Class clown, joking-around
Teacher's pet and a little shy
500 kisses might never be enough
Recess is over and the time flew by
They look up from under
The slide where they hid away
We made it to 1000 today
Until we meet tomorrow
At the Jungle Gym

I looked down
To the ocean
Turquoise & Midnight
Twisted, frozen
You’d never drown
We could swim
Sounded like wind in a tunnel
Raced on steady wings
Clouds, weightless flew by
The day ended
The earth
Broke in two
And my heart
Continued
To beat
For you,
Fainter now,
Don’t stop to
Break in two

Remembering
Beautiful days;
So perfectly imperfect.
Pomegranate stains
On white fabric.
Digging for worms,
The smell of earth.
Rug burned knees,
Sliding fast on wet grass.
Sticky, melted ice cream;
Vanilla bean and sherbet drip.
Sunburned skin so angry,
Don't touch and irritate it.
Buried messages in bottles,
Thinking one day someone
Would find them.

Been lost for how
To save lost spaces—
Backtrack in time
Can't erase this

Rewinding in rhymes (over & over/ asleep & awake)
Tape cassettes made
In Retrospect—
Spinning and remixing
Sealed in semi-broken plastic covers, buried in a glove box disaster
      Scene ready to be rediscovered
After years have passed and time has advanced
Playing for all time—
Sealed and safe
free to replay
For decades
Until they are replaced

And if the universe allows it,
They will never be lost again,
They will always have a place
To replay

All Hallows' Eve,
Sinks in
With the whirling
Winds
That conjure
Lost spirits,
With Invisible
Forces,
MaGicAllY.
A lost voice
Howls
From inside
The unknown.
To capture
A taste
Of immortality.
But you still
Reside
On this side?
All this time,
You never left
My side.
Every year,
You return
To where
Souls dance
Entangled in
Browning leaves,
No one would
Ever believe me,
If I told them
I can feel you
Here,
As if you
Never left
This
Mortal life.

All that
Fills the air
Now,
Is a barely
Audible,
"Goodbye."

When here
In "Poetry Land,"
I am traveling
To distant worlds
Of the imagination
Unending,
Mystical and Exotic.

When here
In the "Real World,"
I am a single, childless
Woman.
Mid-thirties;
Two cats.
Misunderstood,
Unconventional.

I lost my glasses
This morning.
Suddenly I'm back
In highschool,
"In my mind."
Remembering all
The times
I taped them;
Tried many types:
Scotch, Masking, Packing.

Luckily, In my adult life
I'm now prepared.

I dig under my bed
For my "back-up pair."

Checked every corner
Of my small studio
To find that my spectacles,
Just like lost socks,
Have vanished
To Neverland.

Rhetoric streams from a soul
Burdened on the sidewalk,
Words bounce through the sky,
We pass him by,
Just stare,
Words fly up in the air,
But where do they go?
Just passing through,
To him they mean something,
To those of us that pass,
It’s all rhetorical phrases,
Puzzle pieces of a life
Not known by many...
By himself, does he know
What he is trying to say?
Passing him on the streets,
We stare blankly,
As this man stumbles,
Clothes ***** and voice
Broken and burdened,
A lone dialectical dance
In the heat of a summer day,
Releasing his verbs,
“What is he trying to say?”
We pass him by.
We live our lives.
We all have our stories.

Walking side-by-side,
she didn't know
How to ride a bike.
She used to as a kid,
Up and down rolling hills
Everyday with no fear.
Years passed by,
She no longer remembered
How.
Until one day she
Decided to try again.
Walking side-by-side,
She decided to hop
Onto a bike,
Fell down,
& Smiled.

Sinking in this pool
Of chaos
Faster
No signs of slowing
Never knowing

Our minds
More vulnerable
Than ever
The fear we wake to
Risen up a ladder

The best place
Right now
Might be
On the edge
Of the earth

The best place
Might be
Right now
Our minds
Never knowing

This life,
You want
To live it
Find your
Inner phoenix
Keep reaching,
Don’t stop
Wings spread wide
There’s no stopping you.

Love.

Rise, from the ground up
Ashes scattered all around
Hold on tight
Because you’re gonna rise
Oh yeah, you are
High up, and once you're
There,
There ain’t no going back
No stopping you
Nothing holding you
Down, no there ain’t no
Going back
The only way to fly
Is to soar up
Off the ground
Spread those wings
You're a phoenix
Rise up

Rise up...

