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1.7k · Jan 2014
Abyss of the Disheartened
LJ Chaplin Jan 2014
Can't you see she is drowning?
Her heart is sinking,
A Titanic heartbreak,
Broken in two,
Don't just sit there and watch the oxygen escape her quivering lips,
Dive
       In
          And
               Save
                     Her.

Let the water consume you,
Drag your soul to the bottom,
Anchor yourself to the seabed
And stretch open your arms,
If you can't fire the flare,
At least go down with the ship,
Let her drift into your embrace,
Feel the pulsating current tear away
All final thoughts of fear and insecurity,
Just stay there,
Linger in the abyss of the disheartened
And wait until your bodies are pulled from the waves
**And revived.
1.7k · Apr 2015
High Horse
LJ Chaplin Apr 2015
I never thought
I'd get off this high horse,
For my feet to touch the earth
And feel something,
No clouds to obstruct my view,
Throwing the rose tinted glasses
To the ground
And crush them into the soil,
But new realisations can be
Hard to deal with,
So I must take my time
To piece it together
© LJ Chaplin
1.6k · Feb 2015
Undone
LJ Chaplin Feb 2015
You were too preoccupied
With trying to stitch your
Heart back on to your sleeve
To notice that you became undone.
The seams had burst and your soul
Unravelled,
And with each step
You fall apart.
1.6k · May 2014
Clockwork
LJ Chaplin May 2014
Time passes by,
The metallic fusion of
cogs and wheels
grinding against one another
to keep it going like a boat
Down a river,
the incessant clicking of hands
skipping over each minute,
each second,
each precious moment of life
that we take for granted
And drives us to insanity
in the dead of night.
1.5k · Nov 2014
Blood, Guts and Glory
LJ Chaplin Nov 2014
Draw a breath the way you'd draw your sword,
As you exhale you feel the power that follows,
How the vapour lingers like the sun soaked blade
In the air,
Preparing to charge,
Throwing yourself through hell and back
Effortlessly,
Can you feel the battle drum
That pounds in your chest?
The fire in your belly
As you spark up a cigarette
And face your enemies
Eye to eye,
The tension in those coiled muscles of yours,
Like you are ready to pounce.
The cannon has been fired,
Go forth and savour the ultimate victory,
Wipe your sword,
Tame the bonfire in your stomach
Smile at the sky and feel the warmth
Of the sun.
You have seized another day,
Another triumph.
1.5k · Jan 2015
That One Question
LJ Chaplin Jan 2015
We latch on to the things
Which destroy us:
Love,
Vanity,
Wealth,
*But what is the price we pay?
1.5k · Jan 2016
Satellites
LJ Chaplin Jan 2016
If I ever owned a star
I wouldn't name it after you,
I'd name it after every soul
And all the lives that they lived through,
Watch the world turning and see all the sights,
Just like the satellites.

Punch holes through atmospheres,
Like when the air breaks from feathered wings,
We'd all explore the milky way
And tiptoe across Saturn's rings,
Run with the comets faster than the speed of sound
To places NASA never found.

We wander far away
Where gravity can't pull us down,
Further than Pluto's gaze,
Where toes will never touch the ground,
Creating a big bang that ignites a spark,
Burns out the fear and casts out the dark.
© L.J. Chaplin
1.5k · Oct 2013
Shooting Star
LJ Chaplin Oct 2013
Falling out of the clouds
Like a shooting star
Sets the night on fire
As I cascade towards
The earth at a frightening speed
But I am not afraid
Because as I fall to my fate
I am granting millions of wishes
For those whose lives have
Not yet been fulfilled
And yearn for something
That will make them whole again,
I am ablaze,
A smouldering mass of beauty
That opens the eyes of so many people
Who are perched on top of a hill
Or by their bedroom windows,
Sitting in absolute silence,
The only sounds are their heartbeats
And their dreams singing in their heads
Like a magnificent symphony.
I am close to the ground now
And I am slowly burning out,
But it's OK,
I am willing to make this sacrifice
Because my beauty was amidst so many others
In the black canvas of Space,
Now I am spreading it across the World.
For the hungry eyes and the hungry minds
of humanity.
1.5k · Jan 2014
Lyrics: Sober
LJ Chaplin Jan 2014
Verse One
Rockstar wages
And a chevy impala attitude,
Pornstar secrets,
With a red light point of view,
But something has me going,
So controlling,
I need to get out of my head,
Can't stop hoping,
Overdosing
On the thought of living high instead,
And I said

Chorus
Don't be scared to rest those shot glass shattered eyes,
Give ******* kisses to the boys and the girls who lied,
Don't tell me you're sober
Until it is over,
The tears won't dry on their own.

