When the light dims to grey
When nothing tangible heals your soul
Some still find that joy
Some will unwind that toy
That is the reality of life
Cycles of death and rebirth
Until we finally give in
But if we exist to exist
How could we enjoy this world?
Grasping at straws made of sand
Slipping through the cracks
As they get wider, deeper, harder
I just wanted to hold the hands of the hurt
Now I have lost myself in the scars of nature
Goodbye my joy
Swallowed by the nation
Do we exist to just keep going on?

How we evolve
How we create
We change every day, year, century
The progress we make
Equivalence to a millimeter
On the universes' yardstick
Waiting for the day of reprieve
Even rats can only race for so long
So long gone
Conversion into centimeters
Still, so far gone
So far to go
Only so many years until it all goes stale
Looking for a place to bail
In a locked and sealed enclosure for closure
Waiting for the day
When we wake up to a new one

When did offspring
Become an investment?
How does one parent
After years of neglect?
Why spread the blood
Of flaws and evil?
Bringing no other bonus
Except of course, for the workforce
Another camel to bear another load
Another simian to watch implode
Too much of one thing
Neglects all others
How can a universal principle not apply to us?
The ones who created all the glitz and glamor
Who struggle to digest harsh grammar
False pretenses only add more tension
So when I do not feel safe
Who can blame me?

Today we ventured
Tomorrow we adventure
Yesterday we vented
No matter the day
All it takes is you
To bring out the best in us
Humanity with no vanity
Perfect unification
Boys and girls with no correcting
When clouds block our shine
We never whine and only delight!
Even when the days seem so long
I know you are with me
Our hearts beat in the style
Of our own stories

How far will someone go
To fulfill their desire?

Cloudy days
All a haze
I had never felt right
I have no more fight
Gone is my light
No sting, no bite

A piece of nature
So natural
Behaving supernatural
Cutting down genius with a sickle
Fickle rage for temporary stages
Bringing relief and tears behind the scenes
Primal, urge for survival
How are animals thought to be reliable?

Caring too much
Eclipsing a sharp silence
Asking to listen

There are good people in this world
Amidst the marionettes
Wielding bayonets
Destroyers of sunset
Consequences that cannot be offset
Amidst a cold sweat
Pacing around a threat
Easy to forget
The world burning like a cigarette
Amidst all our debt
A duet, ancient and unfurled

"This is who I am"
"No doubt about that"
Which mask is that?
Do you buy it in bulk?
Your real self hangs on a thread
Yes, a brain is in possession
It lies in the seabed.
Drowned underneath a facade
Vita is false
Ita what a charade it is!
Proficient in Latin
I jest, I could be from Manhatten
Corner of Houston Street
Around the bend
See how easy it is to cheat?
Reheat your claims
In a busted microcosm
For every face varies
At different angles
Yet I can't recall
It coming in tangles
Backed up against the wall
Today marks your fall
Of one face.
Oh, I know there's a plethora
But as it is spoken in the Torah
Once a liar speaks
Their words fall on deaf ears.

Stuck up like a tree
Fall down as burnt lumber
When someone reaches final slumber
It'll be represented by a number.

Strong eat the weak
But for parasites
The weak become a part of the strong

Missing the point
Must be trained by a stormtrooper
The goal is to unify
But you can't
When you're too focused on the "I"

Dividing eyelids
To prevent worse violence
Relent, no more room to repent
Attempted wine, they call me Dionysus
Attempted drugs, they fear me, crisis
Identity or economy?
Pulled from the same ***
Tried that too, brought me dreams of rot
Always looking to escape
From a life forced on me
Free to exercise the right to live fondly
Question: where is the exit?
How can my life be free when the choice isn't present?
Ignore my presence, at your own disgression
Knowledge is a cure for ignorance
But in the pursuit, watch for the suits
After my treatment
All I desire is gone, for good

Drifting, spinning
Dancing to two tempos
Slow and steady
Fast and fierce
Once upon a time
Our rhythm intertwined
Tangled, never mangled
Until you started dancing
To someone else's tempo
I kept dancing, always forward facing
Hoping one day soon
We could waltz again
Under the pale moon
Where the rhythm can be set
By our hearts, beating anew

A man with a grey wardrobe
Found himself in a void
Neverending
Ever-present
In front of his person, a mirror appeared
An image manifested, a child appeared
He knew what this was, so the truth appeared:
"When I was a child, I had time, but no resources."
His reflection appeared in the mirror
"As an adult, I have resources, but no time."
A photo of an old man in a living room appeared
"When I become an elder, I will have wisdom, but no one to teach."
A photo of an extensive graveyard appeared
"When I pass, I will have a legacy, but no one to remember it."