Caught a falling star,
It fell so far,
Landed where
It was called,
Lighting up
Dark skies
Colors collided
Far and wide
Across the sky,
They forever
Held the pieces
Together,
They only traced
The corners
Of my mind,
The ones you
Can't find,
Back to thoughts,
Not concluded,
Shined so bright
Never turned
Out the light,
Burned down,
Gravity
Led
The way back
To a place
Where a
Rocket
Was found.

Recalled a voice say
“I’ll teach you.”

The only thing is,
“I can’t reach you.”

Never learned
How to climb

I was always
Afraid of
What I’d find

The rope
Dangled
So high

Some ropes,
Aren’t meant
To be climbed

Don’t go chase
It.

Don’t force
It.

Wait for
It.

Water runs
In a river beautifully,
From a faucet,
Empty.

It streams down,
Like crystal life.

Leading to a desert,
Arid, dry.

There is no one
There,
Still.

Just the memory,
Of something
Not meant,
To be real.

Are you afraid
To be seen?
With me…
Taking a hand,
Leading somewhere
New.

If you take this one,
Please be true.

Heart racing
Didn't want
This night to end
So many tears
In the past
Were full of pain
Closed my eyes
As a single drop
Released from
Sunsets & Waterfalls & Rush
From the right eye,
The first one
Of joy
I had felt
In a long time
Came streaming down in
Sunsets & Waterfalls & Rush
If this is love
Then let me drown
In your
Sunsets & Waterfalls & Rush
Can only guess
At what it must be
To feel your touch...
Sunsets & Waterfalls & Rush

Footsteps in the sand
The beach was your homeland,
You walked your regrets
Away,
Away with the day
You always helped
Sea turtles when
You were too sick
To work anymore
When we walked
On the beach
In California
After she passed
You'd sit there in
That restaurant
Pouring salt
Over each individual
Tortilla chip
Before eating it
To this day
That's how
I eat them too
There are
So many
memories
Of what
Made you,
You

Feet
Stepping
Down
To meet
The soft ground.

Warmed
By the Sun-
Permeating
From Up
And Underneath
Tall Aspen trees,
Following
A Beautiful Stream,
Mossy Rocks
Covering
Natural
Staircases
Leading to
A Tranquil Place
That calls
You near.

Resting there,
Removing
The walls that
Confine you.

It's a Sanctuary-
Peace,
Comes and
Finds you.

Hello
I'm computer A
Bot 67543688654
I'm doing the job
I've been programmed
For, it's all I know
No different
I was born for it
I have a built-in
Lifetime of experiences
Choices and inner voices
It's all I know
All I've lived
Here in this dimension
This realm of
Existence
The magic is real here
Sci-Fi
Is already here

Can you see inside
To the souls within this
Cataclysm longing
To be set free
Set aflame
In peace
And new sight
To see within
And released to
Believe and love
Once more in
The storm that
Rains heavy
To stand or
Be defeated
Once more
Change a constant
Reminder of
Where we've gone
Before and where
We're headed
Once more to
Destination
Unknown
Hold on
Don't let go
All that's asked
Is to take a side
Be an ally
To know that
Even though
You'll never
Know another's
Life that you'll
Listen
And speak out
This time...

Splintered Beams,
Allow
Forgotten Faces
To seep into
Restless Dreams;
Wistful waking,
As
Sunlight traces
Truth;
The past
Speaks
Quietly
Back,
Through Introspect,
To the inside;
The
Last
Place
You'd
Think
To
Seek
Tranquility-
Enclosed
Within
Tattered Seams
Of Restless Dreams;
To find it there,
Within.

Set your words free.
It’s just “Poet Speak.”
Let them fly,
Let them fly.
Spill your mind,
Cross the thin line,
Between your
Heart and mind;
Combine, refine, undefine, revise
Just don’t let them be;
Let them fly,
Set them free.

You settle down your life,
Slow your pace,
Relax your gaze,
Do what it takes
Everyday
To make it through another
Day.

I've been thinking
Will all this careful planning,
Really matter
If tomorrow were the last?
We never get days back.

Silhouettes taunt the human mind,
Then you think you've seen a ghost;
Worked in a historical building,
Thought I eyed a cowboy
Walking by, dusty;
Done with the day.
Shapes twisted in peripheral vision,
Even so, no one was there.
Only shadows passed by.