Verse Two
Las Vegas Luck
And I'll always be rolling the dice,
Wartime loss,
As I fight to surrender my life,
But something keeps me going,
Overflowing,
With temptation to let go,
Keep on coping,
Roller coasting
Falling too fast and never want to go slow,
And I said

Chorus**
Don't be scared to rest those shot glass shattered eyes,
Give ******* kisses to the boys and the girls who lied,
Don't tell me you're sober
Until it is over,
The tears won't dry on their own.

Bridge
Another shot,
Another chance,
To sort out life
And finish this dance,
If I can't be happy,
At least carry on
'Til the end of the song.

I picked up the pieces from my shot glass shattered eyes,
Gave out ******* kisses to the boys and the girls who lied,
I'm an unholy mess,
But I will try to impress
The devil when he comes to take away my soul,
And I'll say

Chorus
Share the shot glass glances with the World outside,
Save the ******* kisses for the ride to Hell tonight
This song isn't over
Even if you are sober,
The tears won't be wasted on you
The tears won't be wasted on you.
1.5k · Aug 2013
Validation
LJ Chaplin Aug 2013
I have often accepted the criticisms of others,
A self fulfilling prophecy
That has left me shaped and moulded
Into the grotesque mutation
From the blueprints crafted by society.

I seek validation,
Doors that are unlocked
So I can walk into a persons life
Without having to hide the possessions I have
Under dust covers and dragging them in the dark
When they are fast asleep and can't see.

I want to be able to re-ignite the glowing embers
In my soul
So that the flames burn away the cobwebs
And the neglect of my former self.
I made the  inevitable mistake of using petrol to accelerate the ignition
And now everything is falling apart,
**One little piece at a time.
1.4k · Apr 2015
Survival Of The Fittest
LJ Chaplin Apr 2015
It is a human trait to want what is best for
Yourself,
To succeed,
To reach new heights where you almost struggle to breathe,
To make it to the top and watch what you have built thrive,
But you've lost count of how many knives
You've planted in someone else's back,
How many times you have fed off the innocence
Of one's vulnerability
And expose it to catapult your delusions higher,
You keep a tally of how many people you have
Crushed to clear your own path to the pedestal.

But everything crumbles in the end.
You hang precariously over those
Who hungrily wait for you to return
To the bottom of the food chain
Where you belong.
After all,
It is survival of the fittest
And we all want a taste of invincibility.
1.4k · Aug 2014
Aspirin
LJ Chaplin Aug 2014
The taste of liquor on my lips
Cannot compare to the intoxicating
Sound of your voice that lingers in my ears,
It makes my head spin,
Throwing the Earth of its axis
And causing me to stumble to the ground,
Limbs weak,
Words slurred,
The cramping in my stomach
From the stab wounds that anxious butterflies
Left behind,
I dread the hangover you'd leave me in the morning,
The throbbing headache from the empty
Space next to me in bed,
The nausea from seeing the creases on the pillow
From where your head rested,
The dry lips from where you kissed me,
Glazed eyes that still shine from where you said
They were beautiful,

I guess I can ease the pain with an aspirin,
Dropping the memories into water and watching
Them dissolve,
Slowly disintegrating and falling apart,
Only to be swallowed and leave a bad taste in my mouth
Like it never happened.
1.4k · Oct 2013
Look To The Skies
LJ Chaplin Oct 2013
The stars look bright tonight. The crisp summer breeze rolled across my bare skin as I lay shirtless beneath the dead oak tree near the lake.  The sky was clear, barely any obstruction from an innocent cloud that travelled down the vast black road that stretched on for eternity. I always loved coming here. So did my father.

It had been four years since he had died. The cause is still unknown. All I remember is the gaping hole in his chest as he... left. So many unanswered questions are lingering in the back of my mind. How did it happen? Who or what had done that to him? Why did it have to happen to him? Why not me? I feared that these questions hung inevitably in the unknown, locked away in a subconscious prison with no means of being bailed out.  Life had to continue though, no matter how unconditionally excruciating the pain may be in my chest when I miss him, no matter how many times I had cried myself to sleep because he wasn’t there to tell me that it will be OK whenever I had night terrors. They started soon after my mother died. I would wake up screaming and writhing in fear. My father would run into my room and bring me close to his chest. He would whisper in my ear “Shh son, it’s OK, nothing will get you. I am here now.  Calm down, you’re safe now.”

