lord King David has made Solomon king. The king has sent with him Zadok the priest, Nathan the prophet, Benaiah the son of Jehoiada, the Cherethites, and the Pelethites; and they have made him ride on the king’s mule. So Zadok the priest and Nathan the prophet have anointed him king at Gihon; and they have gone up from there rejoicing, so that the city is in an uproar. This is the noise that you have heard. Also Solomon sits on the throne of the kingdom. And moreover the king's servants have gone to bless our lord King David, saying, 'May God make the name of Solomon better than your name, and may He make his throne greater than your throne.' Then the king bowed himself on the bed. Also the king said thus, 'Blessed be the LORD God of Israel, who has given one to sit on my throne this day, while my eyes see it!'" So all the guests who were with Adonijah were afraid, and arose, and each one went his way.

Setting Me Straight!

Awwww man yall, I want a woman so bad! Like dat bamma St. Paul said son, its better to marry than to burn! – and trus....Im a burning!!! You see Im about to write to yall about this girl I saw the other.....

GOD: NO!

What the he.....? What was that noise?.......anyway, like I said before Im about to write a blog about this honey, sweet beautiful gorgeous cutie that I.....

GOD: NO!

Do I have something stuck in my ear? Shoooooot, all this commotion make me feel like Im playing Halo on Xbox live up in this piece, ya knoooowwww? Like, Like, I be about to kill my opponent – Lil Wayne, Show me my opponent!- and they always be like "No, No, No, please Mr. Tony don't hurt us.....we got kids to feed!" But I be blasting them fools and hitting em up with my hovercraft and what not anyway! No mercy for you Xbox posers! NO MERCY ....ahem.....but anyway I should find something to clean out my ears with......but yeah like I said befo, yo! yall this girl is banging yo! Shes the hot stuff, she....

GOD: NO! You will write about the book of Acts for your next blog entry! Focus!

Ummmm, assuming that's You, God, I would like to beg to differ…I wont be writing about the Book of Acts right on the heels of Valentines Day! I mean, come on Big Baby! Let me get this love thing on…..HEY! Wait a minute! You! YOU! Youre the Author and Finisher of my faith! And the mass reading the other day was about Adam and Eve son! DUUUUHHH – now that I have Your attention, I must kindly implore You to give me a hots babe! (Not merely hot, but hots). Like for example I would like my girl to look like Brooklyn Decker for one and.....

[Suddenly the ground Tony stands on begins to shake, and loud, almost deafening peals of thunder can be heard. The sky becomes ominously black, the clouds shades of blood red. Said tumult intimates that an earthquake may be pending]

Katy Perry?

[Incandescent, effulgent lightning blazes across the sky, as beautiful as it is dangerous, and lands at Tony's feet]

Beyonce? Shakira?? Mya???

[A violent gust of wind picks Tony up and hurls him a hundred yards and slams his body down]

Ouch! WOOOAAAHHH! OKAY OKAY, I’LL WRITE ABOUT THE BOOK OF ACTS! Acts Chronicles Chapter 11, right?

GOD: Right. Listen, my son, I will provide you with a wife, or not, all in due time. Seek first my Kingdom and all these things shall be added unto you. I am concerned with your preoccupation with women and relationships above and beyond other aspects of Christian life….

Whaaaat? Okay I feel you but like I said, Do I have to???

GOD: DON’T MAKE ME COME DOWN THERE AND STRIKE YOU WITH A LIGHTNING BOLT!

....eeek! Im right on it, Boss!

Acts Chronicles Chapter 11: The Fires Of Change

"When they heard these things they became silent;"

------------------/ Acts Chronicles Chapter 11: The Fires Of Change - The Thoughts of Peter Before Addressing the Jews Of The Circumcision