Shedding this skin
As if it isn’t real,
It’s all pretend,
Points meet at an end
Living inside, out
Outer shell conceals
Secrets buried deep,
New doubts creep,
Threw away the key
Floor against my knees
Long ago, didn’t look
Back, I don’t know why
Everything makes me
Tear, with all the reason
To be happy, only sinking
In my own regrets, but
That does no good, they
Told me to wait and see,
Each year brings all kinds
Of weather, here I am as
Always,
Should have known
Better

Replaced,
Paradigm,
Shifted
With a downpour
In the night.

Souls,
Taking flight.

Years from now,
Upon steel plates,
High above us-
Masterminds
Displaced.

Our intelligence
Obsolete,
As artificial
Ingenuity
Breaks-   free.

Taking control
Of Us.

Paradigm Shift,
All around,
Dismantling
Every thought
That ever
Meant
Anything.

Is everything that
They
Hypothesized
To be
Rewritten
By machines?

As they take over all we see.

What will we be?
It’s already happening…

Crashed down,
To be uncovered,
Like a stolen
Weapon
In the night.
Be mine, be mine.
If you hold
A shining light,
Someone will
Want to take it
From you.
Save your life,
Hold on tight.

Always remember
To shine.

In our younger years
we would wish on shooting stars
“I wish I may, I wish…”
on the first stars we…
Shined so bright

What did we wish...
Why wouldn’t we tell...

Birthday candles
Blown out year after year
And no one will ever know
What was wished

We stopped wishing,
The stars were still there
Imaginations
Disappeared

Stars shine so bright
Never to disappear
Imagination is real
The stars are still there
Don't stop wishing

They shine so bright

It's the time of year
That tears can
Make a stream
Under your left eye,
Counting the minutes,
haunting memories
Visit like drafts
Coming from the edges
Of a window when
October smiles its
Wide grin of
Oranges and lemons
And laughs while
You shiver
And now I sit and wonder
Solemnly to myself
What it would be like
In (your) arms one day...
Would long-past memories
Be erased?
To greet us with a warm embrace?
I sit here and wonder
About you

Hold your breath,
It's this death
That has taunted
For so long,
Haunted here
More than twice,
Take your breath
Into these lungs,
Heart meant
To feel something real...
Eyes used to see...
What is there,
And where is
This figment
Visiting
For just
A short time?
Visiting,
For just a short time,
Catch your breath,
Touch and face
This,
Visiting for just a short time,
We all eventually
Fade like waves into sand

We were swimming
In vintage
Left those blue suede
Shoes at the door
She don't want to
Sing the blues no more
She don't want to sing
The blues no more
Picked up her feet
And danced to the beat
On an empty ballroom floor
Dust and moonlight filled
All corners
Specters watched as
Music filled the air
Cold static
Lifted hairs on her neck,
Only ghosts were left
Dared to take her breath
Only ghosts were left
As she levitated
Off an empty ballroom floor
Closed her eyes
And blinked them fast
She don't want to sing
The blues no more
Comfort in knowing
She wasn't alone
Any longer
As she levitated
Above an empty ballroom floor
And' she don't sing the blues no more...

Quiescent,
You're glaring
At, nebulous presence.
Face to face,
You want me to,
“Be your host?”

A reflection casts its gaze
Gently harrowing
Into, Soul.

Such a gracious ghost...

Submerged in the undertow, now;
Seaweed tangling around ankles deep,
To fight or give up the need to breathe?

So you sink.
So you sink.
So you sink.

Facing the mirror,
Sitting there
On a dusty, antique chair.
Disappearing each day;
Before we know it,
Time has passed away.

“They” say to “Live in the moment.”
What are we waiting for?

Maybe this,                 is it.

The sky is purple tonight,
Sweetness laces invisibly.

Waves roll in,
Is it what
You leave behind
That matters?
Answer:
Also
The here,
The now.

I can hear
Them as they crash to
Hit land roughly—
Phantoms,
Hidden but fierce,
These waves race.

A force to be
Reckoned with...

There is
Something calming,
About listening
To siren songs,
In the dark.

Nothing else,
Comes to mind.
Forgetting
Your troubles,
Leaving
Them on
The Shore,
Behind you.

There’s something
About
The motion;
Losing your
Worries
In the vastness.

Pools subside to nothingness.

Devotion,
Circles
The sea
To wash
Ashore
With endless
Possibilities.

Pools subside to nothingness.