After the yelling had stopped he would carry me downstairs and into the garden. The cool air would cause the beads of sweat on my face to tingle. I always loved that feeling. It was the indication that I was back in reality. We would both sit on the grass. Dad would run inside and return carrying a large blanket. He would wrap it around the both of us. It always smelled just like my mother, a faint scent of lavender and honeysuckle. We would then peer into the sky, where dad would show me all of the constellations: Orion, Pegasus, Cetus, and other names that I couldn’t pronounce. “Each of these constellations tells a story, son” he would say to me as I tried to make sense of the jumble of stars that floated in the dark sky, “and one day, when the time comes, I will be up there. One day you will be able to tell your own children my story. All you have to do is simply look to the skies.”

I shook myself free from the painful reminiscence. I am eighteen, these things do not happen anymore. I stood up and stretched, feeling the muscles beneath my skin pull and uncoil. I strolled over to the lake. It was surrounded by thick forest, silhouetted against the black backdrop of the night’s horizon.  Ripples rolled over the surface of the silent lake. The crystal clear water reflected the night sky.  I took off my shoes and socks and dipped my foot into the water. The stars rippled around me. The water was lukewarm, refreshing after the scorching heat of another day that had passed me by. After testing the water I couldn’t resist. I took a few steps back, sprinted forwards and leaped into the air. I crashed into the water, fracturing the serene reflection of the night-time sky. The water cooled every fibre of my body. I let the water soak into my bare skin. I could feel my pores filling with the liquid, the bubbles brushing delicately over my legs and arms. I wanted to stay underwater forever.

I hit the surface, puncturing the barrier between tranquillity and realism. I ****** in the humid air and let it fill my lungs. I let myself float effortlessly onto my back and glided across the water. The stars sat there in the sky watching me. Up there somewhere, I knew there was somebody among them watching me too, smiling and waving as he saw this boy float upon a bed of water.

I wish he could be floating next to me this very moment and enjoy the placidity of the night.
OK, so this isn't a poem. It's a chapter of a story I started a while ago and never finished, but this is my favourite chapter. I've never put so much detail into my writing like this before, so I wanted to share it.
1.4k · Sep 2013
Balanced
LJ Chaplin Sep 2013
Tonight I feel as if the scales are balanced,
I'm not swimming in the ghostly tears of my sadness,
But I'm not dancing in the sunlight of happiness.
After all, what is happiness?
It is almost unnerving,
To feel one half of your mind and soul
Tip-toeing on the edge of a cliff
While the other half is trying to anchor itself
To the centre of the Earth because it doesn't want to leave,
It is an unsettling feeling.
I also feel like there are so many loose ends that need to be tied,
Unfinished business if you will.
I have the urge to pick up a book that triggers me
As if it is my destiny to savour the closing line on the last page
And feel like I have succeeded,
To send a message to every single person who has done me wrong
And has thrown me about like rag doll just to apologise
"Sorry for being such an easy target for you all."

My poetry has become an epistolary,
A series of decaying thoughts that have been woven into words,
Some to purge my dark intentions,
Others to hold on to that small sliver of happiness
Like a balloon tied to your wrist to stop it from floating away.

I hope to keep this balance long enough to pick up the pieces of my derailed being,
**Then it can tip either way and I'll be content.
1.4k · Oct 2014
Distance
LJ Chaplin Oct 2014
A few miles feels like we are oceans apart,
Battling against a tide of cars and trains
To reach your arms,
Even when we are beneath the same quilt,
It feels as if the rolling waves of creased bed sheets
Separates us from being connected,
I wait patiently, On the cliffs edge of a station platform,
For the sails to catch the fume stained wind of another train engine,
To be hurtled through fields that burn beneath the sun,
Past speeding cars and clouds that drift peacefully
Across the vast skies that echo adventure and longing,
Only to reach the final destination of your safety.
1.4k · Jul 2013
I'm Sorry I Left You
LJ Chaplin Jul 2013
I'm sorry I left you happiness,
You didn't deserve to be alone,
But they took me from you so quickly,
They dragged me from my home.

I was beaten and tormented,
From past fears and bad mistakes,
But believe me when I tell you,
My soul wasn't theirs to take.

Tortured and neglected,
Abandoned in a darkened room,
I miss you and I know you miss me,
I promise I'll be home soon.

I broke free from my captors,
Running with blood on my knees,
To meet you on the front porch,
Forgive me happiness,  **please.
1.3k · Dec 2016
The Bus Journey
LJ Chaplin Dec 2016
The person sat by me,
Is calling somebody,
He's saying 'I love you'
Is that so unusual,
To feel so alone in that moment?

The lovers at the front,
Have had more than enough
Of their parents' scrutiny
So they commit mutiny,
And consequences are left unspoken.

