Looking For Nihilism
Words are funny things.
They allow electronic impulses
to speak
express,
even fantasize
and create ideas.
For a long time
there were no words,
just grunts
screams
cries
or pointing
along with the brush work
of facial expressions
as our art of communication.
We were young then
and everything was new,
even the ways we kissed.
We drew our lives on cave walls
and beat our drums
to the Moon’s rhythms,
danced to its phases
and howled at its orange-ness
as it rode low in the sky.
All that is over now.
The moon does not dance for us.
Our drums are off key
sounding like shifting dirt
blown by wayward winds.
And our kisses taste like
the dampness of the grave.
We may have words
but all they express now
is the P A I N,
the pain of humanities suffering
expressed in the flowing blood
of children blown
to bits while hiding
in a school in Gaza.
Or while sleeping in a house
targeted by a U.S. drone.
Flowing blood
has become the source
for rivers
that once nourished our humanity
but now only reflects
and infects –
rotting our dreams,
turning us all inward,
facing an isolated, barren landscape
bathed in the colors of nihilism.
So, tell me
how do you feel at night?
Do you sleep well
or are you haunted by
what we have become?
Of course, nihilism
can always keep you safe.
Aztec Warrior / redzone 7.19.09
First, I have to say I love that song. Second the poem is a powerful piece and to feel good at what they have done they first have to feel right. good piece
Fia, that cover by Disturbed, is haunting and so appropriate for when I wrote this poem. And while today (2026), there is a political awakening to the horrors perpetrated in our name, and people are actively protesting in the streets again, the majority still hold tightly to this system, to this idea that, while flawed, America is still “good”. But America has never been ‘good” or great. America has always built itself up on the blood and bones of people here and around the world. And until people recognize this and act to get rid of this system, this song, “The Sounds of Silence” will remain powerful.
Thank you Fia, for your comment.
Honestly, if I think too hard about what’s happening today, the cruelty being doled out with such casual disregard for humanity, I crack a little inside. The corruption at the top doesn’t upset me as much as the blind hatred and full support the zombies give it. Hatred will be our unmaking and pain is, unfortunately, humanity’s common denominator. This is such a powerful piece and there’s so much going on in my mind now that I’m going to leave it at that and sit down.
Willow, it is not an easy thing, to think about the horrors and pain of the world today. It’s a sickness that is growing, and keep growing, unless we dig deeper into our humanity, our humaneness, and stop it. Willow, let me offer you my hand to help you up, to point you towards those who are refusing through nonviolent protest and resistance. There is still hope for humanity.
Thank you Willow, I am glad for your visit and comment. -Curt