Rub this magic lamp three times; a genie will appear.
His skin is red, his hair is black, his eyes are crystal clear.
He will look into your heart to find what you desire;
a brand new car or peace on earth or wealth when you retire.
Make sure you word your wishes well.
Listen here, my boy….
Make sure you word your wishes well.
Those were the words the old man said to me today;
after handing me the lamp, he laughed and danced away.
I held it to my face and gazed into its mirror shine.
A greedy voice inside my head said, “Finally it’s mine.”
I thought about the things that I could use.
I said, “Forget that dumb old man”
and thought about the things that I could use.
I studied it suspiciously and rubbed it on my cloak;
it shook and jerked and issued forth a blinding cloud of smoke.
The genie floated on the air and bowed his head to me,
then offered up his wizardry to grant me wishes three.
What an amazing opportunity!
I told myself don’t screw up
such an awesome opportunity.
I wished to see an end to all the pain and poverty,
I wished to see an end to all the woe and agony,
I wished to see the world become a better place to be.
The genie smiled and spread his arms and granted them to me!
Approaching me benignly, he embraced me…
then reached his hand inside my heart
and stole my life away.
As I lie here dying, I now realize my mistake:
every wish I asked him for was phrased for my own sake.
He took away my life to make me blind to everything,
to all the pain and all the woe and all the misery.
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3 comments:
Powerful. Leaves me thinking of what the other options would be...i.e. what if he chose to see everything as it is, what would he ask for then? compassion, acceptance, strength? I like that there's that wake-up call at the end, and that it is left open for the listener to wonder about.
that is very good. I came over to re-check on your drawings and you blew me away with this, too.
That was awesome.
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