The cold condensation
Hides all condescension,
From every pedestrian
With bitter complexions
Who braved the cold and are frozen.
© L.J. Chaplin
1.3k · May 2014
Butterfly
LJ Chaplin May 2014
The silence of the night
Encases you,
A dark, silky cocoon
That envelopes all
Feelings of ugliness
And insecurity,
You hang upside down,
Suspended in thought
As the respiration of nature
Breathes in the thick
Black air,
Then as the sun spills
Over the horizon
Like a volcano,
And the faint paint strokes
Of sunlight sets the cocoon
On fire,
All doubt melts away
And you realise
You are beautiful.
Wings spread wide,
A spectrum glimmering
Through each translucent
Fibre,
You take flight
And leave the remains
Of the shell you once were.
1.3k · Jul 2013
Memory Lane
LJ Chaplin Jul 2013
I see the road sign for Memory Lane,
I made myself promise I will
Never take that road again.
It's overgrown with thorns and hedges,
Filled with potholes and jagged edges
of the beer bottles I smashed last time I was here.
It's hardly paved with good intentions,
Now I'm stuck with interventions,
The indicators in my car

Do I go left? Down that lane and face destruction?
Or do I go right? And have new introduction
*to life?
1.3k · Sep 2014
Lyrics: Foolish
LJ Chaplin Sep 2014
Verse One
Lay down beside you,
On the dark side of the moon
So we're not blinded by the Sun,
Lean into you,
Deafened by the sirens
We could be lovers on the run,
Don't let go of you,
The world is caving
And there is nowhere we can go,
Don't turn away from you,
Dance upon the wire
We like to lose control

Chorus
Foolish hearts are easy to break,
Watch it crumble and circle the drain,
You ran away before I was able,
To look at the cards you threw to the table,
Left my heart be 'cause it was unstable,
Foolish hearts are hard to maintain,
You let me trust you again

Verse Two
You told me,
That we are made of steel
But we fell apart like paper,
You touched me,
Fingertips were warm
But emotions turned to vapour,
You cheated me,
Said I was invincible
But crumbled under pressure,
You never saw me,
A shipwreck of a man beneath
Skin that's made of leather

Chorus
Foolish hearts are easy to break,
Watch it crumble and circle the drain,
You ran away before I was able,
To look at the cards you threw to the table,
Left my heart be 'cause it was unstable,
Foolish hearts are hard to maintain,
You let me trust you again

Bridge
You twisted my words and I lost the battle,
Hiding the key and left me in shackles,
My foolish heart caved 'cause it was too much to handle,
You crushed in your hands,
Gone down the drain with the rest of our plans

Chorus**
Foolish hearts are easy to break,
Watch it crumble and circle the drain,
You ran away before I was able,
To look at the cards you threw to the table,
Left my heart be 'cause it was unstable,
Foolish hearts are hard to maintain,
You let me trust you again
1.3k · Aug 2015
Voice
LJ Chaplin Aug 2015
Like a whisper can spread into a rumour,
Satirical  slur can be somebody's humour,
The way that we talk as if the world is deaf,
Shouting at walls as if there's no one left,
Cut throat consonants and viper vowels,
Too many blows makes you throw in the towel,
Spit out the blood and wipe off the spit,
Get your head in the game
And dive into the pit,
We all have a voice that shapes and that moulds,
Too many cards that we're able to fold,
Speak out for peace or speak out for change,
Irritate the lion and make him roar from his cage,
No bad blood will spill if you speak the truth,
And not spend your life just jumping through hoops.
LJ Chaplin Jan 2014
He talks to me,
In dreams,
When I wake up,
When I sit at the writing desk,
Quill in my hand.
He made me feel safe.
Who are you?
I am Hyde.
Why are you in my head?
To guide you. To help you. To love you.

He spoke to me everyday,
His deep and subtle voice lingering
In the back of my mind,
Never interrupting  when I spoke,
Never intervening in my actions.
I felt compelled to keep him close,
To drag him from the dark confines
Of my subconscious and let him
Perch behind my eyes so he could see what I see,
Behind my mouth so he could say what I say,
Behind my heart so he can live like I live.
We became one.

But one day he changed.
He grew stronger,
Louder,
I felt his phantom presence
Fuse with my bones,
Wrapping his fingers around my ribcage,
Cutting off the air in my lungs.
It was suffocating,
Letting him take over me,
To overpower me.
I tried to send him back to Hell,
Back to the dark confines
That I so willingly and half-heartedly
Pulled him from,
But I was weak and I was foolish.

I felt the sinister urges boil beneath my skin,
Felt the need for destructive satisfaction with each pulse,
He didn't want to hurt people,
I did.

