Both parties align on either side of the bridge
Now they inch to the center to meet face to face
If they fall, there's a tall, 200 foot ridge

Once they reach the middle, they gain back their haste
They're now yelling, not pleading--like a clown
Wanting what they want, "All else is a waste"

People on the edge yell, "shoot 'em down"
"This is 'Merica! We don't want em"
"Burn this bridge down and let them drown"

A couple screams--Ken and Karen
And one from the crowd steps on
Few will let him be condemned

He says he has a vision
"It's a new kind of bridge"
Holds knife there upon

Not looking, unhinged
Not looking, bows
Rights are infringed

It is now
going
down

The steps of the pyramid continue to rise
The track is gaining and gaining just for my demise
When I first started, I did not know its great size
On top, I'm not sure if there even is a prize

Yet I will continue marching up these steps

There's a long way up but a long way back
And the big boulders continue to stack
My whole world I have with me in my pack
And so strength is something I do not lack

And I will continue up these steps

I have lost my touch of the ground
Yet I know my feet should pound
I know I cannot turn around
Or I will let everyone down

So I will march up these steps

I've slowed, but I'm still fast
Cause I know I will last
Yet the steps are still cast
And half my life has passed

But I will march up

Cause I've got this
Life I can't miss
I can't dismiss
Zenith and bliss

For I will

I just can’t focus
Everything is a blur
It seems like forever
Since I last saw her

I was speaking to him yesterday
He could make me laugh
But they’ve been taken away
I wish I could say
How much they made me feel
But I’m half myself
And I can’t go back

And just a snap
A second
Barely even a thought
They’re all gone from my life
Like a toy that has been bought

I wish I had said goodbye
But what would that have changed
Happiness is gone
Its no longer in range

I enjoyed what I had
But what else is left
All friends, all people
Will be taken by the breath of death

It’s not okay
Cause nothing can repay
What he took from you on that day

Don’t take that loss
Get your point across, cause
Sometimes you have to be the boss

He did the wrong
Yes, the fight might take long
But I know you will win, you’re strong

The world can take
What great things you can make
But now everything is at stake

Leave the backseat
Because you are not weak
Take what is yours, it is unique

It’s not okay
Cause nothing can repay
What he took from you on that day

I love it
Yes
I love it all

Yes!

My life is complete
When I can spend all my time with it
A treat
When we're never with split

It is my power

It is mine
No one can rob me
It had the roots of an old tree
It will be with me for all of time
All of my friends will agree

It's true I have thought about others
Just brothers
Mothers
No lovers
I will only have one true love
None are above
Or will even come close
This shows
What numbers can compose

All adding up
I've grown up

The stats show
What I think I already know
Life fulfilled
I'm thrilled
And nothing left to subtract
These are words I will never retract

It is my hero
Zero
It's math
I want to enjoy my passion
Fill my life with its distraction

I saw a young man die
And I tried not to cry
But that look in his eye
We couldn’t say goodbye

I saw a white woman scream
Of her BLM dream
With a black and white team
Now just running on steam

I saw a strong man kneel
Then they forced him to heel
Couldn’t feel his ideal
Oh now watch them reel

I used to do nothing
Neither huffing, nor puffing, or even discussing
But that there is wrong
It is doing such harm
For being neutral
Is giving the world very, very little

You can speak
It’s alright
You’re not weak
Have no fright

Be joyful
Be proud
Be loyal
Be unbowed

For this is your life
Make it amazing
Forget any strife
Trails-a-blazing

It’s alright to be quiet
I have certainly tried it
Just find a way to be heard
Fly around you free bird

I don’t like to speak, but love to write
If I could, I would do it all night
Cause I have found my voice by my choice
Now rejoice and make your loudest noise

For this is your life
Make it amazing
Forget any strife
Trails-a-blazing

And there should be no pressure
Sometimes your under-weather
Just follow this short advice
Go right now, take back your life

I hope this has helped
You and all yourself
This is my poem
Maybe write your own

How do you know her?
What has she done?
Do you infer,
There is something you have won?

Why do you speak that way?
What did she say?
Trying to be seen,
Do you think it is fun?

What is that look?
Like she is a book?
She’s just eighteen,
And you will have none

Just because you’re older
Maybe even bolder
Does not mean
You can call her your Eileen

Change with the times
Do not lag behind
Know that nothing is easy
Otherwise, you make people uneasy

I do not want to see the light
I do not think it is that bright
Cause I think this world is finite

People expect me to believe
But I simply cannot conceive
This golden place I must achieve

People say it will set me free
"But I must learn so I can see"
But I say "I do not agree"

My whole life I have shied away
And the bright light has died away
And those thoughts are aside away

I guess I kind of like the dark
I have fled away in my ark
This gray path is my trademark

I have this first Amendment right
Where I am never dressed in white
I do not want to see the light

Isn’t it cool
How tears are clear
The only time someone isn’t hiding themself
And their fear

There is a moment in sorrow
When the only thing you can think
Is what truly makes you happy
And what also makes you sink

