I make an appearance when you least expect it.
Shadows announce my arrival.

I envelop everything around you.
When I am near, I am all you can focus on.

My fury is carried on the wind
and though you may find shelter.
You cannot escape what I am
or the effects of what I have done.

Eventually I will leave
but until such time
that this turbulent world
calls me back again.

Reality is a jungle it seems.
The world shutting down before me.
I have no desire to dance among the flames.
I only wish to remove myself
From this chaotic society,
For as long as I possibly can.
In that vein
I ask only one thing of you:

Put your hand upon my shoulder,
Put your hand upon my shoulder,
Put your hand upon my shoulder
and please wake me when its over.

There are some provisions in the storehouse.
And I have wood to keep me warm.
A couple of months supply of water.
To quench my empty thirst.
I miss the hugs, I miss the laughing
I miss the togetherness.
Nothing more can I do now
than soldier on like all the rest.


Put your hand upon my shoulder,
Put your hand upon my shoulder,
Put your hand upon my shoulder
and please wake me when its over.

He was a nasty looking *******,
with a ragged face and a scowl.
Full of muscles, full of rage,
and a scar upon his jowl.

His head was covered in tattoos,
and he wore a tattered shirt.
His arms lashed out like pythons,
and his fists were caked with dirt.

His eyes were dark and angry,
His heart was black and cold.
His soul was filled with a fury,
such a madness to behold.

Like a hunter, he latched on to his prey,
with a giant bat in tow.
And when he found the moment right,
he struck a killing blow.

He looked upon his fallen foe,
and laughed a giant belly laugh.
Then he grabbed the lifeless form,
and broke it clean in half.

He was a nasty looking *******,
with a ragged face and scowl.
And unfortunately for you and me,
he's still out there on the prowl.

The sun is shining brightly.
A soft breeze drifts over the beach.
My feet are enjoying the cool sand.

It is comfortable here.

But I know before long
I will have to leave the shore behind
and venture out into the depths
of the ocean before me.

If you have an endless supply of nothings
In all their mystery
In all their beauty
In all their majesty
In all their enigmatic auras...

...Do you really have anything at all?

I can't take you anymore.
Not because I hate you.
But because of an indescribably energy between us.

Like two magnets
pulling back and forth at each other.
Threatening to slip out of control
at any moment.

It's too much for me.
The intensity is not worth the price.
So please forgive me my darling
should I choose to disappear forever.

Welcome to a place called addiction.
It's not as fun as it looks.
Beneath the smiles there is only eternal sadness.
Beneath the fullness there is only empty space.
We have plenty of distractions.
and plenty of destructions.

We're pretty easy to find.
Just start following the broken road
and stop once you get past markers
for failed relationships and lost jobs.
Keep your eyes out for the depression signs.
And the constant noise of suicide alley.

There are only two roads out of town.
One takes you back the way you came.
The other to certain death.
No need to make a choice right now.

You can stay with us as long as you want...

5...
4...
3...
2...
1...


Darkness.
All I have left is darkness.

Two seats are waiting for me,
on a slow train to hell.
There's no getting out of it.

In the midst of an unsettled night,
I get whisked away down the tracks.
...ba-bump-ba-bump-ba-bump-ba-bump...
this is the sound that follows me to my grave.

The world I know fades away.
Replaced by something darker,
twisted, and impeccably unnerving.
For the moment, I am not afraid.
But I suspect that won't last long.
The lights grow dimmer.
I can hear the growling of monsters
around the curve up ahead.

My body tenses.
Bloodcurdling screams
pierce the foggy night.
Two sinister red eyes,
born out of the depths of hell
lock their gaze on me.

Something...is terribly wrong.

Insanity wraps around me like
a warm blanket on a winters night.

My faculties are lost.

A preacher cannot save me.
A doctor cannot heal me.
A loved one can not help me.

The creature lashes out
with a warrior fierceness.
It eviscerates my flesh with its claws.
The end draws ever closer.
And even though I am terrified,
a strange calm comes upon me.

The last of my life force drains
from my weak and frail human form.
The creature devours what's left of me.
As the train goes plummeting over the cliff
into the impenetrable darkness below.

When will it end?
On what does it depend?
How do I know when
I can visit my friends?