I gave myself to him,
And now I am his puppet.
A tragic love story between
A troubled body
And a chaotic mind.
1.3k · Jul 2013
The Nation
LJ Chaplin Jul 2013
I'm sick of this place I call my nation
Politics
Riots
and
Discrimination

Held down by the Government in a state of oppression
While they squander in a financial depression
The greed they conceal in their castle's so high,
While we sit in the dungeons and watch our dreams die,
Eaten by poverty and stripped from our bones,
Are the last dreams of hope you so reluctantly bestowed,
Two men cannot marry
A whole religion is ******
We'll take all of your money
****** it from your hands

But I dream for a place where we are able,
As two married men or women to sit at the table,
And feast on their success with their own children,
Who will slay the dragon of the political institution,
Who'll wave the flag and say yes we have won
And rip down the boundaries and make us all one.
1.3k · Sep 2013
Depressive Realism
LJ Chaplin Sep 2013
They say that those who have a darker and more crowded mind,
Have a better perspective of the world than those with normal minds.
It is the truth.
We see the devils behind the flesh,
The true nature of people behind the mask,
We can sense the lies and lack of faith
From a mile away.

Walking the streets while a whole network of emotions
Are pulsing through your head makes you see the world in a different light,
More enhanced senses.
We see the truth behind the smiles,
We feel the wrenching tension of the person next to us,
We hear the staccato heartbeat of someone trying to stay calm,
We can taste the fragility of words from a persons lips,
**We can smell fear.
1.3k · Nov 2013
The Phoenix
LJ Chaplin Nov 2013
These orange feathers wither
Beneath the scorching heat of the sun,
I am weak, dying,
Life slipping from my body
Until I am an empty shell,
A desolate carcass,
And finally I drown beneath the ashes
Of my own weakness.
But inside my lifeless heart
The embers are still smouldering
Until they breathe smoke into my veins
And I come alive,
Rising from the ashes,
The feathers aflame with radiant
And glorious beauty,
My wings spread wide
Like a sublime inferno.
I am captivated by my beauty,
Perplexed by my ferocity
And perfection.
1.2k · Jul 2013
Hourglass
LJ Chaplin Jul 2013
I've tried to be patient,
Tried to keep a positive face
As more and more people
Begin to swarm me with their
troubles and doubts.
It is ironic,
Whenever I had a problem
That clung to my chest
Like an illness
Nobody wanted to know.
As soon as I find the happiness I've craved
To cure the sickness
It is like everybody wants to put me to bed again.

I am suffocating.
I feel like I am trying to outrun
The raging current
Of the falling grains of sand
In the hourglass.
Time is running out
And it is only a mater of time
Before I slip through
And end up in a heap
At the bottom,
Left there to wait in silence
Until finally I turn around again.

But then it is a slow and painful
Process of repeating the same
Countdown.

One day I hope to smash the glass
And let the sand run free,
Where I can accept the pressure of others
And still have the opportunity
To take a breath of fresh air
And balance my own happiness.
1.2k · Apr 2015
Haiku: Tightrope
LJ Chaplin Apr 2015
I won't let you fall

From those treacherous wires,

Just please don't look down.
1.2k · Jul 2013
Gracie
LJ Chaplin Jul 2013
Eight years old
With the whole world at your feet,
But already I see the amazing woman
That you will become when you're older,
I am proud to be a part of that.
Blue eyes,
Blonde hair,
The biggest smile that warms the pain in my heart
Whenever I come to see you.
Your mother's smile,
Your father's height,
But you will have your brother's humour,
I will personally make sure of that!

You seem too far away and I hate it,
But I know you'll always love me,
As I will always love you.
When you were born
I remember being the jealous ex youngest child
But then when you started smiling and I held you
For the first time,
I felt like the happiest big brother alive.
I was yours.
**Your big brother.
This poem is dedicated to my amazing little sister Gracie. I feel so blessed and lucky to have her in my life. We may argue and fall out, but I wouldn't trade her for anything.
1.2k · Dec 2013
Trust No Bitch
LJ Chaplin Dec 2013
Don't spill your guts for those you thought you could trust,
There is so much deceit behind their lying eyes,
So much deception and cruelty behind their lips
As they whisper
You can trust me. I promise.
Broken promises are scattered on the floor
And I have stepped on the razor shards,
I caught myself in the bear-trap
And I'm stuck in this quick sand
of repetitive regret and resentment.
It seems inevitable that I will open myself
Up to people,
But it is their own fault that I have closed my doors to them.
Trust takes months to build and only seconds to destroy.
1.1k · Mar 2014
Play Nice
LJ Chaplin Mar 2014
Broken shards of glass,
A refraction of a part of you,
Treading on hot coals
Because you want to feel
The painful numbness
Of what it feels like
To be alive,
You weave in the intricate
Details of the Devil
Just so you can cast away
All remnants of innocence,
An exorcism happened in this bedroom,
You want to feel the dirt,
The grit,
The ferocity
Of a one night stand
As if it is your
Last night standing,
You want to be turned on
With lights off,