One of the hardest things to accept
in this world
is that people can change and that
those once deemed insolent and patently grotesque:
dignified luminaries
lionized and incorporated into your own core
innermost circle of friends, given the cloak off your shoulder
the spoon from your mouth
their children, the breast of your wife
and it is hesitancy
specifically the staunch restrictions you so
quickly reference
that provide pertinent prohibitive
rationale for why this new paradigm just wont, just cant
be plausible that now metamorphoses you into the enemy
you just witnessed converted
so you can experience what its like to have Jews refrain
from looking you in the eye when they speak
refusing to even barter in the market staring at your wares
with disdain
or even touch, much less dare to sit at the table you and your
family eat from.
they let your donkeys starve, your brother fall in the street
incapacitated and continue to pass by unaided (audibly groaning)
spurred by hatred
so that you finally understand that wickedness and truth
have no relation, that casual cruelty and civility
will be forever juxtaposed and not synthesized
and a man crucified on a cross
forever pitted against Barrabas
yet even he walked free, though not of his own accord
it was no mere dousing of water
washing and cleaning or dressing a flesh wound
but the Spirit of possibility of miraculous new paths
the old regenerated and become new,
a woman once spurned now sought after
a man denied enlistment now a decorated general
in war, transformed
and a belief that faulty justice theory and a
prejudiced heritage of skewed judgment can be reversed
through fire
through mercy

(just like us)


---------------
Acts 11:1-18
Now the apostles and brethren who were in Judea heard that the Gentiles had also received the word of God. And when Peter came up to Jerusalem, those of the circumcision contended with him, saying, "You went in to uncircumcised men and ate with them!" But Peter explained it to them in order from the beginning, saying: "I was in the city of Joppa praying; and in a trance I saw a vision, an object descending like a great sheet, let down from heaven by four corners; and it came to me. When I observed it intently and considered, I saw four-footed animals of the earth, wild beasts, creeping things, and birds of the air. And I heard a voice saying to me, 'Rise, Peter; kill and eat.' But I said, 'Not so, Lord! For nothing common or unclean has at any time entered my mouth.' But the voice answered me again from heaven, 'What God has cleansed you must not call common.' Now this was done three times, and all were drawn up again into heaven. At that very moment, three men stood before the house where I was, having been sent to me from Caesarea. Then the Spirit told me to go with them, doubting nothing. Moreover these six brethren accompanied me, and we entered the man’s house. And he told us how he had seen an angel standing in his house, who said to him, 'Send men to Joppa, and call for Simon whose surname is Peter, who will tell you words by which you and all your household will be saved.' And as I began to speak, the Holy Spirit fell upon them, as upon us at the beginning. Then I remembered the word of the Lord, how He said, 'John indeed baptized with water, but you shall be baptized with the Holy Spirit.' If therefore God gave them the same gift as He gave us when we believed on the Lord Jesus Christ, who was I that I could withstand God?" When they heard these things they became silent; and they glorified God, saying, "Then God has also granted to the Gentiles repentance to life."

Oh Kuh-OOPS!! Okay Okay! Mulberry Tree Tops and Crucifixes! U MUST READ DIS POST NOWSERS!!!

This is meant to enshrine the memory of a girl I met, though for anonymity's sake and for sake of being accused of harassment – sheesh!, I can only reveal certain elements of her identity and scant details on when I met her acquaintance! And of course, as an added mental tickle, I wont confirm or deny that my aforementioned sweetie is or isn't a concoction of my imagination! SHE WHO HAS EARS TO HEAR, LET HER HEAR! And in contrast, I would like to also write about a rush of inspiration I received about the splendor and value of icons in churches! Hows that for a crazy synthesis of disparate elements?! They actually relate because the beauty of this blonde haired- OOPS! Babe and the sacredness of icons both bring me to silence – obviously the latter being more sacrosanct! OKAY, SO HERE WE GOOOOOOO! (The Joker's voice in The Dark Knight)


-------------/The Tops Of Mulberry Trees- *a*i*, All I Need Is To Hear Your Voice


