I want to entice you
Into complicit
When we fit it
Where it should be
As seen from afar by me

So long ago I don't remember when
That's when they said I lost my only friend
Well they said she died easy of a broken heart disease
As I listened through the cemetery trees
I seen the sun comin' up at the funeral at dawn
With the long broken arm of human law
Now it always seemed such a waste
She always had a pretty face
I wondered why she hung around this place
Hey-ey-ey
Come on try a little
Nothing is forever
Got to be something better than in the middle
Me and Cinderella
We put it all together
We can drive it home
With one headlight
She said it's cold
It feels like independence day
And I can't break away from this parade
But there's got be an opening
Somewhere here in front of me
Through this maze of ugliness and greed
And I've seen the sign up ahead at the county line bridge
Sayin' all is good and nothingness is dead
We run until she's out of breath
She ran until there's nothing left
She hit the end, just her window ledge
Hey-ey-ey
Come on try a little
Nothing is forever
Got to be something better than in the middle
But me and Cinderella
We put it all together
We can drive it home
With one headlight
Well this place is old
It feels just like a beat up truck
I turn the engine but the engine doesn't turn
Well it smells of cheap wine and cigarettes
This place is always such a mess
Sometimes I think I'd like to watch it burn
I'm so alone
Feel just like somebody else
Man, I ain't changed, but I know I ain't the same
But somewhere here in between the city walls of dying dreams
I think her death, it must be killing me
Hey, hey, hey-ey-ey
Come on try a little
Nothing is forever
There's got to be something better than in the middle
Me and Cinderella
We put it all together
We can drive it home
With one headlight

I am an American poet
As of now
So very few know it
But when I am dead
My poems will be read
In halls of American schools
And when I am assigned
The kids won’t even mind
They will think my poems are so cool
And if this doesn’t happen
I’ll never know
So I’m a future famous poet
Because I believe it will be so

Caught the dreaded plague
Was sick for one whole day
I suppose I must be super human
Or maybe it's all overplayed
I don't know the answers
Or what I'm s'posed to say
But the dreaded plague
Kept me sick for one whole day

I’m just gonna say it
And feel about it whatever you will
But if you’re still trying that *******
“let’s go Brandon,”
Like it’s the burn of the century
You can laugh as loud as you want
But the joke is not on me

I must remind myself
Lack of resistance
Is not encouragement
In fact
Lack of encouragement
Is resistance

Friday night I crashed your party
Saturday, I said I’m sorry
Sunday came and trashed me out again
I was only having fun
Wasn’t hurting anyone
And we all enjoyed the weekend, for a change
I’ve been stranded in the Combat Zone
I walked through Bedford Stuy alone
Even rode my motorcycle in the rain
And you told me not to drive
But I made it home alive
So you said that only proves that I’m insane
You may be right
I may be crazy
But it just may be a lunatic you’re looking for
Turn out the light
Don’t try to save me
You may be wrong, for all I know
But you may be right

You’ll probably see
Some things about me
If you should bother to look
The quirks and the dreams
And the never before been seens
Within this open book
Pages ripped out
Room for some more
The best should be yet to come
Bring yourself to the story
When the mood hits
It might become your favorite one

Blame doesn’t have to be claimed or assigned
It lies in every adult
You or me
Blame is there
Surely for this or for that
Some carry more
Or less  
Some pretend they carry none
Some really believe it
But no body
Is blameless

The alpha has made me howl
Without touch
Or even presence
Yet there he is
And here I am
Howling
To him
Instead of the moon

It puts me out
How you can go without
Yet I starve for it every time
This self imposed fast
Pattern
Seems to last
But this reason has too much rhyme
Next season
You’ll be back
To captivate
And then
I’ll starve again

You gonna have to
Maybe
Come right out and say
Some day
When you feel a foundation laid
Almost sorta
Depending upon how much attention you paid
And how much you are afraid
I know you ain’t worried about getting played
The risky bet wants to know
Which way you gonna go?

