I am not as behind as it seems. I have responses to Psalm 6 and 8 but they are a little too close to home to post right now. Soon.
Here is the text of Psalm 4.
Psalm 4
For the director of music. With stringed instruments. A psalm of David.
1 Answer me when I call to you,
my righteous God.
Give me relief from my distress;
have mercy on me and hear my prayer.
2 How long will you people turn my glory into shame?
How long will you love delusions and seek false gods?
3 Know that the Lord has set apart his faithful servant for himself;
the Lord hears when I call to him.
4 Tremble and do not sin;
when you are on your beds,
search your hearts and be silent.
5 Offer the sacrifices of the righteous
and trust in the Lord.
6 Many, Lord, are asking, “Who will bring us prosperity?”
Let the light of your face shine on us.
7 Fill my heart with joy
when their grain and new wine abound.
8 In peace I will lie down and sleep,
for you alone, Lord,
make me dwell in safety.
For me, Psalm 4 is about immediacy. The author wants God to immediately respond to a need. However, God does not. Therefore the author urges the reader to immediately trust God. God is for trusting now. Search your hearts and be silent. I felt it was about trust, slowing down life immediately and the tension felt in that moment. I wrote in the margins "neurons" and I felt that was a large inspiration for the poems. Neurons move really fast. I felt that I wanted to look into something that happens slowly but must begin immediately, like thoughts. Comparatively, it takes forever for my finger to respond to a neuron trigger. The electrical impulse is very fast and in comparison the action is slow, yet the thoughts must begin immediately. I then thought about what would slow down neurons and the answers is either sleepiness, drunkenness, or fatty foods.
Here is what I came up with
Neurons on Alcohol
(8/7/13)
-Response to Psalm 4
Search my heart and find a barrel of rotten apples.
Their bruises melt them together like siblings.
Inhale the sticky ferment and sleep.
Dream of hailstones on your face like
Pudgy fists of a drunken father.
Feel the obese breathing on your neck.
He is fermenting too. Soon we will drink him.
On the roof of this shed I wait for the sun.
Raise my thumb in the air. Apollo will pull over soon.
My flesh is red and blistered. I rub sand into it.
Dawn will cook me into glass.
I will be a crowned jewel. Hardened and fragile.
Push me off the edge. I will be broken or saved
This morning.
I tried to create this effect through imperative phrases and reducing helping verbs, prepositions, modifiers, and everything else that slows down language. I wanted time to be an aspect, referring to past and present actions casually and easily. I also wanted to demonstrate the Psalmist's pain and the agony of waiting. I hope I did the poet justice.
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