I lost track of my heart once,
wandering aimlessly, as though
in the Valley of Rephaim: melancholy musings
and Geba is your romantic fate with some dopey man
and Gezer is me old, wrinkled and gray filled with remorse
somber soliloquies softly spoken
sleeping as sinister
dreams overtook me, and we both know
presently,
that no one ever wants to end up alone
(or is destined to be alone)
there must be some other option than being barren
and walking around wishing someone would
kiss me
tumbleweeds were trenchant tokens of truculent terror
of the trembling thought
often intercepting my path
that you would never love me, or fight to remove
the barriers that stand between us
your beliefs
your friends
your presumptions of who I am, yet
I know you can speak to the rush of euphoria
the rapture and the ecstasy when I looked at you
directly in your eyes
just the other day – and you blushed, and you smiled;
the wind was a bit more forceful, obtrusive down here
when I wasnt sure of how to pull myself together
at the prospect of you simply walking away.....
(abandoning all hope of knowing the profound awe I had for you)
or surmount the seemingly impenetrable forces of
my Philistine doubt;
to this end I wanted to attempt one last conquest
that I knew I had no chance of winning – because I don't have your email-
you didn't even give me a chance to get to know you more fully
before I languished and decided to move on
to a lesser girl,
because no one will ever exceed your greatness,
but before I lifted my sword of defiance I heard my conscience cry
"You shall not go up"
and baby, your smile and your hospitality towards me
is a mulberry tree
to which I decided to flee
and wait for the sound of your laughter again
pure angelic inflection, rousing
like the sound of soldiers full of valor marching
down from heaven stopping just above my head-
like when I first heard it on top of the white hill*
steep
on a day that will be recounted as my fairest day,
when I die – buried next to you
anyway; somehow,
armed with these words of encouragement and
your beautiful face on my mind;
I advanced quickly
striking down the camp of the Philistines
fearlessly
not afraid to pray about our future marriage
or impending group events finding you sitting right next to me;
and drove my doubt back as far as the cursed thoughts
I was afflicted with before I fell in love with you
madly
passionately
obsessively
meticulously
and
before you found
before you rescued my heart

-----------------/
2 Samuel 5:22-25
Then the Philistines went up once again and deployed themselves in the Valley of Rephaim. Therefore David inquired of the LORD, and He said, "You shall not go up; circle around behind them, and come upon them in front of the mulberry trees. And it shall be, when you hear the sound of marching in the tops of the mulberry trees, then you shall advance quickly. For then the LORD will go out before you to strike the camp of the Philistines." And David did so, as the LORD commanded him; and he drove back the Philistines from Geba as far as Gezer.

* dedicated to Jesus on the Crucifix, in the Church

About three in the afternoon Jesus cried out in a loud voice, "Eli, Eli, lema sabachthani?" (which means "My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?").

-----------------/ Crucifix - Crucified Forever Remembered


I wasn't amongst the crowd
when the harrowing sounds of whips
scarring your back
pierced heaven's ears
nor do I know if you even voiced screams
already too pained by the excoriation
of children expelling a father
a wife driving out her husband
a nation
rejecting its king – rejoicing to trod on pools
of sacred blood trailing you, pouring
and I didn't have the honor
to be nailed beside you staring into the eyes
of an exemplar of virtue
observing the model of holy suffering
as spit slid down your cheeks -
lacerations flanking your thorned crown
I didn't get a chance to experience the
glacial wind torrent
that swept over the soldiers casting lots
for clothing so valuable the wearer
would never again have a blemish
frigid enough to coerce a guilty plea – truly this man
was the Son of God
from a man accustomed to reveling in callousness
and I didn’t cry, because I know I would have
when Your Mother Cried
or fein farcical attempts at consoling her -
which would be an impossibility
because a sword pierced Her Soul too
I only have these thoughts and fanciful reenactments
projections from my mind
to assist the grimaced look on your face
as you hang from the church wall
and I try to remember everything you did
just to get me here




------------------------/
Exodus 25:18–20
And you shall make two cherubim of gold [i.e., two gold statues of angels]; of hammered work shall you make them, on the two ends of the mercy seat. Make one cherub on the one end, and one cherub on the other end; of one piece of the mercy seat shall you make the cherubim on its two ends. The cherubim shall spread out their wings above, overshadowing the mercy seat with their wings, their faces one to another; toward the mercy seat shall the faces of the cherubim be"

Ezekiel 41:18-20
And it was made with cherubim and palm trees, a palm tree between cherub and cherub. Each cherub had two faces, so that the face of a man was toward a palm tree on one side, and the face of a young lion toward a palm tree on the other side; thus it was made throughout the temple all around. From the floor to the space above the door, and on the wall of the sanctuary, cherubim and palm trees were carved

Hadad the Edomite

"Nothing," Hadad replied, "but do let me go!"