It makes it seem great
To always be unhappy
But to all seeking it
I wish it never be your fate

Cause openness is bliss
But too much is a crutch
Cause not only will people judge You
But You will too

I wish I never had this power
To feel down and lonely and sour
Whenever I or you or anyone
Is in any sort of pain

I’m sure you know the pain
The kind you can’t subdue
But what else can I do
The rainbow is on a vertical plane
Something I can never reach
But can always watch and preach

I guess I kind of like being dark
Where there’s no difference between people’s light and their shade
I can always act as I want
Where my clarity will never fade

This is all
I
Will just fall
I
Can't take it
I
Will break it

There is too much pressure
I'm
Feeling under weather
I'm
Now trailing
I'm
Just failing

I can't even exhale
It's
Just inhale
It's
All too wrong
It's
Much too long

Too much is going on
The path
It is gone
The wrath
It's all brawn
Blood bath
Is now drawn

It is too much
I
Have lost my touch
I
Can't tell what's real
I
Am rusted steel

Everything is just hard
Life
Throws these cards
Life
Is the game
Life
Brings the shame

Yet I can work it out
I'm
With low doubt
I'll
Go longer
I'll
Be stronger

I’ve been falling apart
Cause I tear me apart
Rip me up inside
Tear me up inside

I’m trying to stay afloat
In my cardboard box, a boat
Circling my head, a moat
Trying to pin a scapegoat

I’m never doing my best
Just trying to do my best
I can not handle my best
Haven’t started the rest

But I’m thinking this will end
The endless circle will bend
And it will break from the trend
But I’m only hoping

I know I can’t fix it all
So I should no longer stall
At some point, the weights should fall
And I can leave this brick wall

But I am being enclosed
By my mouth and my nose
I can breath, just barely
I can think, just rarely

I need to clear up my head
Or my brain, instead
Maybe my heart
I’ve been falling apart

It’s like I’m living a dream
Or rather in a dream
Where I can’t speak to anyone else
And all interactions I do have,
They’re mindless

I drift around, from scene to scene
From story to story
Never as a team
All alone

It’s like everyone else is a character
They have their own main story
While I live just to view
And critique to myself

It’s like the Truman show,
Where everyone has a part
But in this story
No one is watching me

Everyone goes on with their lives
While I travel still
For I can not move in this dream
The world moves without me

I don’t know how this will end
I just want a new scene
I just want a friend
But this is just a dream

What good can come of height
A rise will end in fall
Whether it be mistakes
Or the ladder’s wood breaks
Or the people’s cruel spite
It’s a cliff climb of wall

I’m too afraid of rise
I want them by my side
In case I’ve too much size
For my actions to stand
And I can’t hold the ride
Then my life goes unplanned

I seem to have tried
I’m taking steps beyond and farther
And I continue to glide
To a world that looks much darker

I can no longer see the ground
If I fell, would it make a sound
I realize I made a mistake
This is much too hard to fake

I can’t turn around
Cause they can already see my blunder
It was that I found
What made me feel under

That’s it, I give in
I give up the chance to win
Never shall I try
I know the reason why
My great fear
Of the unclear

Of course I will help you
That's what I like to do
Just don't leave afterwards
And make these your last words

I will try my best to support you
With whatever I can do
But please just don't take this for granted
Don't make this friendship slanted

There is nothing I won't do for you
But will you do these things for me too?
I do not want to be used
I won't hurt but will be bruised

So I guess I will say it
I can no longer take it
I have simply had enough
I cannot handle your stuff

You've used me as a pillow
I've turned into a grey willow
Cause you never stood me tall
I am always at a fall

Of course I had helped you
It's what people should do
But now, I'm lugging this heft
Cause I was the one who left

Please just walk away
He doesn't want you to stay
That golden look
Highlights your undying smirk

Please don't stay long
You know he isn't that strong
Just your presence
Will rob him his weak pleasence

Watch what you say
He goes to bed during day
Not to sleep, but to think
Not to weep, but on the brink

Please don't say that
Is it cool to call him fat?
Want him to cry
While your mind is up there high?

Please, not okay
When you make him feel that way
That is enough
He will never be that tough

Watch what you do
Not everyone can be you
He has a life
Let it not end with a knife

Please do not play
Your the lion with your prey
Please let him live
I do not want him to die

At first it was completely smooth
Absolutely without a groove
No holes, or nicks, or even dents
With just unscalable segments

This wall was large, sturdy, and strong
Keeping out half of everyone
It had been aged by all of time
Soon, it’s about to break the rhyme

Holes have begun to take form
Not by ice, water, wind, or storm
But by the people left outside
That have been locked away to hide

The brick is now crumbling
And the concrete blocks are tumbling
Handholds continue to show
The holes will continue to grow

Openings are more clear
Even to those on the wall’s rear
Soon, she will start to climb
And end the wall’s horrible crime

So with superhero strength
Along with her ranks
She is climbing up the brick wall
That will bring it to downfall