You want to be bad
At playing nice.
1.1k · Oct 2016
Solace
LJ Chaplin Oct 2016
I found solace in the arms of a devil,
A smokey-eyed creature
On a whole other level,

My parents warned me not to give in,
To a world full of chaos,
And a love built on sin,

But he stole me away and said he had a plan,
To take 'Mummy's boy'
And turn me into a man,

Fifteen years on and I'm on my own,
The fire went out
And I'm too scared to go home,

I found solace in the arms of a man,
Who hung me over the edge
And let go of my hand.
1.1k · Dec 2014
Bad Blood
LJ Chaplin Dec 2014
I spend my days
Trying to purge you from my head,
Banging my head against the wall,
Rinsing acid around my mouth
To burn away the sour taste you
Left with those poisoned lips of yours,
Sprinting for miles to sweat out the fever
You planted beneath my skin when you
Touched me,
Throwing myself off mountain tops
So that the air would steal all traces
Of the fumes you left in my lungs
When you kissed me.
You are tainted,
Bad blood that lines
My veins with cyanide,
A knife in my back
That burns as the blood
Trickles down.
LJ Chaplin Jan 2014
Verse One
A simple complication
Shapes the way we see ourselves,
A fatal disconnection,
To be just like everyone else,
Find the spark in your heart
And let out the flames,
Kiss the scars on your arms,
You were never to blame,
Turn on the lights in your mind
And throw out the dark,
You were never made to break this way,
Trauma never fades to grey

Chorus
Paint with watercolours from your tears,
A prism you made from your fear,
Chase the spectrum and touch the light,
Crystal clear and it shines through the glass
Of your heavy soul,
You want to be whole,
Fill the cracks in the flaws only you can see,
Perfection isn't what it seems to be.

Verse Two
A desperate resignation,
Starve your body from the hate,
A fatal designation,
Purging pain until it's too late,
Put the nightmares to bed,
And lock up the door,
The voices will cease to exist any more,
Kiss the scars on your thighs,
And fall in love with your skin,
You will never break again,
You are stronger than the strongest of them

Chorus
Paint with watercolours from your tears,
A prism you made from your fear,
Chase the spectrum and touch the light,
Crystal clear and it shines through the glass
Of your heavy soul,
You want to be whole,
Fill the cracks in the flaws only you can see,
Perfection isn't what it seems to be.

Bridge
Rainbow refractions of years to come,
Mirrors that show the person you've become,
Crystal reflections
Will show unique complexions
Of yourself,
Perfect the way you are,
You've put up a fight and you've come so far

Chorus** (x2)
Paint with watercolours from your tears,
A prism you made from your fear,
Chase the spectrum and touch the light,
Crystal clear and it shines through the glass,
Of your heavy soul,
You want to be whole,
Fill the cracks in the flaws only you can see,
Perfection isn't what it seems to be.
1.1k · Sep 2013
My December Love
LJ Chaplin Sep 2013
Frostbite lips,
Glacial eyes,
Snowflake teardrops
As you melted away,
My December love.

I knew our love would never last,
Our intimacy was scorching hot,
Our devotion smouldered in the dark,
My Summer heart made you melt
In the palms of my hands.

Strike me in the chest with an icicle,
Take me under with a raging avalanche,
Make me lose myself in a blizzard,
Make it snow long enough
*So that we are stuck inside our minds until Winter returns next year.
1.1k · Aug 2013
That Stuff Called Alcohol
LJ Chaplin Aug 2013
That stuff called alcohol,
Wow what a mess,
The healer of tension,
The reliever of stress.

Clouding the brain,
Intoxicate the senses,
Together they're deadly
As they both drop their defences.

Bottles on the bedside,
Cans on the floor,
Stella Artois is watching
In a bin by the door.

Have a shot of Russian water,
And see where you end up,
Either stumbling on the streets,
Or topping up another cup.

The controller of minds,
The master of confusion,
The leader of disaster,
The commander of delusion.

Oh sweet, sweet alcohol,
You cure me when I'm not sober,
But one more swig from a bottle of Jack,
And it's **game over.
1.1k · Feb 2014
Les Undésirables
LJ Chaplin Feb 2014
This one is for the girl who was told she had a "fat ***",
This one is for the guy who was told he needed to build muscle because he is a "scrawny *******",

All the guys and the girls who society doesn't love,
Scream,
And let them hear your presence.

We will no longer sit at the table alone,
We will no longer watch the popular group
Belittle people's clothes and their looks,
We will no longer be the 'undesirables'.

