Righteous
Religious little prig.
That was me.
Rigid, inflexible, as I’d been taught,
my Pharisee mind sat and judged.
Rules were made to follow,
and this guy broke ‘em all.
Nikki was a what?
You met her where?
She was doing what, with a what?
Grind? Your body?
A funky time?
The Lord is coming soon?
Yes, He is…but in your mouth that’s blasphemy.
Wait…it means what??
Ridiculous, though, because the
beat
and because the
tune
and because the
nasty voice
and the
naughty riff
and the
devastating hook
and the
funkayyyyyyyy…
and why do I know all his songs?
Made this white righteous girl
shake her ass in public view…
Righteous
genius
that he was.
Prince, L.A. Forum, 2011
This post is a blend of the A to Z Blog Challenge and NaPoWriMo. To read other A to Z bloggers, click here. Today’s poem is off prompt, for possibly obvious reasons. It holds to the day’s prompt from The Poet’s Billow.
Pushing the Bruise 
Your tribute was so fitting. I once was so righteous, and found myself in your words.
Thank you. It takes us a while to unlearn, huh?
Well done. I never had the religious baggage to deal with – I had an uptight Victorian-influenced family code instead. Same result. I used to listen to him with the radio turned way down low. I loved what Cheryl Strayed said in tribute to him, that he taught her the power of the forbidden word spoken. He definitely tapped into the primal and the visceral.
The power of the forbidden word spoken INDEED! And swear words are a whole other post! Ooh…I needed an S post…hmm…
I love this. Never would have thought you could making such a lovely tribute which conformed to the other challenges too. Brava.
Thank you. This one was slow to come but quick to form. I love it when the serendipity happens.