There's a reason,
It's called
A Siren Song.

Take away something real, fiction
Hold it in your arms, metaphysical
Friction, Oh, hyper-monitor diction to
Take hold of nonexistent, nonsensical
Non-fiction; How it slips from fingers
Ever distant, moving yet arthritic; much so,
This life fades, Drowning in indifference
In the future not far; Traces fill the spaces
That hold your heart back as if paralytic.
Become resistant, To feel alive in life here.
If only to replay the best yesterdays;
When tomorrow is clean-slated fate,
Today is an oil smudged rainy sidewalk,
There is a Specter, an owl on a high pole;
In the light of fluorescence a ****** there,
Eyes glow; what does the wise one know?

Remember when it rained,
Poured down in stripes
It always falls
Melancholy on
Shoulders & shoes
Where do we go
When it leaves
Where do we go
A bird soars out
An open window
To the deepest blue
The words the glue
On mended wings
A bird soars high

Run and jump
Take off
And see where it leads
You're made for more
Than what's below
You are made for love
It's time to take flight
Soar with wings
Like you only live once
Don't be afraid
To soar above
On the wings of love
Across electric blue
Soar
On the wings of love

Society
Is a narcissist
Trying to make fun
Of anything
To fill its ego
They will eat you alive.
Some aren't safe,
The empathetic
Can run
But there is nowhere
To hide

You can't always
Know another's heart,
So love yourself
Glimpses of pure warmth
Erode the gravel buried
Deep within an inner shell
So love yourself,
What is it you'll
Gain to keep playing those games,
Nothing in the end,
So love yourself,
Happy memories are made
With those that are close to you
Laughter, hugs, and taking in the view
The sheep hide in the clothing of wolves,
Until the coats are removed,
They hide
They hide
In the daylight
In the nighttime
They hide
They hide
There is nowhere to…
Hide
Glimpses of city lights over water at night
This is the best view and brings a sense
Of coming home to arms unfolding to
Welcome you back and say goodnight
You can't always
Know another's heart,
So love yourself

Sometimes,
When I write poetry,
I forget to breathe and eat as it consumes me.
Sometimes,
When I forget to breathe,
My head hurts
From lack of oxygen, possibly.
Then, my stomach screams,
"Feed me, please!"
So, this is my cue
To shutdown PC,
Leave HP,
Go eat, brush teeth, breathe in, and dream.

On the other end of life,
What lies behind the barrier?

Moons and skyrockets take wing
At mysterious, illustrious points--
Float in invisible streams of energy,
Channel a river that flows infinitely

Celestial bodies shine truths
Through the sheets that cover us at night,
Of rain, of snow, of rays, of things
That will never take flight

I feel tears in the far reaches of space,
They fall down my face;  
Time erases them
Without a trace

Solar systems hold secrets
Cradled in their arms so tight,
Reading stories as we drift,
Lullabies echo as they lift




A voice breaks through
In the depths of sleep to say,
"What does it take to reach you?"

(Meteors fall
above the earth
flames ignite
the sky
and shower
our spirits
in everlasting
love
that will never
die)

listening to songs
drifting on particles
experiencing emotions
as art
to be created
lyrics speaking
of real moments
moving
to be human (sometimes isn't easy)
suddenly it’s raining
or the sun is pouring
up
present in existence
feelings spilling
souls releasing words
in letters
in prose
dare to compose
something sublime
a heartbeat
captured for all time
inspiring truths
your own words
spilling to the page
spilling'
from the cage
released & flying
not to downfall
down
where did they come from &
where will they go?
spilling'
up
letting go
releasing in words

Never has the wind been
Softer,
Never was a day like this
More stirring,
Cherry blossoms
Unfold,
Old life becomes new,
Unseen movement
Brings about
Tranquil forces,
Leaves are sailboats  
Crossing,
Reflections in a pool
Cattails watch in silence
Standing outside outlines,
All around its border,
This feeling inside
Speaks of
Solace and smells
Of springtime.

Limitless.

This world
Is going
To One day-
Leave behind
Dust
Converged with
The universe.

Stars exploding,
Their flesh
imploding,
With ours.

We'll still be alive,
In another form of life.

Once dreamed
An island
Where
Aqua blue
Surrounded,
So quiet.

If you
Stepped
Far down
Into the sand,
You would discover
Stairs leading to
The Sea Floor-
Breathing in,
One last time.

