Medicine Show (4): A Spell to Ward Off Banjos

This entry is part 25 of 34 in the series Breakdown: The Banjo Poems

 

Fill a soup spoon with salt
& lower it into the Atlantic
singing: Dance, sailor,
dance with your captain,
your head’s too heavy,
your body’s too thin.
When the salt is gone
say in a loud voice
Are you thirsty now?
& wait for a gull to say Yes.
Walk backwards so
the incoming tide can’t follow
your footsteps home.

Repeat daily.
If banjos persist,
see a licensed hoodoo man.

Series Navigation← Banjo Origins (2): The Fifth StringThe Silent Banjo →

10 Replies to “Medicine Show (4): A Spell to Ward Off Banjos”

    1. Wow, I’m glad you’re so enthusiastic about it! I was just writing it to amuse myself — not sure it would be anyone else’s cup of tea.

  1. This is fun; I like it. I love the idea of licensed magicians. Of course, now that I think of it I wonder if they do need licenses to perform in some states.

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