Do you wonder how often
we'll keep seeing the coffins?
And if ever, with time
Will this thing be forgotten?

So now we wear masks,
Just to do daily tasks.
As we wrestle with questions,
that we did not used to ask.

We've lost our right to be free,
from a foe we can't see.
We hope and pray for a cure
While we fight the disease.

And what shall be the cost?
What will we have lost
When the clouds finally lift
and the stain has been washed?

My bones crack from the weight of this.
My muscles ache with pain.
With each passing second
My body nears its limitations.

And ultimately, there are
only two outcomes.

Either I will be pressed
into something brand new.

Or crushed into dust
and carried off with the wind.

I thought that I
distinctly heard
the angry voice
of another person
in the shadows.

But in fact it was
my own fears
and failures
being thrown
back upon me.

What are we tonight my dear?
Except for echoes of our dreams
floating in a magical sea.
Surely as the sun sets each day,
I'll be there on the shore
Waiting for your ship to come in
and then we'll dance together.

There are so many things I had to say.
That I never told you.
But maybe I didn't need to.
Maybe, in some distant, soulful way
you already knew.
And you already loved me for it.

These are strange days
as the world stands still.
And we watch from our perch
in the grass on the hill.

The streets sit nearly empty,
the car horns are gone.
Sidewalks stand barren,
no rush hour throng.

The schools, all closed up,
Football fields sit quiet.
Empty seats at the beer hall.
Local theaters stay silent.

Movie cameras aren't rolling.
Concert grounds sit unused.
Everyone's staying home,
a bit scared and confused.

So here I am all alone,
keeping distance from friends.
Wondering exactly
When this madness will end.

In my garden sits a flower.
Just a solitary rose.
Why it grows there with no other.
Perhaps God only knows.

The winds have yet to take it down,
It survived the summer storms.
No animal has ripped it up,
It’s stands tall in perfect form.

The soil’s not so great there.
It’s somewhat hidden from the light.
Yet it stays there, calm and beautiful,
Through the day and night.

Not a single mark or blemish,
Not a petal out of place.
Rising up so strong and stoic,
Thing of beauty and of grace.

I’ve lost much in this garden,
And perhaps that’s how it goes,
But sure as the sun will rise again,
I still have my perfect rose.

This tiny, vibrant flower,
Best thing my garden ever grew.
I wonder: Was it put here
So I’d always think of you?

There was a place,
A calm disgrace.
Soft betrayal of time
and space.

There was a spot,
I mattered not
in your ever
twisting plot.

There was a time,
before the crime,
When your spirit
walked the thinnest line.

There was a year,
a solemn tear.
Held hostage in
the grip of fear.

It’s quiet outside tonight

For a fleeting moment
The world almost seems to
make sense again.

But that subtle mirage of normalcy
Is quickly shattered
by the eerie absence of sound
everywhere around me.

There are no engines
There is no singing.
No laughter.
No dancing.
No cheering.

An almost perfect silence
Save for the faint whisper of a girl
Who longs to be with her friends.

I stare up at the stars
For a brief moment am taken in
by the gentle beauty of the universe.

Suddenly sirens pierce the night.
Reality comes rampaging back.
And I find myself wishing I could
turn back the pages of the book of my life
to escape this madness.

But it is not to be.
So I will stand stoically in the darkness

And wait for the coming dawn.

It's sunny outside.
The temperature is perfect.
Above my head
The sky is a perfect crystal blue.

Birds are singing.
The river is vibrant.
A soft breeze weaves
its way through the trees.

It is by most measures
a perfect day.
And yet I stand in the middle of it all
terrified and uncertain.

I'm eating leftovers,
but I'm not starving.

This shirt has a few holes,
but my back is covered.

My car broke down,
but my legs work fine.

The AC is broken,
but the roof keeps me dry.

I'm taking cold showers,
but the water is clean.

I am hurting inside,
but I find reasons to smile.

I don't have much,
but I have far from nothing.

I tried to protect you,
but you ran in anyway.

I tried to warn you,
but you refused to listen.

I tried to stop you,
but you drowned me out.

I tried to help you,
but you closed your arms.

I tried to love you,
but you pushed me away.

I tried to save you,
but you let it all crumble.

I tried.

You stole my heart.
You stole my soul.
I'm off the rails.
There's no control.