You missed an exciting year
Grampa
You did get to see
The first black president
So much you got to see
When you had an entire childhood
Without even knowing about tv
Yet, you saw the world
Through war and peaceful means
Inventions of things
That once seemed like fantasies
You saw smartphones
In almost every pocket
When you once celebrated
The rotary, and then
The touch tone
Such technology that must have seemed!
Maybe when you were a kid
You dreamed of flying cars
But the miraculous inventions
You witnessed
Have them beat by far
We don't have robot maids
And we haven't yet cured baldness
And as far as politics
The nation is a mess
I think you'd be *******
About that
I suppose, if there was ever a time to
Exit Earth
Stage left
You got a good cue
But that don't stop me
From sorely missing you

I have set my limit
Given my conditions
And now I must live with it

I come across a brilliant poem
Gem
Just gorgeous
Sitting in the dust
Touched upon by wind
But never carried in
Sitting in the crowd
As dust will sit
And accumulate
Dusty gems
Everywhere
While the crowd stays convinced
Gems are rare

There’s a spiderweb outside
In between two trees
Maybe four feet wide
Hott ****
That spider ain’t no chump
How did it make that
Incredible jump?

Some kinda something is there
Between us otherwise strangers
Small interactions
Now and then
Mysterious energy
I can’t explain
Between you and me
Over airwaves
Almost anonymously
But some way
Somehow
It means something to me

There's a passage I got memorized. Ezekiel 25:17. "The path of the righteous man is beset on all sides by the inequities of the selfish and the tyranny of evil men. Blessed is he who, in the name of charity and good will, shepherds the weak through the valley of the darkness, for he is truly his brother's keeper and the finder of lost children. And I will strike down upon thee with great vengeance and furious anger those who attempt to poison and destroy My brothers. And you will know I am the Lord when I lay My vengeance upon you." Now... I been sayin' that **** for years. And if you ever heard it, that meant your ***. You'd be dead right now. I never gave much thought to what it meant. I just thought it was a cold-blooded thing to say to a ******* before I popped a cap in his ***. But I saw some **** this mornin' made me think twice. See, now I'm thinking: maybe it means you're the evil man. And I'm the righteous man. And Mr. 9mm here... he's the shepherd protecting my righteous *** in the valley of darkness. Or it could mean you're the righteous man and I'm the shepherd and it's the world that's evil and selfish. And I'd like that. But that **** ain't the truth. The truth is you're the weak. And I'm the tyranny of evil men. But I'm tryin', Ringo. I'm tryin' real hard to be the shepherd.

You have an easy way
You take it all in stride
You love to laugh
You love to play
And I love being along for the ride

I get up in the evening
And I ain't got nothing to say
I come home in the morning
I go to bed feeling the same way
I ain't nothing but tired
Man, I'm just tired and bored with myself
Hey there baby, I could use just a little help

You can't start a fire
You can't start a fire without a spark
This gun's for hire
Even if we're just dancing in the dark

Message keeps getting clearer
Radio's on and I'm moving 'round the place
I check my look in the mirror
I wanna change my clothes, my hair, my face
Man, I ain't getting nowhere
I'm just living in a dump like this
There's something happening somewhere
Baby, I just know that there is

You can't start a fire
You can't start a fire without a spark
This gun's for hire
Even if we're just dancing in the dark

You sit around getting older
There's a joke here somewhere and it's on me
I'll shake this world off my shoulders
Come on, baby, the laugh's on me

Stay on the streets of this town
And they'll be carving you up all right
They say you gotta stay hungry
Hey, baby, I'm just about starving tonight
I'm dying for some action
I'm sick of sitting 'round here trying to write this book
I need a love reaction
Come on now, baby, gimme just one look

You can't start a fire
Sitting 'round crying over a broken heart
This gun's for hire
Even if we're just dancing in the dark
You can't start a fire
Worrying about your little world falling apart
This gun's for hire
Even if we're just dancing in the dark

