now i lay me down to sleep
don’t let the darkness take me
if armageddon comes before i wake
i know they’ll never break me
my salivation, my salvation
take me now or never wake me
southward from heaven’s gate i go
but hell will never take me

all my enemies forsake me
but it’s my friends that make me
fear and fear i do
till death i’m wed anxieties that plague me
you’ve been a friend to me, but friend
it seems clear to me i should fear you
more than the dark angels descending to shake me

apologies for vagary and vague imagery
do mine eyes deceived me?
a doxology of stagnant praise
raise the line for scrimmages to hell’s ceiling
knocking my whole life at heaven’s floor
’cause they won’t see me stand at the door
insist it’s chivalry to deny myself
all i can tell i’m feeling

i can’t roll over and play dead
although it sounds so damn appealing
won’t pretend the vampires are in my head
so i’ve tried concealing
but i can’t stand if i don’t speak
and until the day of the great repealing
i can’t pretend the nightmare is just a dream
and just keep on kneeling

i need a faith healing
if pictures speak a thousand words
then i am not revealing
i hope the images in my head are never heard
but i’ve got this feeling
since i’ve seen your beatific vision blurred
by all your underhanded dealings
maybe the flames of hell are to warm
the hearts so cold and unfeeling

~wwb