I love your hair,
I love the skin you're in,
I love the eccentric and bold clothing you wear
Because you're being yourself,
I don't care who you are or where you're from,
I don't care what sexuality you are or your ethnical background,
I do care about your happiness though,
I want you to wake up in the morning and not give a **** what people will say,
I want you to look in the mirror and smile because you haven't changed for everyone else,
I want you to inhale as deeply as you possibly can because you are strong enough to survive the night when you were nearly ready to surrender.

Nous sommes les undésirables.
Nous sommes la nouvelle révolution. .
1.1k · Jul 2013
Oil Slick
LJ Chaplin Jul 2013
The world is changing,
I know it is.
I can feel the shifting tide of change,
Pulling me further into the vast ocean
Of new laws,
Freedom
Equality
Justice
And I am proud to be a part of that change.

But alas I fear the sinister forces of evil that lie beneath the tranquil surface of the water
We must be ready with our nets and our spears to capture and dispose of it
**Otherwise it will be an oil slick which will destroy everything we have slowly and painfully forged with our own two hands.
1.1k · Nov 2013
Free
LJ Chaplin Nov 2013
Bad times, no fun,
I've missed that last kiss,
I cry each night,
There's no getting over this,
I know I started this mess,
It's my own fault and I'm useless,
But I will try my best,

Don't hate me I,
I'm trying to make this whole thing right.

Hold it together dear Lew,
I know you will try to get through,
Been writing as I'm living
So I could build myself up for you,
I'm not sorry for hurting,
But oh god my heart is bursting,
Been confessing my oppression,
Because I want to be free,
I want to be free.

Fixation's clear,
I want to go back home,
Why am I here?
'Cause there's no better place to go.
Feels like the passion has gone,
At least it's better to be wrong,
Everything is done.

Please love me I,
I'm ****** up but I know that it's right.

Hold it together dear Lew,
I know you will try to get through,
Been writing as I'm living
So I could build myself up for you,
I'm not sorry for hurting,
But oh god my heart is bursting,
Been confessing my oppression,
Because I want to be free,
I want to be free.
This poem was inspired by 'Dope' by the incredible Lady Gaga. This song is so full of pain and passion and she is so brave for writing this song.
1.1k · May 2016
London Boy
LJ Chaplin May 2016
Lonely London boy,
A stranger to the City,
A fluffy-haired gull
Lost in a sea of suitcases
And Kodak-clad people.
Big dreams tucked
Into the waistcoat
That hugged his frame
A little too much,
Occasionally glancing
Into café windows to
See how disheveled
He had become
During rush hour
On the Bakerloo Line.
© L.J. Chaplin
1.1k · Jul 2013
Game of Cards
LJ Chaplin Jul 2013
My cards are on the table,
Stick or twist if you dare,
We're betting on a deadly game,
A personal and ****** warfare.
The king of hearts is all lined up,
To steal the chance away,
The joker's in the packet,
Plotting to rue the day.
The ace is trapped beneath the pile,
struggling to breathe,
While the Queen of diamonds is sat on top,
With pearls and money stuffed up her sleeve.

Your poker face is quite impressive,
But mine is so much better,
The sweat is dripping down your face,
Your collar is getting wetter.
I stare you down and watch your eyes,
They're darting to and fro,
The pressure builds beneath the surface,
The cracks begin to show.
I catch a glimpse of your frustration,
As you hesitate to move,
To fold the card that lines your fate,

**Whether you win or lose.
1.1k · Jul 2013
Lose Myself
LJ Chaplin Jul 2013
If I lose myself tonight,
Don't come looking for me,
I promise I'll be alright,
I need some space to be free.

Don't use a compass,
Don't use a map,
Just wait at home on the front porch,
When I'm ready I'll come right back.

Don't ring the police,
Or search all day,
Just let me travel and go far away.

If I lose myself tonight,
Don't be alarmed,
I'm finally escaping to a quiter place,
Where I wll remain unharmed.
LJ Chaplin Jul 2013
I've got 99 problems and you're 98 of them,
Would you like me to repeat?
Shall I tell you again?
You frustrate me,
Irritate me,
You really do deflate me.

I'm trying to breathe hard
And swallow down the swear words,
But it's getting to the point
Where those sweet words need to be heard.

I've been a patient guy,
So give me some credit,
But I will be ripping into you
And when you read this I would've already said it.

I'm not a mean person,
I'm actually quite passive,
But if you tick me off,
My response will be massive.
B words,
F words,
And multiple more I shouldn't say,
But I've had enough of being treated
Like I'm the leftover cigarette **** at the bottom of your ashtray.
1.0k · Mar 2017
Mother of Pearl
LJ Chaplin Mar 2017
She finds consolation
In the shell of her being,
At the bottom of an ocean
Where neither man
Nor the tide that follows him
Can carry her away.

