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6.2k · Aug 2020
Better Off
Justin Aug 2020
The black and white has lost its silhouette
The lines slip from the page
Who can say what reality remains?
Those who exist in three dimensions
Will decide where the truth of the matter lies
And if we're better off

The world pauses, a little more than eight
A man's lost his breath to another
It wasn’t theirs to take
Those who exist on the other side of the screen
Will decide where the truth of the matter lies
And if we're better off

A bounty is placed, a renegade is born
The long arm reaches for another soul,
Another soul is pawned
Those who exist for the law
Will decide where the truth of the matter lies
And if we're better off

A man is led to the edge of the world
He's pushed and plummets into the unknown
Everything in him breaks, but he survives the fall
Those who were standing behind him
Will decide where the truth of the matter lies
And if we're better off

Is any justice worth an injustice?
Can it still be called justice?
When the means don't justify the ends,
Is anybody really, truly, better off?
2.6k · Oct 2020
Waiting
Justin Oct 2020
I've been waiting on top
Of Calvary Hill
Watching the whole world go by
While I'm perfectly still
And as the winds of change blow over
My soul begins to break away
But I'm holding for the moment
My suffering will end

I'm waiting
Waiting
I'm waiting
Waiting on top

I'm waiting in the darkness
Of a bottomless pit
Crying out loud to my brothers
As they walk away
And as the silver falls into their hands
My heart begins to break
But I'm holding for the moment
My suffering will end

I'm waiting
Waiting
I'm waiting
Waiting in the darkness

I'm waiting in the desert
Of a foreign land
Driven from my home
By the kingdom of man
And I can still hear their screams
I have to leave them behind me
But I'm holding for the moment
My suffering will end

I'm waiting
Waiting
I'm waiting
Waiting in the desert

I'm waiting in the valley
In the shadow of a man
Curses leave his lips
As a stone leaves my hand
I bet my life on a promise
And I'm holding for the moment
My suffering will end

I'm waiting
Waiting
I'm waiting
Waiting in the valley

I'm waiting in the furnace
The flames roaring high
Condemned to be burned
For the King I can't deny
Though the world believes I'm done
My battle has already been won
I'm not alone
And we're holding for the moment
My suffering will end

I'm waiting
Waiting
I'm waiting
Waiting in the fire

I've been waiting on top
Of Calvary Hill
Watching the whole world go by
While I'm perfectly still
And as the winds of change blow over
My soul begins to break away
But I'm holding for the moment
My suffering will end
2.0k · Aug 2019
Pieces of Me
Justin Aug 2019
Way down,
I've drifted
And somehow
I'm riding the waves.
Waiting for the tide to take me home.

It's hard to believe
That things have to be
So black and white,
When the dreams that keep me warm at night
Are full of colors, so bright.

Even though life's a mess,
I'm running to keep it all together.
Chasing after the pieces of me.

I keep losing the pieces,
I keep losing the pieces,
So I let them all go.

Can we make up
The time that we've lost?
Or has it all drifted away?
Is it all over now?
Can we fix what's been broken?
Can we start over again?
I guess, for now, we'll have to wait.

I've got so much time.
Seconds like water in my lungs.
I think I'll be fine, dear.
I've been floating here so long
I've learned how to breath through the pain.

Even though life's insane,
I'm running to keep it all together.
Chasing after the pieces of me.

I keep losing the pieces,
I keep losing the pieces,
So I let them all go.
1.0k · Jun 2020
Fate's a Cruel Mistress
Justin Jun 2020
Fate's a cruel mistress
She'll give you her fury
The likes of which hell hath not seen
So beware of her temper
Don't try to placate her
She's spiteful and bitter
She'll make you regret her
Fate's a cruel mistress
You'll see

She'll play you a lovesong
She'll whisper your name
But, son, heed my warning
She'll rob you blind in the morning
And have you arrested that day

She's spiteful and bitter
She'll make you regret her
Fate's a cruel mistress
You'll see

Son, don't stop listening to me now
She isn't done with you yet
It only gets worse from here
'Cause when you make bail
She'll shack up with your friends
She'll wear them on her finger like rings

She's spiteful and bitter
She'll make you regret her
Fate's a cruel mistress
You'll see

And when she's had her fun
She'll reach inside your back
She'll rip out your heart
You won't stand a chance
She'll leave you on the floor
And while your bleeding out
She'll say,
"You have nobody but yourself to blame."