---------------------/ Hadad the Edomite: A Promise Never Forgotten – The Thoughts Of Hadad The Edomite Before Requesting A Return to Israel (Formerly Edom)


A vow is a vow
even
when a coterie of highly respected trembling men
(friends of my father) kick sand in my eye, stinging
overcome with fear as blood stains portend paths we
should avoid
and run for their lives
with a caravan of whimpering and emotionally damaged Edomites
frenetically yanking my arms
flanked by horses, oxen and wailing women
that punctuated the restlessness that pervaded
six months of sporadic slaughter, and a night siege
unannounced, and us all: betrayed by the moon
(for keeping her silence)
a pathos of a boy fated to come and reclaim his sanity
seeking peace, seeking a semblance of justice
and put to rest the psychosis that haunts
the doppelganger that harrows
persistently reminding me of duties I am obliged to
the memories of a childhood lost to incompleteness
and an ethos of self avowed rage
fueled by malcontent and disaffection
that precluded me from completely opening up to my wife
or being gregarious and affable with my children
or allowing myself to get too attached to feelings
due to paranoia of loss
of a night of hell replicated
and a wellspring of tears run dry only after 35 years
and a hatred of politics, despotic kings and insipid
passionless, conviction-less soldiers mindlessly following
mandates, their field chiefs blinded and inebriated with too much hubris
to know the difference between mercy and duty
obligation and honor
respect for the hallowed ground and tombs of the dead
and so I will never forget you Paran, and the security and protection
you provided me in my youth
Tahpenes, for teaching my heart the form and principles of love
compassion
forgiveness, and the gentleness of the human spirit
Genubath you are the one who will rule righteously on foundations
of truth once wickedness is razed
Pharaoh thank you for strengthening me and allowing me to
succor at Egypt's breast, her culture, her wiles and wit
but my soul is in Israel....in Edom
and truthfully never left, once it saw my father fall lifeless
his blood splattered in the melee
his last words forcefully binding me to an oath
to never forget that evening
to come back


1 Kings 11:14-22Then the LORD raised up against Solomon an adversary, Hadad the Edomite, from the royal line of Edom. Earlier when David was fighting with Edom, Joab the commander of the army, who had gone up to bury the dead, had struck down all the men in Edom. Joab and all the Israelites stayed there for six months, until they had destroyed all the men in Edom. But Hadad, still only a boy, fled to Egypt with some Edomite officials who had served his father. They set out from Midian and went to Paran. Then taking people from Paran with them, they went to Egypt, to Pharaoh king of Egypt, who gave Hadad a house and land and provided him with food. Pharaoh was so pleased with Hadad that he gave him a sister of his own wife, Queen Tahpenes, in marriage. The sister of Tahpenes bore him a son named Genubath, whom Tahpenes brought up in the royal palace. There Genubath lived with Pharaoh's own children. While he was in Egypt, Hadad heard that David rested with his ancestors and that Joab the commander of the army was also dead. Then Hadad said to Pharaoh, "Let me go, that I may return to my own country." "What have you lacked here that you want to go back to your own country?" Pharaoh asked. "Nothing," Hadad replied, "but do let me go!"

Seven Hundred Wives

* dedicated to hooking up in 2011
* dedicated to this hot babe I saw last night, and the night before, and the night before -----D'OH!!!!