Shoplifting the dreams
Of a nation cursed to sleep
Never to awaken
Once aware
Prepared to be cut out
A voice behind a broken megaphone
Waiting for a patient view
While the intellect sails across the sea.

Used for temporary results
And permanent trauma

Something more than skin-deep
All our actions are measured by transactions
Destitute freedom peeling under
The ruthless might of our system
One day, one life, one to see proof
Glistening eyes turn from bright to fright
Shining stars now hidden by tears
Celebrations with no fanfare
I can no longer lie, my dear
This life we wanted will not reappear
Profiteers and racketeers
Stole away our loving frontier
As I remain steadfast and sincere
The world reminds me
To struggle and remain sinister
Like a falling angel

Legacy
Such an underused word
Today it shall become no longer absurd
Remembrance
Throughout all the seasons
How will we be remembered?
First, you need to find a reason  
Etched into history
With a motive in mind
Give in to passivity?
Only if you want to remain blind.
For the mastermind of humankind--
Whoever they shall be
Doesn't accept wannabees
Killing bumblebees
Out of necessity
So just for the fallen
Pull out the textbook
Flip to the page often overlooked
For today...
Downplay your getaway.

Birth of revolutions
Develops internally
Used to start with steel
Now, it starts with discourse

Once we say hello
Time shall progress
Until one of us
Falls down below
For the flow moves so slow
From a memory
To
a
tableau

Manipulate the masses
To reach a state of numbness
Dulling a country
To take it over

Formulaic
Fit the mold with some cutout jokes
Replaceable
Disgraceful process
As a person
I must confess
Let me explain:
Such comedy found in humorous things
Yet all concepts can be considered
Funny to one
Something else to others
Perhaps hateful
Distasteful
Force a laugh?
Means it was never funny
To none
But executive mindsets
For success in such uncertainty
Variety is the prerogative.

I wish I could say
How I truly feel
But when you lose all feeling
It gets hard to describe it
Lost all my nerves, still getting nervous
A face of neutrality brings no satisfaction
How do I change a face I struggle to embrace?
The most moderate of actions
Take all the energy
Starting and finishing feels like a race
Tripping over the line, only to realize
I'm right back at the beginning.

Philistine
Individual went extreme
They don't want to be seen
The only comfort comes from the moonlight
Why?
It always sees.

Placed on a pedestal
Eyes on you, reticle
The words from your lips
Become objects, remembered by many
Yet forget who spoke it
Put onto a stage
Everything becomes a haze
Parade for the savior
Festivities for the mentor
Who came up with one idea
Which they didn't even like
Falling from grace implies never being disgraced
Idea, object, turned to a phrase
Until they move on, then set it ablaze

"Your life is special"
"You were born for greatness"
As the last of my energy fades
"Today is a blessing, tomorrow is a gift"
But the chains of yesterday scare me stiff
This life is no reward, I need a rewind
Going back to the peaceful moments
I never thought I would survive
Never been more free
Never felt this much misery
So please tell me, tell me please
What kind of place do you want to be?
As our friends fade, our happiness decays
Too busy to live when we enjoy the mundane
Every day, all the same
No wonder people go insane
How can a life be lived when it is all the same?

Onto a beam of light; I collided
Large impact
Devoid of pain?
Interesting.
Like the flash of lightning
A being stood before me
Hunched over
With tired eyes
Highlighted by malice
Familiar, yet otherwordly
As if it were a busy subway tram--
The Lighter barreled toward me
With one hand
I grabbed it
It wanted to dance
Soon, I grew bored
The rhythm of the Lighter
Took it off, toward the edge
The Lighter had fallen.

