the bluebird - charles bukowski

there's a bluebird in my heart that wants to get out

but I'm too tough for him,
I say, stay in there,
I'm not going to let anybody see you.

there's a bluebird in my heart that wants to get out
but I pour whiskey on him
and inhale cigarette smoke
and the whores and the bartenders and the grocery clerks
never know that he's in there.

there's a bluebird in my heart that wants to get out
but I'm too tough for him,
I say, stay down,
do you want to mess me up?
 you want to screw up the works?
you want to blow my book sales in Europe?

 there's a bluebird in my heart that wants to get out
but I'm too clever,
 I only let him out at night sometimes when everybody's asleep.
I say, I know that you're there,
so don't be sad.
then I put him back,

but he's singing a little in there,
I haven't quite let him die
and we sleep together like that
with our secret pact
and it's nice enough to make a man weep,
but I don't weep,
do you?


 Another classic from the mighty pen of Charles Bukowski.
From in The Last Night of the Earth Poems and The Pleasure of The Damned.

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