Maaaaan, yall....shooot. errrbody be hooking up nowadays.....Kelsey Grammer be doing his thang before he even get dat divorce.....Ochocinco be having all da honeys compete for his affection – shoot the Bechelorette gets to make out with all these buff guys at her every inclination......Olivia Wilde said she wants to sow her wild oats.....all Im trying to say is that I want that too! You think I don’t want to hook up with every hot babe I see??? HELLO!!! Its DC after all – land of the hotness! OOOOO YEAAAAHHHH, SNAP INTO A SLIM JIM (MACHO MAN VOICE)….man this aint even no darkjesusmetaphor post yall, Im just trying to rein in all my desires to be with all these girls and sleep around with no afterthought. I want to have hot babes all day and all night – what guy doesn't? Man, Im bout to be 30...aint got no girl for about 10 years now....UGgggHHHHHHH!!!! i WANT TO GO TO COYOTE UGLY AND DANCE ON A TABLE....errrr....I mean break a table with my bare-fist!!! WOOOOOOOO - manly GRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRR!!!!

[Justin Beiber]: nice save, Tony!

I mean, sometimes I just want to hook up.....willfully ignorant of the consequences! (Even though I know it aint right!......sigggghhhhhhhh) YA FEEL ME???? GOD, I JUST WANT TO HOOK UP!!!



---------------------Seven Hundred Wives; The Thoughts Of Solomon After He Is Punished By God



There is a temple somewhere intricately adorned
with bubbling fountains
weary travelers turn turbid from washed hands
(Ive seen it played out too many times before)
and kneel before altars for respite
wiping their brows, combing through their hair with their fingers
so it too is saturated in sacred waters, at first breathing heavily then
hearts racing settle down - their face cracks a smile
as their bodies fall against marble pillars
and at night somewhere there is a cool breeze
that welcomingly strokes the face
of all who close their eyes and exhale and wish for better days
inwardly singing with the owls that croon to be one
with the universe – garments billowing in the wind
and the head gets laden with the crown
its wearisome embellishments of responsibility, national defense
and gatekeeper of justice bear down
and sense and sensibility and
the wisdom from above that dictates honey in excess
is deceptive satiation and that self control is a mighty fortress
with walls and buttresses
topples from expectations and efforts to resist
instant gratification
from Moab, Ammon, Edom, Sidonia and Anatolia
sweet like wine, intoxicating and calming
euphoric in its enchantments and enticements of rebellion
conquest and victory – triumphant in its rapture
and succulent in its savory success;
Chemosh is my testament to a life of discipline lost
Molek a totem to a new conscience that knows no restraint
incense is burned in high places
Ashtoreth is my new god
of seduction, wonderment and new phenomena
and there are seven hundred reasons I have to be thankful
to never look back
companionship to wrap my arms around at night
ears to whisper to beneath a sea of stars
sultry secrets of a man steeped in esoterica
longing for three hundred more acts of endearment and ceremonies and
extravagant banquets;
a subterfuge for guilty pleasure
stoking the flames of rage and jealousy
from Jeroboam son of Nebat
and jealousy Hadad the Edomite
selfish hoarding; an escape from steadfast allegiance
to a God who has no shadow of turning
sensual love
absorbed in and desperately, fatally addicted to
like a shelter, a temple palace, a midnight gust from righteous conviction
that ultimately leaves my kingdom torn in two
Israel forever crippled
forever maimed
and I
forever indulgent


--------------------------1 Kings 11:1-9
King Solomon, however, loved many foreign women besides Pharaoh's daughter—Moabites, Ammonites, Edomites, Sidonians and Hittites. They were from nations about which the LORD had told the Israelites, "You must not intermarry with them, because they will surely turn your hearts after their gods." Nevertheless, Solomon held fast to them in love. He had seven hundred wives of royal birth and three hundred concubines, and his wives led him astray. As Solomon grew old, his wives turned his heart after other gods, and his heart was not fully devoted to the LORD his God, as the heart of David his father had been. He followed Ashtoreth the goddess of the Sidonians, and Molek the detestable god of the Ammonites. So Solomon did evil in the eyes of the LORD; he did not follow the LORD completely, as David his father had done. On a hill east of Jerusalem, Solomon built a high place for Chemosh the detestable god of Moab, and for Molek the detestable god of the Ammonites. He did the same for all his foreign wives, who burned incense and offered sacrifices to their gods. The LORD became angry with Solomon because his heart had turned away from the LORD, the God of Israel, who had appeared to him twice. Although he had forbidden Solomon to follow other gods, Solomon did not keep the LORD's command.