Beyond words
Sometimes all I can do
is go down to the sea
to some rocks out of view
raise my face to the sky
fill the bellows of my lungs
open my throat and my gob
and howl
[insert howl of your choice here]
I love howling
There’s a whole hairy barbarian symphony of howls inside me
longing to batter down the clean-shaven gates of civilisation
and set me free, oh my unkempt and faithful comrades, set me free!
You can’t argue with a howl
You can’t go “You said this” – “But you said that” to a howl
It’s my howl
But your howl is welcome too
[insert howl of your choice here]
Howls are honest
like animals
and babies
and trees
and rocks
Howls obviously lend themselves well to grief
and yearning
and frustration
and heart-break
and madness
and excitement too
but, with practice and attention, you might also come to notice
confusion and rage and kindness and hatred and loneliness and self-pity and amusement and regret and exhaustion and lust and despair and joy and power and even
worldless desires that you never knew existed
all howling from and through your being
Howling is a form of prayer
Howling is far cheaper than therapy
Howling is very good for getting rid of shit which ain’t your shit
Sometimes, a howl is the sound your soul makes
when you’re spending too much time in the city
or too much time in your mind
O! to stand underneath a fully ripened moon
to open your body wide
to breathe in all of the elements of this mysterious Life
and then from the depths of your lungs
and your heart
and your belly
and your soul to...
[insert howl of your choice here]
A good howl is its own reward
[insert howl of your choice here]
Sometimes all I can do
is go down to the sea
to some rocks out of view
raise my face to the sky
fill the bellows of my lungs
open my throat and my gob
and howl
[insert howl of your choice here]
I love howling
There’s a whole hairy barbarian symphony of howls inside me
longing to batter down the clean-shaven gates of civilisation
and set me free, oh my unkempt and faithful comrades, set me free!
You can’t argue with a howl
You can’t go “You said this” – “But you said that” to a howl
It’s my howl
But your howl is welcome too
[insert howl of your choice here]
Howls are honest
like animals
and babies
and trees
and rocks
Howls obviously lend themselves well to grief
and yearning
and frustration
and heart-break
and madness
and excitement too
but, with practice and attention, you might also come to notice
confusion and rage and kindness and hatred and loneliness and self-pity and amusement and regret and exhaustion and lust and despair and joy and power and even
worldless desires that you never knew existed
all howling from and through your being
Howling is a form of prayer
Howling is far cheaper than therapy
Howling is very good for getting rid of shit which ain’t your shit
Sometimes, a howl is the sound your soul makes
when you’re spending too much time in the city
or too much time in your mind
O! to stand underneath a fully ripened moon
to open your body wide
to breathe in all of the elements of this mysterious Life
and then from the depths of your lungs
and your heart
and your belly
and your soul to...
[insert howl of your choice here]
A good howl is its own reward
[insert howl of your choice here]
PHOTO: HUGH WARWICK
