prophet

i’ve been told
i am simply supposed to be
god’s repeater

what i say
isn’t mine
it falls off my mouth
rattles on the tiles
is carried off to the crowds

but what is left for me?
what do i say when all the words
that come out of me
pass through without finding any place
to stick?

a prophet is without volition

when someone says vile things
am i supposed to do something righteous?
when someone whispers left side words
am i supposed to lift my right arm?

and when i am silent at the end
will there be anything left to bury?
what eulogy will i give for myself?
or will another prophet
speak another’s words over me
and thus no one will know me
as i do not?

it’s said we see the future
but all I see is the shit it grows from
and i’m the asshole who put it out there