<html><head><meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html charset=utf-8"></head><body style="word-wrap: break-word; -webkit-nbsp-mode: space; -webkit-line-break: after-white-space;" class=""><div id="poem-top" class="active tab-content" style="line-height: normal; widows: 1; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><h1 style="line-height: normal; margin: 10px 0px 3px; padding: 0px;" class=""><font size="4" class=""><span style="font-weight: normal;" class="">Prayer</span></font></h1></div><div id="poem" class="active tab-content" style="line-height: normal; widows: 1; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><div class="poem" style="line-height: 24px; margin: 25px 0px 0px;"><div style="text-indent: -1em; padding-left: 1em;" class="">I want a god</div><div style="text-indent: -1em; padding-left: 1em;" class="">as my accomplice</div><div style="text-indent: -1em; padding-left: 1em;" class="">who spends nights</div><div style="text-indent: -1em; padding-left: 1em;" class="">in houses</div><div style="text-indent: -1em; padding-left: 1em;" class="">of ill repute</div><div style="text-indent: -1em; padding-left: 1em;" class="">and gets up late</div><div style="text-indent: -1em; padding-left: 1em;" class="">on Saturdays</div><br class=""><div style="text-indent: -1em; padding-left: 1em;" class="">a god</div><div style="text-indent: -1em; padding-left: 1em;" class="">who whistles</div><div style="text-indent: -1em; padding-left: 1em;" class="">through the streets</div><div style="text-indent: -1em; padding-left: 1em;" class="">and trembles</div><div style="text-indent: -1em; padding-left: 1em;" class="">before the lips</div><div style="text-indent: -1em; padding-left: 1em;" class="">of his lover</div><br class=""><div style="text-indent: -1em; padding-left: 1em;" class="">a god</div><div style="text-indent: -1em; padding-left: 1em;" class="">who waits in line</div><div style="text-indent: -1em; padding-left: 1em;" class="">at the entrance</div><div style="text-indent: -1em; padding-left: 1em;" class="">of movie houses</div><div style="text-indent: -1em; padding-left: 1em;" class="">and likes to drink</div><div style="text-indent: -1em; padding-left: 1em;" class="">café au lait</div><br class=""><div style="text-indent: -1em; padding-left: 1em;" class="">a god</div><div style="text-indent: -1em; padding-left: 1em;" class="">who spits</div><div style="text-indent: -1em; padding-left: 1em;" class="">blood from</div><div style="text-indent: -1em; padding-left: 1em;" class="">tuberculosis and</div><div style="text-indent: -1em; padding-left: 1em;" class="">doesn’t even have</div><div style="text-indent: -1em; padding-left: 1em;" class="">enough for bus fare</div><br class=""><div style="text-indent: -1em; padding-left: 1em;" class="">a god</div><div style="text-indent: -1em; padding-left: 1em;" class="">knocked</div><div style="text-indent: -1em; padding-left: 1em;" class="">unconscious</div><div style="text-indent: -1em; padding-left: 1em;" class="">by the billy club</div><div style="text-indent: -1em; padding-left: 1em;" class="">of a policeman</div><div style="text-indent: -1em; padding-left: 1em;" class="">at a demonstration</div><br class=""><div style="text-indent: -1em; padding-left: 1em;" class="">a god</div><div style="text-indent: -1em; padding-left: 1em;" class="">who pisses</div><div style="text-indent: -1em; padding-left: 1em;" class="">out of fear</div><div style="text-indent: -1em; padding-left: 1em;" class="">before the flaring</div><div style="text-indent: -1em; padding-left: 1em;" class="">electrodes</div><div style="text-indent: -1em; padding-left: 1em;" class="">of torture</div><br class=""><div style="text-indent: -1em; padding-left: 1em;" class="">a god</div><div style="text-indent: -1em; padding-left: 1em;" class="">who hurts</div><div style="text-indent: -1em; padding-left: 1em;" class="">to the last</div><div style="text-indent: -1em; padding-left: 1em;" class="">bone and</div><div style="text-indent: -1em; padding-left: 1em;" class="">bites the air</div><div style="text-indent: -1em; padding-left: 1em;" class="">in pain</div><br class=""><div style="text-indent: -1em; padding-left: 1em;" class="">a jobless god</div><div style="text-indent: -1em; padding-left: 1em;" class="">a striking god</div><div style="text-indent: -1em; padding-left: 1em;" class="">a hungry god</div><div style="text-indent: -1em; padding-left: 1em;" class="">a fugitive god</div><div style="text-indent: -1em; padding-left: 1em;" class="">an exiled god</div><div style="text-indent: -1em; padding-left: 1em;" class="">an enraged god</div><br class=""><div style="text-indent: -1em; padding-left: 1em;" class="">a god</div><div style="text-indent: -1em; padding-left: 1em;" class="">who longs</div><div style="text-indent: -1em; padding-left: 1em;" class="">from jail</div><div style="text-indent: -1em; padding-left: 1em;" class="">for a change</div><div style="text-indent: -1em; padding-left: 1em;" class="">in the order</div><div style="text-indent: -1em; padding-left: 1em;" class="">of things</div><br class=""><div style="text-indent: -1em; padding-left: 1em;" class="">I want a</div><div style="text-indent: -1em; padding-left: 1em;" class="">more godlike</div><div style="text-indent: -1em; padding-left: 1em;" class="">god</div><div class=""><br class=""></div><div class=""><span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space:pre"> </span>- Francisco X. Alarcon</div><div class=""><span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space:pre"> </span>February 21, 1954-January 15, 2016</div><div class=""><span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span>(Translation by Francisco Aragon)</div></div></div></body></html>