Her heart belongs in a shell,
Wrapped in layers upon layers
of nacre
Where she can abstain
From pain,
From torment
And from his touch.
(c) L.J. Chaplin
1.0k · Jun 2013
Contrast
LJ Chaplin Jun 2013
Distorted reflections,
Unwanted connections,
Chaotic reactions,
****** attractions,

Stable mind,
Clearly blind,

     I am fine,
     I always lie,

          I look great,
          Another part to hate

               I love you
               I don't think you do

                     Are you OK?
                     You know what I'll say

                          Can I help?
                          I can do it myself

                               Don't you care?
                               I wouldn't dare

                                     Are you crying?
                                     If I said no I'd be lying

                                          I'm so sorry
                                          *Oh please, you never worry.
999 · Jun 2013
Haiku: Dreams
LJ Chaplin Jun 2013
I saw a child once,
Stood at the edge of his dreams,
Hoping to reach it.
975 · Jul 2013
Bad Teens
LJ Chaplin Jul 2013
***** dreams from magazines,
Filthy ***** and no other rules,
A generation who are out of luck,
But we don't care, no we don't give a ****.
Concentrating on identity,
Make-up bags and vanity,
Liquor bottles on the floor,
But we'll do it again because we want more.

Drug scares, alcohol,
red lights, fancy cars,
Money, what's that for?
We are living a lie,
We are living a lie.

Cigarettes, twenty in a pack,
Jack Daniels cooling in a glass,
Bad behaviour, that's how we do,
Give us a warning, we'll be laughing at you.
Late night movies, Triple X,
Red lipstick smudges on the neck,
Fifty pound notes scattered on the floor,
But we won't pick them up because we don't want them no more.

ASBO's, misbehaved,
Cop cars, underaged,
Manners, what are they?
We're the bad teens in town,
We're the bad teens in town.
Sorry if it is a little intense. Inspired by the song Saturday Night by Natalia Kills :)
973 · Sep 2013
Guy Fawkes
LJ Chaplin Sep 2013
I've crossed paths,
Crossed hearts with no hope to die,
Set fire to the night and watch it burn alive,
Watch it turn to ash and spit smoke into the sky,
So the clocks won't ever stop because they'll never freeze in time.

We will fight to claim our territory back,
Without guns and grenades or vicious attacks,
We'll use our words to forge our own weapons,
Make you surrender and we'll become legends,
The death of a war that has no place in heaven.

They say I look better dressed up in cold misery,
But I prefer armour made from bittersweet victory,
With words like matches that burned for our liberty,
I am Guy Fawkes and blazing on a new page in History.
965 · Jul 2013
Loathing
LJ Chaplin Jul 2013
Swimming against a current so much stronger than I am,
Battling my way through the waves,
But it's becoming harder to breathe,
Harder to think,
And I find myself drowning,
Sinking further and further
Into the unknown,
Floating endlessly into the abyss,
My body slamming into
Shipwreck insecurities,
Fossilised memories,
Trapped pain in rotting chests.

All because of one tiny detail about myself that I loathe,
Loathing so much deeper than the seven seas stacked on top of one another.
957 · Jun 2013
Haiku: Freedom
LJ Chaplin Jun 2013
Today is the day,
Men and women are now free,
To wed their equals.
To all of the Americans, whether you are gay, lesbian or bisexual, I am so happy for you all. The chains of gay marital oppression have finally been loosened. DOMA has been struck down. I wish you all so much happiness for the future, it's your turn to shine! <3
954 · Aug 2013
What Have You Done?
LJ Chaplin Aug 2013
Let me tell you about how I feel,
I promise not to bore you,
If you promise to let me heal.
I've been bullied,
Attacked,
Ridiculed,
Hated,
Pushed to the breaking point,
Because of the words that have been stated.

I've been shunned and ashamed,
Labelled with names,
That do not justify who I am,
I have been ignored and refused,
And verbally abused
By people who I thought would understand.

Am I a part of collateral damage?
Another scar from stereotypical carnage?
The bullets took off,
But yet you all forgot,
About the boy who took every single shot.
I told you I'm fine,
Because after all I'm defined
To act like nothing has happened.

You're probably thinking,
Wow this screams for attention,
But if that thought crossed your mind,
You're in serious need of a certain lesson.

I don't expect you to change your ways,
But to consider the way you behave,
Towards a person who wants to feel alive,
But struggles to breathe because they're hurting inside.

This is the story of a boy who cried help,
Built to be destroyed by a world who made him hate himself.
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