the knob & nigga the door

into a door to an eternal eastside

hidden in the shea-slick hold of kin

& little bridges clasped black hands make

or how my nigga Josh place

his head against my head

& we each make our nigga a crown.

ain’t that it? my niggas royal me

make me the whole damn castle

& me brick & me moat & i arrows

pointed at the distance ready

to ride for the two g’s of my body

& the g’s that made me

& the g’s before

& the g’s before.

how many of us have them?

friends! if i may interrupt right quick

i know y’all working, busy smoking & busy

trying to not, busy with the kids & moms

& busy with alone, but i have just seen

two boys—yes, black—on bikes—also black—

basketball shorts & they outside shoes, wild

laughing ’bout something i couldn’t hear

over my own holler, trying to steady

the wheel & not hit they lil asses as they swerved

friend-drunk, making their little loops, sun-lotioned

faces screwed up with that first & cleanest love

we forget to name as such & hear me out

i’m not trying to diss lil dude, but in this golden hour

he kind of looked like Francine     off Arthur

same monkey mouth & all, ole & i say HEY! lookin’-ass boy

tho in a beautiful way, the best beautiful

same as i know all of us have looked

when wasted off love. o loves

y’all ugly asses have crowned me the worst names:

wayne brady, gay wiz khalifa, all kinds of bitches

& fags (tho only with my bitches & fags)

&, once, the mark of Buddha the year acne

scored my forehead with its bumpy faith.

o my niggas & my niggas who are not niggas

i been almost pissed myself, almost been boxin’

been tears & snot off your dozen wonders

been the giddy swine dancing the flame.

o my many hearts, y’all booty-faced

weird-ass ole-mojo-jojo-head asses

dusty chambers where my living dwells.

roast me! name me in the old ways, your shit talk

a river i wade, howling until it takes me.

i can’t stop laughing, more river wades

down my throat. could be drowning

could be becoming the water, could be

a baptism from the inside out.

don’t save me, i don’t wanna be saved.

i been died laughing before, been seen

god’s face & you have her teeth, my nig.

but    hers    ain’t as yellow    as    them        saffron shits

you    keep    stashed    in    your    gloryfoul mouth

my friend! my friends! my niggas! my wives!

i got a crush on each one of your dumb faces

smashing into my heart like idiot cardinals into glass

but i am a big-ass glass bird, a stupid monster

crashing through the window & becoming it

just to make you laugh. Andrew used to say

friendship is so friendship                     & ain’t it?

even after Andrew gave it on over to whatever