Let me bring you there
A new space in your mind
You’ve maybe been before
Without that shade of hue
Each time you go there
It still seems so new

Fireflies
I am not trying to hate on them
Because they are magic
But fireflies are a let down up close
Basically, a carpenter ant with wings
Yet,  delicate as far as bugs go
But lovely to see
The magic of glow
In a dusk time firefly show
Who gives a crap
How they look up close?
I’m being a hater of fireflies
Clearly I’ve hit a new low

I came with the perfect poem in my head
But I used a new phone, as my old one is dead
And the process of getting to writing the poem
Made it get lost in my head
But I came here to write a poem
And write a poem
I shall
About all the brilliance
Turned into vapor
Between the thought
And commitment to paper

I aim to be
His mental ******* machine
Tickle his brain
Relieve some of his pain
Catch his hope in his chest
Fill up his lungs with his next fresh breath
I want him to see himself through my eyes
Sometimes
And feel his own  effect with his beautiful vibe
Maybe he is too ******* himself
Doesn’t feel worthy of **** near worship
Or maybe it’s annoying
For real, who would want that ****?  
All these “maybes”
To hide the fact
The reason is me
Not accepting what will never be
Ownership of what I cannot achieve
Might be what’s most healthy
But pretending he’s  not there
And I don’t see
How beautiful he be
Does not feel like freedom
To me

I put it all out there for you
Beg for your attention
In front
Openly
While you do nothing to encourage me
Some people may see that and believe
I’m one sad, sorry, sick puppy
But honestly
Putting my feelings out
Feels healthy to me
I suppose it’s irrelevant
Whether you see

You worship for the reward
When it should be solely
Appreciation
“Thanks for everything
God
But you owe me extra
Because I have worshipped you
Nobody worships perfectly
But for my imperfect worship
You owe me”

I don’t know what I’m searching for
With this poetry
It certainly means
Something to me
My ego massaged
Maybe
To be the Creator
Of poetry

I want her to love frogs
And mud
I hope she never stresses over
Underwear lines
Or crams her feet into too small shoes
I hope she grows up
Breaking lots of rules

Simple and ignorant
Are nothing alike
Simple is genius in disguise
Ignorant is
Dummy on display

Mr. Fair Weather
He’s there whenever
Things are going your way
But soon rain will come
And that ***** ***
Will go find someone
Having a sunny day

Your apology
Sounds like
An alibi
On why
You shouldn’t feel sorry
And that answers a question
I used to wonder
If something could be less than worthless
Apparently, the answer is “yes.”

I would pray for you
But God has better things to do
I’m gonna have to pull this one off myself
But what else is new?
Thus far
Not me and you
My dream come true
If I add an “amen”
At the end
Will this “prayer” do?
Amen
Then
Praying might work
And I’ll try anything

This is my gift
Suckle on my supple lines
Make my hair stand on end
Get my goosebumps
All a rile
On my form
Let me dine on your attention
While it’s warm
It is my gift to you
But I get something from it too

Maybe you haven’t changed at all
You might always have been this way
And now I’m just noticing it
Because I’m taking it personally
And I’ve got to realize
The person you are
Has nothing to do with me

Words released into the void
Once aimless pearls
Strung together
To be found
By the lucky
Beach comber
Finding precious gems
And abandoned gold
Upon crowded shores
Of people looking in the other direction

If you stop and be silent
You will see
(Well, hear, really)
The crickets are playing you a symphony
One of a kind, never before heard
And they’re doing it so gleefully
Tweets and twangs
Tingles and pangs
Pitters and pats
Crickets’ symphonies sound like that

It will be the easy way
Or the hard way
So simple
Yet so complicated

Maybe I’m intimidating
With all that brazen speculating
On what I see in he and me
And what I think we could be
Maybe I am just annoying
And altogether too adoring
Who knows what the reason be
That he is so thoroughly
Uninterested in me

So many things without which
Would be a big deal
Assumed
Reliably
What could anyone hope for
More than necessity?