You stole my strength,
You stole my pride.
I'm alone and lost
and cold inside.

You stole my smiles,
You stole my joy.
There was so little
you did not destroy.

You stole my vigor,
You stole my grace.
Now I'm wounded
in a desperate place.

You stole my light,
left me trapped in black.
You stole everything...

...and I want it back.

Take me down to Broadway,
Let me hear the music play.
With a stiff drink in my hand,
There is where I want to stay.

I always love these Nashville nights,
no disagreements, no petty fights.
Just you and me and the music scene,
as we dance amidst the lights.

The manager yells out: "Last call!"
But I don't want leave the music hall.
Maybe just one final tune
before we heed the call.

At three a.m., we're still nice and warm.
The end of the night is taking form.
On to the street in the pouring rain,
we wander through the storm.

I always love these Nashville nights.
So many sounds, so many sights.
Now the shadows guide us home,
and we dream of new delights.

I am the star now,
this is my show.
I've got cameras on me
wherever I go.

I'm a big deal,
Its all over the news.
Didn't you know
I just hit ten million views?

I've got a fast car,
and mountain of bling.
Go check Instagram
Where they call me "The King".

I've got the big sponsors,
Movie deals? Signed three.
Everyone in the world
just wants to be me.

I've got a massive new wardrobe
and the latest smartphone,
But underneath it all
I'm just cold and alone...

I feel as though all my words
have been drained from my spirit.
Like a vacuum cleaner ******* up dust
from a living room carpet.

I stare at the blank page in agony.
But nothing comes.
The maestro has no music.
The artist has no paint.

There is so much I long to share with the world
but for now my body seems content
to keep it all inside.

So I will step away from the desk
and disappear for now.
In hopes my pen will return someday.

I walked the line to Folsom Prison,
took some advice from a boy named Sue.
Never found the flesh and blood that I needed,
but at least I'm not in the jailhouse now.

I remember the songs of my childhood,
When daddy always sang bass.
But these days I get so lonely, I just cry, cry, cry.
And seems like every other weekend
It's Sunday morning coming down.

So give my love to Rose. I hated to leave her.
I've done my best to let go of the hurt
and put myself back together one piece at a time.
In the end I got burned by a ring of fire,
but I still never found the Man in Black.

I begged and begged, but you would not do it.
I screamed with a voice so loud,
it pierced the deep of the night,
but you did not relent.

I hung over that precipice, legs dangling above the abyss.
Wishing and praying,
That you would just let me fall,
That you would go ahead and end it.

Still, your grip tightened.

I looked in your eyes, you looked in mine.
All I wanted was freedom.
All I wanted was my destiny.
All I wanted...was for you to release the chains.

You never did. And now we'll both pay a price
neither of us should ever have had to.

I’m hurt and I'm crying, I want to go home.

There's no use in trying, I want to go home.

I'm injured and scarred, I want to go home.

Burned out and charred, I want to go home.

I'm listless and sick, I want to go home.

Collapsing and quick, I want to go home.

I'm damaged and breaking, I want to go home.

I'm unloved and I'm aching, I want to go home.

I'm twisted and torn, I want to go home.

I'm distant and worn, I want to go home.

I'm shocked and I'm stunned, I want to go home.

I'm defeated and done.

I want to go home.

I always wince a little bit
when I feel the needle tear my skin.
Staring out into the night,
Soon, the train will whisk me away
to my happy place.

The doctor was good to me this time.

He gave me a special dosage.
I fill the syringe to its peak.
A terrible smile crosses my lips
as I let the anticipation ruin me.

I inject the liquid wonderment
deep inside my veins.
My prison bars slowly melt away,
as the drugs invade my heart.

I am lifted up to the sky.
Who needs Aladdins flying carpet?
The stars are mine.
At least, until I come crashing back down to earth.

Then I will find myself in barrenness,
lost to the world around me.
Desperately searching for a new doctor
to make it all disappear.

I've finally reached a stage,
Where I am furious with rage.
A silver pen rests in my hand,
but there's nothing on the page.

The room is cool and dank,
and there's a devil on my flank.
Words rage war within me,
but the paper is staying blank.

I'm a soldier, see my fight
in the madness of this night.
I should be be scrawling paragraphs,
instead the pad is plain and white.

