"..every moment is a peacemarch."
Allen Cohen
(photo) Feb.16, 2003,
San Francisco Peace March,
Allen Cohen w/ Nicole Savage and Alan Moore
Allen Cohen photos shared by his friend Jeff Sheppard
Elegy for Allen Cohen
By: J C. FlyerWith a bellowing voice
howling like the winds
of change
A poet stands
amongst a pile of hats
in no discernable order
maybe not to you
But
always the conscience
of the buffalo
or of you and I
Teaching truth
to students of the future
Speaking words
too truthful
for ears to hear
Remembering Hiroshima
and tales about
denizen bikers, drug fueled wanderers, and
down on their luck burlesque
queens
Or was it Brooklyn?
where the seeds were sown
to blossom in North Beach
and into the Haight Ashbury
Like a strong warm wind
sharing the bounty
of ideas and visions
Now a shell of a body
clutching effortlessly at those moments
of truth
of freedom
of sharing the consciousness
Pointing towards the path that's
right over there
I'll catch you later man© Gypsyman 3 Publishing
Last Words
To Allen CohenDear Mate,
I want to say so many things
so, so many things full of heart
and of the times before
to thank you for being my friend -
for this alone I have been blessed
to thank you for having moved the world
of man and woman kind unto and far beyond
themselves as illuminated sentient beings
all in the moment then and now
as one energetic body of loving
transformation and regeneration
and to compliment you one to the other
for having carried on as you have
as a warrior - bhodisattva and scribe
of proud lineage - a legacy in fact
of a "one hip hippy" as you once
commented to me in virtual space
I am there with you in this moment
timeless of today or tomorrow
asever in this moment
knowing full and well
that we shall meet again
transformation bringing us
so close to the source
of all things worth living for
Namasté - Bole Nath Kí Jai
Tat Sat Hari Tat Sat!
With love remembrance joy
and the image of your smile
in my heart
AsEver yours,
© Hammond Guthrie March, 2004
My last words to an old and cherished friend well met at Morey's Deli (circa 1965)
FOR ALLEN COHEN, A POET WHO DIED
by Julia Vinograd
If your were alive today
I wouldn't be thinking about you.
I never did.
Then we ran into each other,your black curls
bouncing with enthusiasm,
your arms flapping,
breathing hard enough
to chase another group project,
magazine, anthology
and we were so proud to be needed.
It was like a big red india-rubber ballstamped with gold stars
and thrown for us to catch.
You made it seem so easyand we could no more
think about you
than the centipede can thinkabout which foot starts walking.
You were our first stepso many times.
So what now?
You were refreshing to be aroundlike cool water is good to drink.
Good people are usually
embarressing by contrast,
they make us feelwe should pick up our insides
like dirty rooms of headless dolls
and lost socks.
"Good" is a wordwe hear too at funerals
You were a good man
but we liked you anyway.
Your soul was used to getting uplike a man in a crowded bus
offering his seat
to an old woman with groceries.
But your soulit's place to the world
and the Lord.
"Rest In Me, O Lord" was the titleof your great poem
in the peace anthology.
The Lord accepted your invitation,You have to rest in peace,
and I'm going to see
God doesn't get any rest at all.
We needed you more.© Julia Vinograd
Julia Vinograd is a Berkeley Street poet. She has published 48 books of poetry and has three poetry CD collections: "Bubbles and Bones,"" Eye of the Hand" and "The Book of Jerusalem." This year she received the Lifetime Achievement Award at the 5th Berkeley Poetry Festival (2004), and she has won the American Book Award of The Before Columbus Foundation. In addition to her numerous publications in magazines suchas Street Spirit, she has also been published in the 9/11 Anthology called An Eye For An Eye Makes The Whole World Blind (Regent Press), The Outlaw Bible of american poetry (Thunder's Mouth Press), and Sacred Voices, Wit And Wisdom Of Women Through The Ages (HarperCollins). She received a B.A. from the University of California at Berkeley and an M.F.A. from the University of Iowa.
Kaleidoscopic mind
Transcends past and present into future
The slight mist over the bright green trees
in Golden Gate Park
Holds your essence here foreverWith Love
Lauren Kael
A Haiku in 2 Parts
Part I
The Streets are Quiet
For a Man of Many Words
Has Now Ceased to Speak.Part II
Though Sound is Fleeting,
His Words will be
Heard for Years -
Felt for Much Longer.
Jade, age 16
Jade learned about Allen Cohen through her interest in the history of the sixties and was inspired by his poetry and vision of peace and harmony.
Love is Always Within Sight
Look how you have brought us all together again, Allen!
With a rainbow bridge across the ages
A timeless technicolor dream
visions of unity
and harmony
and peace on earth
I feel you with us now
Closer than ever
In the sea, in the sky,
In the shadows and light
Showing us
that love
is always
within
sight...Maria Mango, age 23
Maria came to the hospital to sing for Allen and became
a member of his care-giver team...
Her gentle disposition, wonderful songs and delightful hippie spirit endeared
her to Allen and everyone else, too http://www.mariamango.com
Troubadour finds bliss on Haight
Finding Refuge in the Spirit of Allen
We lay there
Our breathing finds its own rhythm
anchors us in the moment
We find it curious
why now so close to his dying
we should find such deep comfort
in each other's presence
I begin to softly hum a Buddhist chant
It is my way way of offering him blessings,
I want Allen to know he is held by my love,
not to be afraid, to
treasure this liminal time.
In a moment a warm breeze
wafts into the room.
It ripples over us.
Our touching arms merge into one.
Our breaths sail together
on the precious waves.
©Yana Womack
Yana was a care giver to Allen and they shared wonderful conversations on dreams
If you would like to honor Allen and share an experience, a poem, your feeling on what he meant to you or an inspirational story relating to his life, please send them to nsavage@sfheart.com . With your blessing I will post them here as a special memorial and tribute to all that Allen stood for and achieved in his lifetime.
Allen Cohen Memories
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