Everywhere I go
There's always something to remind me
Of another time
One where happiness bloomed in a cycle
Now it goes where the willows lay
One day, fine
Another day, struck down

Beautiful technology
Dividing our diverse psychology
Are we human if we can't do anything without it?
But how could it stop?
Corporations feel elation
Once the profit lines exceed expectation
No aspiration, only calculation
Cashing in on our passion
Refashioned to distant compassion

Father and son
DNA, a loaded gun
One, the alpha
Other, the omega
Built to last
Until the downcast
Shackles of one, multiplied to the rest
Divide the filler
The father, wishes to not disappoint his son
The son, wishes to not be the father
Thrown out a pigeon but no message received
Both are so deceived
But neither is perceived until one is grieved.

From myth
To legend
Your fire sparks
Until the dead of the night
Whispers of valor
Whimpers of glamor
As you lose, you die
But you still look alright!
Sparking faster
Like a wildfire
But now, your smile
Turned from friend to fangs

Driven over my soul
Fear takes hold
It may pursue
But I know
I'll pull through
For just today
A trend that goes off and on
In sight at all times
Can't dive underwater
Away from it all
No matter the posture
Galactical forces decree it shall be
Time of sorrow
Hour of panic
Yet it's the minute to confess:
We've barely begun to transmute.

The fool
Believes he is right
While the genius
Knows he could be wrong

Expectations
Lead to disappointment
But without them
How do we keep living?

Impressionable minds
Latch onto broken ideologies
When the ship sinks
The captain escapes, on their backs

Seperated by land
United by heart
No more
Dwelling in ruin
Open your mind
Fill it with glory!
One day
We will finally meet
Until then
Let's become greater.

Remaining static
Leads to stagnation
Remaining overactive
Leads to burnout
With all things in life
Balance avoids decay
Turning stagnation
Into administration

True lies bring no pride
As our world runs dry, revised
Assisted by lies

Chores rhyme with bore
Cause it makes us want to snore
Distractions from reality
Suffering in daily living, while promoting attraction
Such a chain reaction
Could never spell satisfaction without the "i"
For I for once realize
That with no message, who can be the sender?
The truth we have known
Applies to us alone
Separate fact from fiction
How can I do so, when everything has no prediction?
Today's fiction, tomorrow's friction
An addiction to contradiction,
I'd call this fancy diction if I wasn't being constricted

Misadventures
Fun to laugh at
Horrible to engage in
Chuckling at misfortune
Yet no one else can see it
Sad sacks bring back hacks
Fame off of misfortune
No wonder we're cold
Our hearts have become strongholds

Grim reaper's howl
Spares no one
Yet when the reaper comes
It is always a shock

Fascist
Terrorist
Two extremes, always the headline
Contorting our perception
What was once the outlier
Becomes the liar, lying in wait
For the chance to strike
After accompanying deceit
Crackling thunder
An eternal rift of wisdom
Two sides with separate information
If they collaborated with one another
Would it have stopped this mess? Created a bigger one?
For those seeking answers, I must confess
I don't know, we may never know.

Where are we headed?
What is our plan?
How can we guide a place
Built off of hate and greed?
Why are you trying?
What can be done?
How come you have no answers
To my questions?
What can you see?
How has that gleam not died?
How do you still have dreams?
Are you preparing for a scheme?
To keep us from dying?
Are we a team
Or are we just your self-esteem?

Silence:
An absence of sound
Still conveys plenty

If this world was created for us
Why aren't we happy in it?
Uncomfortable
At every turn
Is this our universal nightmare?
Or a dream left unfulfilled?
Take a trip to the wild side
They seem fine
With their own lives
No thought of existence
Future?
That'll come tomorrow
Why can't we be like them?
Probably because
We are different
Some are corrupt
Some raised on virtue
Yet now I clearly see
Life's music
It's called
A harsh noise wall

Fighting for you
Fighting for...who?
Fighting for...
For...
Me?

Determination
Breaking new ground
To now, tolerating mundanity
Determining the loss of it all
The meaning didn't slip up, instead
It.
Fell.
Down.

Grasping for power
Trampling flowers
Holding on to all
Giving it all to one
Shuffling our lives
Creating hermits
Changing fools
Combating devils
Redefining the wheel of fortune
All to reassure
Their exit strategy
All for one, the only one who won
Those who sought to be greater
Born from cold parents
Inflicting inflammation to spite them
Now our world is controlled by tempered justice
Just for us to observe
Our incompletion