Of all the constellations in the evening sky, Orion remains one of my favorite and the most recognizable. In fact, just last night I stopped to gaze heavenward, turning from the radiant glow of Venus to the three-starred belt of the mighty hunter. Orion’s story is one of love, pride, impatience, foolishness, and attempted revenge. Rather than end the story with the fatal sting of the scorpion or arrow of Artemis or Apollo (depending on which story you read), I cast Orion as a wiser man who has learned from his past and now stands as a warning to reject the impulsive life he led. Written nearly two years ago, this is the first song of the Constellation Project.
Orion – vincent h. anastasi (2018)
Tonight my gaze is star transfixed
Their stellar dance arrests my eyes
For I have know the traitor’s kiss
Of rampant passion and raw pride
When I was young I gave my heart
And in return I lost my sight
I boasted in the hunter’s art
To feed my rascal appetite
Oh, oh, oh, though I could walk on water
I stumbled on the land until I faced the rising sun
Oh lead me, lead me, lead me
‘Til the rays bathe o’er my eyes
Don’t let me pursue vengeance
Kill these scorpions of my mind
I sought the father’s blessing once
But he withheld the cherished prize
In drunkenness I did affront
The very one I idolized
So I attempted to obtain
What I had no right to demand
And in my violence I disdained
The soul of the forbidden hand
Oh, oh, oh, though I could walk on water…
Now I have found my way back home
And set myself to guard the skies
Against the bull that ever roams
To tempt the soul and gore the eyes
the deepening ground 