Giving our needs— Copyright 1965-2008 by Dennis Gallagher —
I won’t give the part of myself that needs away again
its a pandora’s gift at best
it insidiously crawls into the heart of another
and tries to change them and trades much away
If I express my needs and you meet them because you love me
then its ALL because you want to
but, if I press my need to you as an emotional pressure
and you meet my need,
how am I to be sure you gave freely to me?
I will share my feelings and needs
but they must remain here in ME
I want to love you as you are
not to become a part of you.
free presents come from free people
I won’t have any other kind for I won’t extort
and if you tell me you wouldn’t let yourself be extorted
so I should go ahead and give you my needs
I wonder why you wouldn’t rather have me
standing on my own two feet.
gallagher – to Kathi K.
Long Beach
07-17-78
Archive for July, 1978
1978-07-17 Giving our needs
Monday, July 17th, 19781978-07-18
Tuesday, July 18th, 1978 When you look into me
you are Columbus and i am America
you are Marco Polo and i am China
Your eyes are your ship
and with them you ride
the deep oceans of my soul.
and you discover me and seek my treasure
and you find
the gold that is my heart
and the silk that is my spirit
and the jewels that are my thoughts
and the diamonds that are my tears
and sometimes my laughter
Come, brave explorer
for there is still much to discover
Come take the treasure of my being
for you have planted your flag
upon my heart
and all that lies within
is yours
for the journey
------
Sweet Man-child
your wide-eyed innocence fills my heart
your trust in life, tho from the start
she left you
left you with so few warm places
left you a searcher for kind faces
left you a seeker of soft embraces
When will you grow
when will you know
that she won't hold you?
Kathi K.
07-18-78
— Copyright 1965-2008 by Dennis Gallagher —
1978-07-21
Friday, July 21st, 1978Vancouver, no city of light at 1 am— Copyright 1965-2008 by Dennis Gallagher —
the country’s poorer … the eskimos and indians
fill the bars
No one’s pretty…desolation on so many faces
prostitutes…everyone is an enemy to them, walk the streets
the glitter facade, the trash behind
I stumbled into a bar where everyone
looked asiatic and bitter
long black stringy hair
dumpy women wearing sunglasses
Did we come here, Kathi and I, to play in this town?
it looks as if everyone with nothing is here
driving junk cars and losing…losing
The fine hotels rise amid the circus-circus bars
and the sidewalk girls
The streets are roamed by men-boys out to find manhood
walking in bravado pairs or shambling alone
into desolation and some more alcohol to get it right
or kill the lack
conquer a shabby woman…fight the barroom brawl
talk with drunken gusto…drink away the truths.
gallagher
21 july 78 – 1st nite in Vancouver