My shell is burnt and cracked,
from the eternal sting of the attack,
on my desk there's only barrenness,
where there should be a sea of black.

Ragged clothes upon my back,
A knife that tore my flesh.
Tossed against the wicked walls,
Bound and beat and threshed.

My body ached with constant pain.
My soul was incomplete.
But with everything that I could muster,
I rose up to my feet.

The journey wasn't easy.
A dangerous, drifting track.
Fighting against the rising tide,
I somehow made it back.

I don't take anything for granted.
I fight hard for all I've earned.
I know what it is to walk through fire
and come out a little burned.

Who says a poem has to rhyme?
Why can't the words alone be fine?
If I don't follow a meter line,
Is that in and of itself a crime?

Who says a poem has to rhyme?
Why can't it be unique, sublime?
What if I do not focus on the time,
but just take the vision and make it mine?

Who says a poem has to rhyme?
Why can't discordant verses shine?
And if the sentences don't align,
Can't they still be beautiful by design?

If you're going down that road,
you'd better know the code.
They say cyberspace is wild,
if you don't get decompiled.

Colon slash slash,
the future's coming at you fast.
Click click click,
Let the website do its tricks.

Do you ever wonder why you're chosen,
as the screen just sits their frozen?
Or do you ever stop and think,
before you follow that next link?

Simple language, ones and zeroes.
Utter madness, villains, heroes.
It's my fixation, it's my drug,
At least until somebody pulls the plug.

My mind keeps going.
A million miles an hour.
Maybe more.
It is unforgiving.
It is relentless.
It is holding me hostage.
Faster and faster.
Threatening to throw me
right off the rails.
I fear I am losing control.

Why can't I make it stop?

It seems more and more
come those days
where I wish
that I could strap myself to a rocket,
blast off to the stars...

...and never have to see earth again.

The day my world broke in two,
There was a fateful shift.
I thought I stood on solid ground,
only to be thrown off that cliff.

"No, no! This just isn't right!"
I cried out and screamed in vain,
but there was no time for a last repeal,
and no healing for the pain.

So there I am, cast off, adrift,
In an endless, raging sea.
I don't know how to face these things,
that just weren't meant to be.

Hello poetry,
Goodbye, stress.
Mental recovery,
Escape from the mess.

Hello poetry,
Goodbye, aggression.
Spiritual healing,
a calm decompression.

Hello poetry,
Goodbye, rage.
Fighting my demons,
Page by blissful page.

Hello poetry,
Goodbye, worry.
Weaving stanzas together,
In rhythmical fury.

Hello poetry,
Goodbye, confusion.
Where wordsmithing magic,
exists in profusion.

It's hard for me to explain exactly
why she tempts me so.

Is it those deep red lips?
The alluring brown eyes?
Her long, dark and silky smooth hair?
That seductive smile that melts away
all my better judgment?

There's just something she does to me.

And I know I should stay away.

But I keep going back to the bottle.

I'm a little short, I must report,
but spare me your puns
and witty retorts.

I may not be a giant, but I'm self reliant.
and in the face of all those barbs?
Defiant.

There's less of me, for the eye to see,
though inside I'm as big
as big can be.

So the silly folks may crack their jokes
but I've got it where
it matters most.

The measuring tape, I can't escape.
Everything else, as it goes,
is mine to shape.

I'm still here.

I can't hold you.
I can't hug you.
I can't visit you.

But I'm still here.

I still love you.
I still believe in you.
I still fight for you.

I'm still here.

I can't join you.
I can't hold you.
I can't feel you.

But I'm still here.

And I'm not leaving.

On a greyish day
as I stare up at the clouds
I wonder who else is staring up
and if they are thinking
the same things I am.

A love from long, long ago.
A yummy recipe I want to try soon.
The fun of swimming in a cool lake
on a hot day.
A nagging pain in my knee.
The laundry I still haven't done
Family and friends
who are no longer with us.

Or maybe
All they see is clouds.

I want to be a bona fide superstar.
With a house in Malibu,
and a garage full of fancy cars.

I'll be the hottest new thing on TV,
with two broken marriages
and three kids I hardly ever see.

In Hollywood, I'll be a cinematic force.
Earning tens of millions just to
give them back in the next divorce.