Fate's a cruel mistress
She'll give you her fury
The likes of which hell hath not seen
So beware of her temper
Don't try to placate her
She's spiteful and bitter
She'll make you regret her
Fate's a cruel mistress
You'll see

She's spiteful and bitter
You'll never forget her
Fate's a cruel mistress
You'll see
336 · Jul 2020
Down on Me
Justin Jul 2020
You say you're an ally of change
Raising your fist to the cause of the moment
But we all see you strutting through the streets
Paying no mind to the people around you
Begging on their knees for your grace

Don't tell me your hero story
Don't pretend that you care
If you really want to show me
Just say that you know me
When the world's injustice comes to bear
Down on me

The weight is on my shoulders
But you can lend a hand
This cross is mine to bear
But you can help me up
When it falls
Down on me

Don't sell me your tales of noble glory
Don't play the savior's role
If you really want to show me
Just say that you know me
When the world's injustice comes to bear
Down on me

When the axeman takes his swing
It falls down on me
When the gavel drops from above
It falls down on me
When the house of cards falls apart
It falls down on me
276 · Mar 2020
Statue
Justin Mar 2020
The light is fading
And the air grows cold
The door's wide open
People ebb and flow
Through time and space
You wouldn't believe it
I've waited all this time to see
A friendly face who will talk awhile
But you don't believe in me anymore

The wind blows out the flames
The fleeting whims of fate
And destiny
Can't you see?
Everything has its moment
Then fades away

I hear the whispers
And the shuffling feet
Walking breezes floating next to me
They float on
But I don't know why
And you wouldn't believe it
I wait eternally to be seen
By a kindred spirit who's saved a place
In their heart
But you don't believe in me anymore

Everything has its moment
Then fades away
274 · Mar 2020
Answers to Ultimatums
Justin Mar 2020
They said the road ahead
Wouldn't be easy
I will be challenged and
Counted out
And that expectations
Would weigh me down
My life has only one path
That can be taken
But I'll prove them wrong

If I've got to burn
I will burn brightly
Like a dying star
I'll go supernova
If I've got to leave it all behind
I'll fill the sky, up high,
With color and splendor

I'm going to move beyond
My doubts and demons
I won't let them dim
The brighter side of me
I'm more than my darkest moment
I can't be defined
I cannot be molded
I'll take the path less traveled
And learn about the meaning
Of prices and values

If I've got to fall down
I will get up
Like a phoenix from the ashes
I'll be reborn
If I've got to let go
I'll fly high on wings
Like eagles

I'll fly high as the sun
269 · Jul 2020
Moral Relativism
Justin Jul 2020
Some people, they say,
"Justice for them, but not for me
The truth be ******
The truth is what I believe"

Some people, they love to play
On the strings
Of their fellow man's heart
Singing of right and wrong,
And self proclaimed tragedy

Some people, they choose
Who we should believe
By their whims and fantasies
Painting portraits to suit their needs
And self righteous nobility

Some people, they abandon their brothers
To the enemy at the gates
Forsaking their honor for their lives
And the self destructive world
To which they cling

Some people, they'd like to rule us out
Keeping us silent and meek
Ruling through their hatred
And their self-given mandate
Over everything

Still, some people wait
For true justice to arrive
Until that day comes
In silence, in weakness, in suffering
Faithful, we remain
219 · May 2020
T Minus One
Justin May 2020
One heartbeat
To breathless
One last blink
To blinded
One moment
To stopping time for good

We're only a heartbeat away
From saying goodbye for good
There's nothing on earth that lasts forever
Nothing that's worth the time we have left
So take it in
Take in all of what is blessing you
Keeping you strong when life is jaded

Why can't we give up?
Why can't we shut down
These games we play?

We're only a blink away
From losing sight of what is true
Things that seem so real, mirages in the dust
Slip through our fingers when you need them most
So take it in
Take in all of what is blessing you
Keeping you strong when life is jaded

Just give up
Let go
Turn your back
On everything that weighs us down

We're only a moment
From the end
185 · Feb 2020
The Bell Tolled
Justin Feb 2020
The words are washing away
Losing coherence
As the colors bleed from my rib cage
Leaving me grey and hollow
And the chill that follows
Gives me a sense of familiarity
Like an old friend come to play the part
When did we start flushing our dreams?

The knife's still in your hand
You try to wash me away
But I tend to stain
Tend to mark
When you try to rub me out

Can you truly erase a life?
Should you dare to try?
I'd like to know
Why the bell tolls
For me

The bell tolled for me

Death is often painful
I'm unfortunate to know
When your spirit is being torn away
When the last breath clings to your lips
When the light leaves your eyes
Life is but a breath from being over

— The End —