In the land west of Nod, the flesh of Gaia lies torn
Penetrated by bearers of succulence,
Here is found forbidden fruit, in this fertile garden,
Beauty incarnate, the seeds of truth wait.
But softness of its skin, ripe, tender,
It waits to be consumed

Solus he enters, name-giver man
The red ripeness of this seed beckons, pulls
It shows the reflection of his self, a passageway to his truth
An offer of fulfillment, purity untouched
Untouchable, by tradition, by God’s Law, forbidden

Alas Darwin dictates to primate man
Animal curiosity rules, conceit persuades
Desire dominate, manipulates, justifies
To reach out … to caress … to Know
To Possess.
The I that is Mankind is engendered
         The I that wants,
         The inherent vice that taunts
It is the hidden flaw, the denied reality
The final argument against omniscient omnipotence
Generating Greed, Covetousness, Envy, Lust
A wind rustled the leaves of perfection
Eden no longer awaits.
A beast has burst from the loins of man
To be his only true offspring.
The passion feeds it, its hunger grows,

Laden, the bough nods down, His arm extends
To caress the cool flesh of knowledge
Yes, to know All, to Truly know, to Possess
To own.

—NO—

Wind whispers down through the leaves
—No, man cannot take, it is for others to give—
Lust flows from fingertips to fruit, flesh unites
In unity man divides, passion consumes, fear divides
The Eternal Conflict is born.
The contact is lost, the seed still inviolate
The truth of flesh will, for a space yet remain out of his grasp
Yet the truth remains, the hunger feeds, growing strong

East of Eden the tender skin of the earth once more erupts,
A tainted meat now awaits,
Raw and bloody, this newly rent flesh harbours the seed
The truth of man’s love will metamorphose here
Chaos and confusion reign, simplicity is lost,
Now true beauty lies hidden beneath many layers,
Reality springs forth; man’s existence is at last defined

**

A serpent smiles, the smile of true knowledge
The juice of the truth on his lips
The flesh of the fruit peacefully awaits
For fulfillment, for the fall of woman
For Man had already fallen.

 

Written for and submitted to an English Club journal (and rejected).