We were all nameless when we came here
You tattooed your skin with your fear of death
Its only emptiness feeling holes
And inability to feel whole
Inadequacies

I jump at opportunity
See a void and be swallowed
I'm all that I am
Become a vacume
And a happy martyr
I only want what's best for you
And worse for me

You tattooed your skin with your inferiority
And feel ashamed
As the science and psychology prove your weakness
Is my strength
All that I am
Is good enough
For death.....

You weren't good enough for life
Not without the hand of man
To change the writing
From the hand of god

My god
My love
Is the very thing
To save me
Or destroy me
How many times before?
How many times again?
My god
I've finally realized
I don't want to be happy
Without you
And you don't want to be happy
So I want nothing at all

I am on an Arab beach
Head
With nothing to say
I'm saying anyway
If only I had no name
Only skin
And eyes
You would always know the truth
I want nothing at all
Or
At least if I should fall
It will be with enough force
To leave some sort of impact

Forget my mouth
And my teeth

She was our first grandchild
And naturally
We loved her dearly
And I adored her
As only grand-dads can
And she latched onto me

She used to come to us every Tuesday
At a time when kids are most interesting
She was fully conversational
(Didn't we all know it)
Her personality was emerging
And she was still young enough
To have her originality and imagination
My little gold mine of joy

And this is how it would go

"Grand-dad, you be the shop keeper
And I'll bring my dollies in for clothes."
So she would lay out her doll's outfits
And bring her dolls forward to buy clothes
She would haggle over the price (and win)
And pay me in cardboard coins

"Let's watch a video, Grand-dad!
Let's watch Barny!" (Again)
I hate that ****** purple dinosaur
And Katie thinks he's wonderful
That smarmy voice of his
"I love you and you love me,"
I bleeding don't you know
I wouldn't let him within a hundred miles
Of any kids of mine.

In the course of the day
I would be called upon
To play multiple parts in
Everything from The Three Bears
To Little Red Riding Hood
In which I memorably became
Big Bad Wolf and Grandma
And presumably ate myself

But the highlight of the day
Was the last thing before she went home
The weekly show
"Introduce me, Grand-dad!"
In my best showman's voice
"Ladies and gentlemen...!"
To my wife and dog
"...The moment you've been waiting for.
Fresh from her recent tour
Of our back garden.....
Miss Katie......."
"Katie Spice, Grand-dad."
"Miss Katie SPICE!"

Into some popular ditty of the day
Issuing from her at full volume
Then she would stop mid-line
While she did a little dance step
All greeted by thunderous applause
In her head it was Carnegie Hall
Rather than my wife, my dog and me
So, a happy end to a happy day
Then Katie went home
And I slipped into an exhausted coma

                                           By Phil Roberts

bow to your 
own crown 
made of

thrive and
struggle and 
stretch.

this is
yer jam. 

you got this.