I Am Waiting

The following poem was inspired by Lawrence Ferlinghetti who penned a poem, "I Am Waiting", published by City Lights in the 1950's.

I Am Waiting
--Purloined from Lawrence Ferlinghetti
--By Ronald E. Hignight

I am waiting for my Lotto numbers
to produce something other than disappointment,
and I am still waiting
for a rebirth of wonder, and
I am waiting for Lawrence F to
write anew, as a born again Phoenix,
with poetic prophecies that everyone will understand,
this time,
and I am waiting for our myopic politicians
to walk out of a Mall sporting new glasses improving
their vision for America, and
I am waiting for the newer generations to awaken
from their dreams and delusions and realize that, really,
it is not all about them, and
I am waiting to hear rappers sing of joy rather than anger
thumping their way down the streets
of my neighborhood, where Johnny Nolan still lives,
and runs through screen-door summers,
forever escaping kids who chase him
because of the patch on his ass, and
I am waiting for change to come to the
government of change all changed up
but still withering and dithering, and
I am waiting a rebirth of wonder.

I continue to wait for the
second coming of anything which will
break-up the monotony of TV preachers and
their unsolicited teachings of intolerance, and
I am waiting a rebirth of wonder,
I am waiting for all religions to be taxed
for their profits – we tax newspapers but that
has not destroyed freedom of the press, has it?
And, I am waiting for someone to record
his chat with God so all can see and understand
without having to believe in the believer, and
I am waiting
a rebirth of all the Gods so
that when they are ready, they can compete all
on the same field and all at the same time,
in a footrace for our souls, and
I am waiting to see the word intolerance
disappear from my OED
as an archaic term no longer needed
by anyone, and
no longer understood, and
I am waiting for a rebirth of wonder
I am waiting for religions to grow in imagination
giving us all something other than trite
stories with the same climax and boring filler, and
I am waiting for a new Bible to be written premised
upon the fact that ‘shit happens’ and,
I am waiting, longingly, for a rebirth of wonder.

I am waiting to talk to a person when I call and
I am waiting, and waiting, and waiting,
and waiting,
and waiting, and,
I am waiting for someone to give
us Global Cooling in recyclable containers
imprinted with scenes of the former Good Earth and
distributed by Budweiser, and
I am waiting a rebirth of wonder
I am waiting for Bill Buckley to arise from his ashes, as well,
and guard our language against dissing, whatever that means, and
I am waiting for public schools to again educate scholars
rather than appease miscreants, and,
I am waiting for the Board of Education to be swung,
hard, again, again and, again
curing forever, those afflicted with ADHD, and
I am waiting to see Armed Cops on School grounds
replaced with costumed Disney characters carrying candy, and
I am waiting for Rush Limbaugh and Glen Beck
to go bird hunting with Dick Cheney,
without medics, and
I am waiting for the Press to meet Itself mediated
by Robin Williams and Diane Roberts, and
I am waiting for an entirely new
rebirth of wonder.

I am waiting for the awe of new adventures through
astronauts taking a stroll across the face of Mars
giving me chill banes,
and pride again, and
I am waiting to see if the dividends of my share
of Social Security will buy me more than a glass
of fat free, nutrient free, taste free milk, and
I am waiting for a revival of wonder to be announced
at the next World Series witnessed by a Cereal World, and
I am waiting for the reconstructed Mayflower to
be filled with Republicans and returned to Europe
waived and toasted away by Native Americans and Democrats,
and I am waiting for a rebirth of wonder
I am waiting for the missing link to be found only
because I want to be amused, yet again, by some new
unintelligent design theory, and
I am waiting for Osama bin Laden to crawl out
of his hole, profess his innocence and appear in court
in orange coveralls with an attorney lugging around
a copy of the Koran from which he will offer
a humorous defense, and
I am waiting for a new rebirth of wonder.
I am waiting for David Copperfield to make
the World Trade Center reappear whole and full of laughing
people excited with the joke but ready to go home,
If only he could, and,
I am perpetually awaiting a rebirth of wonder.

I am waiting for all gays to actually be gay
and to get to do the unhappy things heterosexuals do
and I am waiting for a rebirth of wonder
I am waiting for the New Iron Curtin to be built
from Texas to California,
with high-tech video cameras showing America
the identities of those who want to be free next, and
I am patiently and expectantly waiting
for a rebirth of wonder
I am waiting on the Green Flash, daily,
with rum in one hand and tequila in the other,
listening to Jimmy Buffett telling me how he
did it wrong while making a million dollars a day,
and I am waiting for a rebirth of wonder
I am waiting for troops to come home
from their dusty duty, and stay home for good, and
I am waiting for America to formally apologize
to the world for George Bush and I am waiting
for George Bush to formally apologize to General Powell,
and I am waiting for Karl Rove to go moose hunting with a chagrined
Dick Cheney and a smiling Sarah Palin, and,
I am waiting for a real rebirth of wonder
I am waiting for someone in line to tell
me why my Wal-Mart sized shampoo cannot fly
to Tampa with me, I mean, if it is really that explosive,
I want to know, but, I am still waiting
for a rebirth of wonder.

I am waiting for Governor Charlie Crist to
meet Charles Durning and learn that lovely
song and dance step of effective governance, and
I am waiting for a rebirth of wonder
I am waiting for One Human Family to
find a way to humanize our
mean old backed-up farts
and turn them into missionaries, and,
I am waiting for a rebirth of wonder
I am waiting for the jets to land quietly
allowing us to hear the roosters crowing again, and
I am waiting a rebirth of wonder
I am waiting on the ghost of Lawrence F
to visit me and tell me it was ok to try
and update his poem, but then, I suspect
he is laughing with and at himself
and at all of us waiting for a rebirth of wonder -
a renaissance of wonder.