Amazing Grace, for Rev. Lucius Walker

amazin grace...for the late rev lucius walker...

by Zayid Muhammad




“Amazin grace…How sweet the sound…

That saved a soul like me…

I was once was lost…

Now I’m fighting to be free…

Only struggle

Will save you and me…”*

“Yea, though I walk through the valley

of the shadow of death;

I fear no evil; For thou art with me

Thy rod and Thy staff

They comfort me.

Thou preparest a table before me

in the presence of mine enemies.

Thou anointest me with oil;

My cup runneth over…

Surely, goodness and mercy shall follow me

All the days of my life; And I shall dwell

in the house of the Lord forever…”Psalm 23

the time has come

the trumpet has sounded

that miles as in davis muted trumpet has sounded

his name has been called

Luuuuucius!

Lucius Walker!

The gateway has been presented

and this man

this modest samaritan man

this man

this fearless mount of courage and faith of a man

this daniel audacious amazin grace of a man

he has ascended that stairway to heaven

received by the God he so valiantly served

to the ultimate delightful chorus

‘job well done, my son…job well done…’

and for us still here in the land of the living

and for those coming behind us

for this man

for this heroic humanitarian

we must monumentally mark his place in this time

to radiate the lessons of light of his enormous example…

so give me a truckload of bibles

in english spanish creole and french

give me a bushel of the ripest olive branches

give me crates upon crates upon crates

of medicines and medical supplies

so we can make a late 20th century

early 21st century balm in gilead…

give me a caseload of bloodied bonebroken bullets and shrapnel

as evidence of the evil of oppression

made in the usa

give me a column Zapatistas covering the rear

as surrogate angels...

“Thy road and Thy staff, they comfort me…”

give me prime photos of his wife children and grandchildren

give me a chessboard dominated by battling bishops

and a line of willing volunteers to be sacrificed

give me a hemispheric huge harvest

of yams corn apples lentils leeks

of oranges mangoes pineapples

yucca and beets

give me fish and loaves of bread

and give me flour yeast and hearth ovens

to bake our own

give me enuf righteous roasted lamb

to feed all the villages he served

that had been denied the fruits of their own sacred labor…

“…Thou preparest for me a table in the presence of mine enemies…”


for his chocolate eyed charm

for his awesome absence of ego and vanity

for his che’ like capacity to lead without commanding

for this man

for this peoples redeemer

this shining samaritan

this humble heroic humanitarian

we need huge broken tablets of unjust laws

broken by armies of the faithful that he led

we need a tall rugged cross

stained with the blood of martyrs

like camilo cienfuegos, martin luther king and bishop romero

we need all those made missing by the death squads to be found

we need david walker’s appeal

martin’s letter from a birmingham jail

che’s socialism and man

we need fidel-full analyses

of all the political minefields and crosscurrents

we still must confront

we need broadcasts of insurgent commentary by mumia abujamal

we need a huge toilet and a flushing of the waste of the blockade!

we need mumia free…

we must enshrine that little yellow school bus

with the wheelchairs of the fasters

we need video footage of baffled abusive overseers at the borders

we need doctors without borders

willing to dance with the patients they treat

we need a huge cup runneth over with faith courage love and hope

and we need lots and lots of witnesses

organized to continue…

for this man

for this daniel audacious man

this marvelous mount of courage and faith

this shining samaritan

this heroic humble humanitarian

this chocolate eyed charming amazin grace of man

we need commitment

we need commitment

we need commitment

congalleros!**

to the front!..

“The Lord is my shepard; I shall not want…”

“We refuse to back down

We will fight to the end

Revolution

Revolution

is near…”



*lyrics from Yasmin Adeigbola’s poetic retake on Amazin’ Grace

**congalleros…spanish for conga players



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‘bro.zayid’