It'll be big news when I get arrested,
and the Judge lets me go
because of how much I'm invested.

If you've got the green, you've got the power
to do whatever you want to
any time, day, or hour.

Even if I get washed up and near broke,
MTV will give me
my own reality show.

That's how it works in this novel construction,
the audience feeds on conflict
and destruction.

My fans will never really know the pain.
Until they find me dead,
with a needle in my vein.

He's got a crazy look in his eye.
He's strong and clever and spry.
In the depths of his mind,
There's a twisted design,
and a soul that's gone very awry.

He's holding a thick metal blade,
but this isn't a trick or charade.
He's found prey for his hunt,
and he's brutal and blunt.
Through his body sharp anger pervades.

He's coming for me in the night.
He's angry and wanting a fight.
The game comes undone,
with no chance to run.
He now has me locked in his sights.

I got all the joysticks,
I get lost in my levels.
I am the master of fantasy,
of angels and devils.

I own every button,
I own every technique,
I own every combo, side quest,
and streak.

I could go sixty hours,
and still want some more.
My soul won't be fed
until I hit that high score.

When they question my madness,
I've only one to thing say:
"I am a gamer...
...and I came to play."

I've left everything of myself
on this battlefield.
I have sweat through the danger,
bled through the misery,
and cried for endless nights.

On and on I have struggled,
desperately clinging,
to a distant thing called hope.
So many conflicts,
and not one victory to show for it.

There is no justice in this.
Perhaps I should just lay down my sword
and surrender.

I'm only going to lose in the end anyway.

I thought this thing was finished.
I thought it was over.
But yet, here I am.
Dangling on the edge of a cliff.
Staring at the torturous ground below.
Wondering if rescue is coming,
Or if I am doomed to plummet
angrily to the murky depths.

The doctor’s left the room now dear,
It’s only you and me,
Until this moment I never knew,
How difficult this would be.

I know the time is getting late,
the moon is hanging high,
and a solitary quiet tear
is trickling from your eye.

These days have been so trying,
I know you badly want to rest,
But if you are willing to allow me,
I have one small request:

Let’s go dancing one more time,
The way we always did,
And tear up that old wooden floor,
Like two lovestruck young kids.

You used to love our nights out,
I can still see that winning smile,
We had the best moves of anyone,
A truly special style.

The years, they passed so quickly,
And our bodies slowed us down,
But every time that music played,
We just had to move around.

It’s no secret that a day will come,
When we’ll have to say goodbye,
But sooner or later we’ll meet again,
At that dance club in the sky.

And I’ll be there dressed to the nines,
The band will start to play,
I’ll take my lady by the hand,
And have one thing left to say:

Let’s go dancing one more time,
We’ll tear up that old floor,
And by the time the song ends,
We’ll still be wanting more...

It can't be stabbed.
It can't be shot.
It can't be blown up.

It can't be poisoned.
It can't be strangled.
It can't be suffocated.

It can't be cured.
It can't be remedied.
It can't be healed.

It can't be seen.
It can't be sensed.
And I'm starting to wonder...

...if it can't be stopped.

I do not know.
You come to me in search of answers
that I cannot provide.
The glass is cloudy.
An endless fog envelops me.
Impossible to tell
if it's day or night.
Clarity has abandoned me
on the lonely shore.
The distant muddy thoughts
keep me company.
As to the meaning of this,
there is only one response I can give you:
I do not know.

I just saw you.
I just hugged you.
I just smiled at you.

I just thought
of all the fun things we'd
for the holidays.

I just thought
about that cruise we'll be taking
next summer.

I thought about all
the memories we would make
in the years ahead.

Now you're gone.

And I can't think of anything
but the hurt...

When your words are not your words,
and you keep writing undeterred,
What does it really say about your person?

Those are my dreams and fears and thoughts.
That line was never yours to cross.
Suddenly, the situation worsens.

You never had permission,
To break right in and steal my vision.
I do not take such violations lightly.

Those are my emotions and my voice.
Now you've gone and made your choice,
and a punishment is coming to you rightly.

That's what I think about you, thief,
as I work through this rhyming grief.
Like a dagger you have pierced my soul right through.

And these words I can only guess,
You'll swoop in and steal like the rest,
as that seems to be the thing you like to do.