Alley Violinist

[digital-draft music track]
Alley Violinist by konst mp

[lyrics]
if you were an alley violinist

and they threw you money
from three windows

and the first note contained
a nickel and said:
when you play, we dance and
sing, signed
a very poor family

and the second contained
a dime and said:
i like your playing very much,
signed
a sick old lady

and the last one contained
a dollar and said:
beat it,

would you:

stand there and play?

beat it?

walk away playing your fiddle?

An Angel

[digital-draft music track]
An Angel by konst mp

[lyrics]
an angel appeared
to three different men

and he said to the first:
if i gave you a
handful of putty
what would you do?

i would make it into a vase
said the man

and what would you do?
he asked the second

i would make it into a bird
said the man

and what would you do?
he asked the third

i would make it holler
said the man

and the angel stood a moment
as though he were listening

now, he said to the first man
because you would make it into a vase
the lord will fill you
with living water

to the second he said: and because
you would make it into a bird
the lord will bring you to fly
through the heavens

and because you would make it holler,
he said to the third, look out:
he will make you holler

Problem In Design

[digital-draft music track]
Problem In Design by konst mp

[lyrics]
what if you like to draw
big flowers

but what if some sage has told
you there is
nothing more
beautiful

nothing more
beautiful

nothing more
beautiful

than a
straight
line

what should
you draw:
big
flow
ers
?
straight
lines
?

i think
you should
draw

big
flow
ers

big
flow
ers

big
flow
ers

big
flow
ers

big
flow
ers

big
flow
ers

big
flow
ers

big
flow
ers

un
til

they
be
co
me

a
str
ai
gh
t

l
i
n
e

Old Magician

[digital-draft music track]
Old Magician by konst mp

[lyrics]
a very old, very sick
magician once said to
his assistant: awk.

what's that? said the
assistant.

awk, said the magician,
by which i mean, for
god's sake listen to
my last commands.

o.k., said the assis-
tant: shoot.

mix one newt's egg.

yep.

with one toad's eye.

yeah.

with 15 measures of
cinnabar;

say the alexandrine
incantation.

& put it under a cold
stone to cool.

that all? said the
assistant. no goat's
blood?

no goat's blood.

no scream from old
lady?

no scream from old
lady, said the magi-
cian.

how long do you want
it to cool?

4 days, said the magi-
cian.

& then?

then pour it into a
hole in the ground.

what's supposed to
happen then?

i'll tell you then,
said the magician.

the assistant did just about
as he was told:
in fact, by the time he had
disobeyed, obeyed,
& disobeyed again,
he had gotten
the whole thing right:
ingredients mixed,
incantation spoken,
solution cooled
& poured into the ground.

all right, said the
assistant, now what do we expect?

nothing, said
the magician.
expect nothing.

nothing? said
the assistant.
then what did we
do the experiment
for?

all my life, said
the magician,
i've wanted to do
an experiment
that hoped for nothing
& accomplished nothing.

and now? said the
assistant.

i think i've done
it, said the magi-
cian. go out in the
garden & look.

the assistant went
out & was back in a
minute.

master, he said, in
the place in the garden
where i dug the hole
a tree is growing:
a golden tree

it has golden fruit
the color of newt's eggs

golden leaves, the
color of toad's eyes

a living trunk, the
color of cinnabar

& sings, it sings
like a tree full of
birds.

Japanese Lesson

[digital-draft music track]
Japanese Lesson by konst mp

[lyrics]
a man
hung a
shingle
 
outside
his house
 
that said
 
lessons
 
in how
to be
japan
ese
 
he taught
his students
to arrange
flowers
 
to pour
tea
 
to speak
japanese
of course
 
to write
haiku
 
to open
fans
 
to close
parasols
 
& to
walk
a tight
wire
 
this is
all eas
ier for
you than
 
it is for us
 
said one
of the students
 
being
japanese
yourself
 
actually
i’m not
said the
man
 
i’m a
swede
 
but my
teacher
 
was jap
anese

The Brand New City

[digital-draft music track]
The Brand New City by konst mp

[lyrics]
a man
had a
plan
for a
brand
new
city
 
instead
of a
shopping
center
 
there’d
be a
concert
hall
 
instead
of a
parking
lot
 
there’d
be a
museum
 
instead
of
filling-
stations
 
there’d
be a
fountain
 
instead
of
miles
of
white
concrete
 
there’d
be lots
of trees
 
the man
was
pleased
with
his
plan
 
&
so he
presented
it
to the
committee
 
the
committee
was tired
that year
& said:
we’ll
adopt
it
 
& so
they
built it:
 
a brand
new
city
 
way out
on the
plains
 
of kansas
 
when
the people
came out
to live
in it
 
they
said
 
that it
didn’t
have
any
of
the
things
they
were
used
to
 
& that
it was
all
full
of
things
 
that
they
didn’t
know
how
to
use
 
&
they
won
dered
what
they
were
going
to do
 
we’ll
live
in it
 
said
one
man
 
&
build
a
shop
ping
center
 
we’ll
live
in it
said
another
 
&
build
a parking
lot
 
we’ll
live
in it
 
said
a third
 
&
make
con
crete
walks
 
when
the man
heard
what
they
had
done
 
he said
it wasn’t
too bad
 
& again
 
that it
was
better
 
than
nothing

Therapist

[digital-draft music track]
Therapist by konst mp

[lyrics]
a man came to me with the
following problem:

"my mother-in-law," he said, "despises me;
my creditors, once friendly, are now all over
me; my wife threatens to leave me tomorrow
unless i put the children in a better school;
my employers criticize the tone of my work
for what they call a failure of nerve. what do
you suggest i do?"

i turned a somersault for him & he felt
better.