S. Preston Chase was born in 1951 in the San Fernando Valley in Southern California. He currently lives in the Sierra Nevada Foothills. In January 1995, he co-founded and today he leads "Some Local Poets" which is based in Mariposa, California. He co-chairs the eARTH nATIVE environmental wITNESS cAMPAIGN, serves as co-host of "Earth Native/Summer Gathering and Centosis," "Yosemite/Poetry In The Park," and the annual "Race Unity Day" celebration in Oakhurst, California.
Preston Chase co-hosts monthly poetry readings at the High Country Cafe in Mariposa, California, and "Between The Lines Poetry to Take You Home," AKA "The Mudhead Show," a monthly poetry show between 5:00 PM and 6:00 PM on the second Friday of each month on KFCF 88.1 FM in Fresno California.
Mr. Chase also hosts or co-hosts benefit readings each year to support Poetry Flash, The Fresno Free College Foundation (KFCF) and the Fresno Arts Council.
Poems by S. Preston Chase have been published in "People Have Ears," "One (dog) Press" "ZamBomba," "Just Say Yes," and "In the Grove." His poetry may also be found on page 6115 of the Central California Poetry Journal, and on the "Electric Shards" page of the 1996 edition of The Central California Poetry Journal.
truth
humility
.
humility
gratefulness
.
Gratefulness
great,
great healing
sacred mound of moon
between the sweat lodge
ground of sanctification.
offering to the sun
It's how well we do without doing
the four directions appealing
.experience of stars
sand bars shifting
between earth and sun
& the fire
of offering. willingness
to receive
to take away lack.
accepting from the Earth what we need.
offering tobacco to the fire
--sweetgrass and sage
pomegranate & Cedar-
offering your heart
to the Earth
to understanding
running aground
in heaven
click on, ...click off. try to keep up-
(a page torn out)
(and then we wait)
might as well have started out
It's always beginning
It's always double, & triple
I have a feeling
w/ awareness. causing...
grasping at straws
blown down
by the wind.
waiting. at the beginning.
when it's supposed to be ending.
Its always ending, after it ends.
;beginning before it's beginning
the beguine of the
unbegun
crossing. It's always criss-x-crossing
one or the other.
;it only starts. when it's all but over
but then
the fat lady hasn't sung.
when she sings--
she will have no
need of words
the sky is as angry as a father.
the sky is as angry as a father.
it's only about one thing
the Creator takes care of the moon
the outer planets are the body
this planet we call Earth,
--flashing smiles of light floating on water
It's only about one thing
It's all only about one thing
It's all only about one thing--
it's. .all about.
.
the lightening has gotten out of hand.
--the thunder is rocking the cabin
its coming down on all sides--
this mobile home is ready to move--
next, it will come from the ground
the moon rises of its own accord.
the Creator takes care of the moon.
.and even there we have left our footprints
in the sands of, "What was it?"
in the sands of, "what was to be."
the Creator takes care of the sun
and the stars. the planets,
life, hope, inspiration. & beauty--
absolutely. beyond belief
the sun shines in undeviation
over the head. the brow is crowned
by the diadem of inner illumination
.perfect beauty brought
by a winged messenger. perfect beauty
brought. into perfect relief
this planet, is the very face of god.
it is the very face of god's own glory
water spinning in light
ringed in oceans of wonder--
this Earth has eyes to see.
this is where vision takes place
in the "Land of What'tistobe"
this is where we have our being
--this is where we live.
this is our home. we are charged with glory--
we are charged with the glory
of this land
It's all about this land--
.all about us.
It's all about the land--
It's all about the land--
The land--
The land--
...the land.
this land. of creation.
the sky is as angry as a father.
next, it will come from the ground
.
"Every blessing has its curse;
It is good--
If I was an Indian, & a white-man, or, a.
I'd tell them.
"We did quite well before you came.
it's a blessing. that I
;that I must be native
that I must find my home
or be homeless
every curse, its blessing.
every silver lining its latent lightning.
Every fire its smoke.
Its holy smoke, and sacred ash."
-Two Suns
I am not an Indian.
I... would be too proud. I am too proud
as I am.
white-woman, said to me, "You--
shouldn't do that."
"You shouldn't...
eat meat."
"You shouldn't--
...throw that in the trash."
"You should recycle your aluminium."
"You shouldn't smoke cigarettes."
"You really shouldn't gamble."
"You really, really shouldn't carry a gun."
"You should...be different."
"You should, ...well, be like...us."
In no uncertain terms.
"Let me help you pack."
"Back to the boat, Jack!"
"All we need from you is what you haul out of here--"
"You packed it in, you pack it out."
"Hit the road Toad!" "You're welcome, anytime
to leave."
.we'll do just as well without you."
.
do not have that refuge to hide in
to the planet
wherever I am
.
forever
.
Earth native, disciple of life; liquid ice, liquid fire
Awareness focused. to catch fire
It's not a fine line,.its a long
name the moment when we were not.the moment
name the moment when a child was not the child
Our ancestors are the rocks,
Earth native, disciple of life,
we are all earth natives. we all qualify
We are-- the living symbol of planets
a succession of circles of meaning
we all go back to less specialized notions
The Creator / Creation. divided and conquered.
remember her is your prayers
.
we are all earth natives
We are all born of the same prayer
we are all born
rocks, trees, wind.living will. dust, dirt, soil, earth
pine needles, ferns
& palm fronds. orchids hanging, a hundred feet
off the ground. catching the sun in distilled awareness
.focused to catch fire
.
narrow road. between being & non-being
between being one thing and being another
we weren't. since life began
even before.
a beginning never begun
.the eternal origin of mystery
infinitely more ancient than history allows.
of its mother and father. when people
were not the children of people
;name the moment when consciousness
was not aware of its self.
the ocean, the sky & fire.
Our ancestor is life.
we are life evolving
the world of all living
are. our sisters & brothers.
--body of earth, sacred rock
molten ice, sacred water
breath of sky, sacred air
heart of sacred fire--
.
distilled essence of mind.
disciple of heaven's awareness
. at home on the ocean floor of being
at home on the ocean floor of forever
dreams unacknowledged in the making
time.after time. after time.
we all have creation in common, We all go back
to a common beginning. we are all made of earth,
fueled by the sun, rocked in the cradle of the moon
The mind held in continual conversation with the stars.
;the common origin of what's unbegun. a succession of knots
of beginnings. a succession of origins forever ending--
of interpretation. we all go back to a common beginning
.before the notion of ownership of heaven
before the notion of the ownership of the land.
the mother of all mothers bound while sleeping.
primal beauty lying in chains.
we are all earth natives
;children of consciousness. children of creation
awareness is our father .all of creation is our mother--
we are all born of the same prayer
never spoken
.
of the same prayer
.
All text and images in The Central California Poetry Journal are copyrighted. Copyright by © by Scott Galloway 1998. All rights are reserved. See main Journal page for
copyright information.
Authors and poets submitting original materials to this journal retain all rights to their
original work, except those rights specifically assigned in writing to Solo Publications including the right to publish the submitted work in The Central California Poetry Journal. The poems on this page are copyrighted by the author.
Copyright © S. Preston Chase 1998.
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