Sestina for Johnny Cash
The train comes rollin’ on in June—
the Great North Central railroad line
filled with kilos Colombian ice-cold pure
and prisoners wearing suits of black.
It’s so I’m down and can’t feel—
today hell’s furnace makes me pray.
I seek the Most High to love, and pray
for the beat down man with good wife June.
I hurl spit in the eye of senators who feel
not the heart of the little man on the line,
then I don famous shirts of grievous black.
I could do better, I could be pure,
but for bathtub gin and Andes pure,
my knockin’ knees mock God when I pray.
I doubt my God’s hand, black
as stars like a sticky night in June—
they fan out at the table in a line,
cocktail waitress is givin’ me a feel.
I hurt myself today, to see if I still feel.
I focused on the pain with twenty lines of pure.
Yes, in Jackson, by Jackson, off the Northern line,
I do seven lines, a swig of Jack then pray.
I hope to store those blues by June.
With heavenly hymns, pages of black.
I’ll not be coming back in my suit of black.
I hope to go to June begin again to feel.
I’ll be headin’ home to my true one, June
to live in paradise a life ever pure
where we’ll drink coffee on the porch and pray,
and leave these chains on down the line.
What man knows the glory, walks the line?
What man mourns the nation, wearin’ black?
What man bends his hallowed knees to pray?
What man chases pain to feel
to the ends of the Earth’s pure
skies hand in hand for love of June?
I will walk the line, again to feel—
be still in blackest beauty pure.
and pray my blues away with June.
12 thoughts on "Sestina for Johnny Cash"
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Oh my !!!!
Another one …..wow.
Not to repeat myself but dahang!!! Meter…..hard-won…..metric system pro!!!
Thats a lot of work Manny !!!
Thank you for writing this poet.
O wow!
You just wrote a poem. 🙂
June had to have a Johnny this summer. “I just had ta”.
You had me at the title. What an incredible piece, Manny. Wow!
A masterpiece. This kills. Wonderful work, Manny.
I can see the man acomin’
acomin’ around the bend..
Fantastic! All praise for Johnny, June and Manny!
Good images and lots of Johnny Cash. I enjoyed it.
Johnny Cash was an icon of my childhood. Thanks for honoring him and June.
What Jim said.
I can hear his voice throughout singing these words. Great cadence.
Love every word!
Quite a sestina—a very complex It drills deep on your subject and takes us all for a ride.
A complex reckoning with a complex man and the symbol he’s become. I love:
I’ll be headin’ home to my true one, June
to live in paradise a life ever pure
where we’ll drink coffee on the porch and pray,
and leave these chains on down the line.
I love the sestina. I love Johnny and June even more. Thanks for reading y’all.