Each poem
Stands on it’s own
For what it’s worth
Beginning to end
It remains
What it’s worth
Changing
Perhaps
Through time
Some tarnish
Others shine

Her apologies are really thinly veiled guilt trips
Aimed at you
How can someone say sorry
While still blaming you?
Denying the truth
That’s what you do
You call it
“Keeping the peace”

I want to smack the back of your head
To knock into it some sense that’s common
But you’ve got yourself in so deep
Common sense is something you no longer keep

It’s only me
Feeling this chemistry
With he
Tie that binds to itself
Wishes and dreams
Too many liberties
With how I perceive it to be
I know it is imaginary
But it seems so real to me

Swag
That thing
That THING
Not necessarily seen
By anyone but me
But that’s unlikely
I ain’t the first with the eyes to see
The swag you bringing
So beautifully
Your authentic self
So **** swaggy
To me

I want to tell you that you are off
But that doesn’t mean you’re not wonderful
You are a lovely
Unbalanced person
I prefer to call myself a ******
But unbalanced is just as apt
I suppose that’s my way of telling you
All of the best people are weirdos
Your differences and quirks
Somehow it really works
Keep that in your mind
When haters are unkind

He walks so far away
Distance
Yesterday and today
Tomorrow
Maybe he will see
One would think that would be up to me
Make myself known, flail about
Jump up and down
Scream and shout
Amid the crowd
Millions of kitties
Pulling up shirts
And showing off *******
I got ******* too
But my brain is
So much more beautiful
Like most things that are hard to see
You gotta pay attention to notice the beauty

This right here
Is the rarest commodity
There’s never gonna be
Another ME
One of a kind
All throughout history
So it would be foolish to
Pretend to be
Some commonplace personality
Seen online or on TV
Altogether too frequently
But there is only one me
And, it is also true
There is only one you
And another
There never will be
A uniquely precious rarity
So, ROCK THAT ****
Vigorously
And be the youest you can be
Never offer an apology
Let the real you wild and free
If the you you are
Doesn’t hurt anybody
Wave your you flag determinedly
And celebrate when you see
Someone else say “this is me!”

I wanna see your ugly
I wanna smell your stink
Show me the dry, cracked heels
You walk upon
Present the dirt under your fingernails
Blackheads, zits, and straight up ****
Blow ya nose into a napkin and show ya boogasnots
Display the ***** q-tip pulled from your ear
Ingrown toenail, weird hair
There’s gotta be imperfection there
Somewhere

It was over
Their relationship hit the skids
Long before they got out of it
He was the one who finally vocalized
Tensely, concerned for her pride
He took the blame
And pretended to be in lots of pain
Crying and saying how sorry he was
But they have to admit they’re not in love
And so
On it goes
A couple of days
And then she shows
On his job sites
Front yard middle of the nights
Friends’ houses
Friends’ mommas’ houses
Bar he occasionally goes
If he was somewhere
She was likely to show
And he pretended she wasn’t there
While she sat in some corner chair
Seemingly extremely interested in the menu
Or a poor patron , to serve as her tool
Who just wanted an excuse to move his stool
And after a few months of this
He finally called and said “cut the ****”
But all she heard was the phone ring
And his voice on the other end
And now she’s telling everybody
“Can you believe he is still calling me!?”
And now he’s back at square one
Because she won’t accept he’s really done

Yesterday I saw a fly
Caught in a spiderweb
It was struggling so earnestly
I could feel it’s pain in me
So I let the fly go to be free
And that would have been the end of the story
Except now that spider is stalking me
He’s sitting up there in his web in the tree
Patiently plotting revenge on me

Your reply to my complaint
Was
"I'm used to insults"
And you assume this will make me
Feel sorry
While you play the poor me
Song, dance, and shlup
As if I'm supposed to feel badly for you
Because you're always ******* up