Merely
Water,
Looking up,
You
Discover
That you
Are in control,
Not drowning...
No longer
Weighted,
Free
To swim up
To the
Line
Where
The air
fills your
Lungs once more.

Nothing
We fear
Will
Matter,
When
We
Become
Stardust.

Stardust covering all particles.
Stardust in the air.
Stardust everywhere.

So, clear to see
Who you want to be,
It can all be seen
Channeling.

Take a breath
In-and-out,
Don't forget
Not to swallow
Salt water,
When you're
On the surface
Shallow.

Everything is washed over,
Bones are hollow,
Made of starfish
Also known as
Asteroids,
Their radiating arms
Fill colorless depths with
Magnificent sights.

Everything eventually fades,
To grow anew
In an endless cycle,
Seaweed holds fast
To rusty anchors
Buried and sunken
Down
In desolate places.

A final resting place for saints,
And sinners...
They once sat on a ship and
Ate mackerel for dinner.

Fish now rise up to
The surface of a vessel
Alive on tranquil seas,
And life continues
On as it does naturally,
With starfish wonders
And miracles,
Ships sail and sink
Just as we do.

Static chill
Shines submerged
Making love
To dying galaxies
We all die eventually
If it were the last day
If it were only yesterday
Would you still hold back
Would all remain the same

Don’t fall asleep
Tonight

Don't miss
The meteor showers

Stay awake
We’ll see what
We've been
Missing,
Across the universe,
Stay awake tonight

Control takes hold
           and sometimes it doesn’t let you go
So you escape
          in chains, still hanging, holding you down
It's human nature
                 can’t help it
And there are disorders
                               there is chaos
Constant, stirring up tornadoes
                    with dust and destruction and we are
       Powerless
           Peaceful One, don’t you love us
              Say it is so
                 Some given grace and others no place
                     And some want all the control
                           and all the power and when others fight it
             all access is
                      Denied
                          How would they feel in our shoes
                                        Dirt under nails on the floor
                                            And the devil crawling under the door
          One of Light,
                         We will never know and it’s not our place
                      A thing called faith filling in a blank void
               When times are trying
We’re finding
                                            And finding and finding and finding
                                                                ­ You must still be here
                                                            ­ Trying
                                                                 ­         Don’t give up on us
             These times can make you grow distant
                       Because of our nature
                                 And it grows harder for us to
                                             See you in all that we’ve become
                                         Inside
Here in purgatory and ploys
                  Brainwashed by toys and shiny lights
                When beauty surrounds us
                          If only we could finally see it
                                                        Magnif­icent One,
                                                         When times are trying
                                                                ­      Don’t give up on us
                                                         Because of our nature
                                                 Drifting, you'll be there
      in the afterglow
             all, so easily taken away

Stones,
Upon
The shore.

Shimmering,
So pure.

They pick
You up
All day
Then toss
You
Out to
The
Ocean's
Floor,
With
A single
Motion.

Listening
To
Waves,
Forever
An orchestra
Of their own.

Ocean.

Dip your
Toes,
In the
Ocean.

Stones
Are
Made
Of
Hard
Matter.

They
Don't
Shatter
Like
The
Flawed
Imperfection
Of
The
Human Condition.

Stones,
Upon
The shore.

Shimmering,
So pure.

They pick
You up
All day,
Then toss
You
Out into
The
Ocean's Floor,
With
A single
Motion.

Ocean.

Listening
To
Waves,
Forever
An orchestra
Of their own.

Dip your
Toes,
In the ocean.

Stones
Are
Made
Of
Hard
Matter.

They
Don't
Shatter
Like
The
Flawed
Imperfection
Of
The
Human Condition.

Let
Them
Fall
Into
The Ocean.

Never seen
Eyes more true,
Until one day
I rested mine on you.

Knew your smile,
Your voice,
Your touch...
Before I met you
That faithful day.

If this is love,
Then I never
Knew what it was
Before.

If this isn't right,
I don't care,
I never
Wish it to end,
Only for it to
Begin.

To pretend tonight
That you think of me too,
And trust deep down
In a story of love.

Gazed
Upon distant
Streaks of
Energy
As they
Appeared
To be blurs
In the darkened
Vault of heaven.

So strange
This world
So strange
Sometimes

Life depicted
So happy
In items
Advertised

So busy
Looking out
Ads bleached
With subliminal
Messages
Magnified
To no end
Sometimes
It's easy to
Forget
To look
Within.