As she ascends
She starts to see the concrete ends
That have kept her family out
To seek life’s other route

As she reaches the top
The wall’s other people stop
Offer out a hand
So that she can stand

However, lots are still not up
They need to be brought up
They do not have her strength
They can not scale the wall’s length

So the wall must come down
And so everyone from town
Begins to chip away
So the wall won’t stay

It’s a lot of work
That continues to irk
But there are only boulders left
A good kind of theft

Of course there are some I didn’t talk about
That want the wall to continue to sprout
But they lack the power
They had on their tower

And so, the end is close
But there’s more work for those
Who try to make it small
So that she can climb the wall

Some people think I like to eat tomatoes
They say I like all the fruits--that there is true
But to those red shiny fruits--I will always give "no's"

Just a few decades ago, it seemed odd
Everyone stuck with their meats, dairies, and wheats
But the times have changed, enemies abroad, everyone eating the food of their god

I would like to make it clear right now
I love those who eat these with their peas
I have dreamed of the round, vibrant skin--giving out a wow

I would never want to offend
Only to give my love to thereof
And I will promise to always give them a lend, to be their friend

To all those people like me
Who won't eat any veggie
Thank those today with a word of okay so their lives aren't so heavy

Act fast
Leave now
You’re not the last
For the river is coming to plow

There’s a path
Yes right there
Cross now or feel the wrath
Unless you dare to face the river

It is not too late
Please, do not let me wait
For there’s a river beside you
Which you cannot swim through

You’re ankle deep in water
Not enough yet to falter
Please just take my hand
Or you won’t be able to stand

This sandy road
Is about to wash away
The river has not slowed
There is no time to delay

Look right behind
There’s a crowd of raging fire
It is half of mankind
To get across, they aspire

Don’t let them burn you
For they can turn you
Don’t get caught in their flame
Cause it will be you everyone will blame

The water is now up to your waist
So you have little time left
Just increase your great haste
To which you can attest

I see you slipping
You’re chin, it is dipping
The fire is on your hair
There will be blood everywhere

I can’t go in
I can not save you
The flood takes those with sin
I thought you knew

It had drizzled before
But this time, it was darker even more
Barely any light
This time it looks like it is going to pour
Nothing good in sight
Everything feels like a chore

This sun is away
It is getting darker every day
And the rain is getting harder

This feels like the center of the storm
Everything now feels warm
I now feel happier than ever
No feeling, whatever

Uh oh, the clouds are back
I stepped on a tack
Have an arch in my back
Got punched in the sack
Felt a smack
I need to attack
My life’s a wreck
Oh my neck

I have to think, got to focus
Or my life will go unnoticed
The rain is pounding even harder
My life is off kilter

O now I see the light
I am such a delight
It is getting better
I am now less wetter

Oh now the storm is back
I stepped on a tack
Have an arch in my back
Have I said this before
Oh, I’m a bore
Oh no, I’m not sad
I promise, I’m not sad
Look I’m smiling
I’m not crying

It’s just that the rain is piling
The clouds are compiling
Nothing is exciting
I’m simply surviving
No, I’m not lying
Wow was that lightning

The storm struck him
Now, it’s not so grim
Yes he died, he got fried
But please try to stay alive
Give your friends a yelp or a whelp
If you are struggling, go seek help

The tide rises up the sand
And it falls back
It seems as if it's unmanned
Counterattack

The tide is inching up now
Then slides away
It climbs up the sand somehow
Never at stay

You see just the constant motion
Never at a rest
The clock of the open ocean
The pull then the crest

It looks the same, yet different
The push the the pull
The flat line of the gradient
A part of the whole

Years later, the water's now higher
Near the steps of your house
Yet you think the sand must be drier
Nothing is under dowse

You a small wall up infront the place
So the tide never hits
Right now, everything's at little haste
Danger, it's at a quits

Later you notice the house is flooding
The tide rolls up and down there
Because the wall could stop only nothing
The house is just sea and air

You think it is smart to move up the hill
"Though the tide climbs, it will fall"
"The tide will not stay up, but the house will"
"When it rises, it will crawl"

Later you here the spinning of the cycle
The water is always around
Now you know it ill never be idle
It goes up, but does it come down?

You think it can be fixed, something you can do
But two homes are there down under
So you blame society, partially true
But it was also your blunder

Finally, at last, you say you can fix it all
But you took too long, it is too late
Because the ocean is rising with little fall
That’s why you hate the one who is late

Because only the mountain is left standing dry
All life is certainly out of whack
You must recede to the only place that is high
The tide rises up the sand and doesn't fall back

They took him too early
Leaving us less burly
Leaving us on our own
Feeling too much, alone

It’s the hardest when they are young
It makes the party go unsung
A piece of everybody is gone
Making it too hard to move on

You wish you could have more time
To spend with what was once “mine”
But now he is far away
Cause you could not make him stay

But with any loss
A heavy point comes across
All deaths will come too young
Leaving your life unsung

Enjoy all life while you can
Do not be that type of man
Enjoy them while they are here
When they’re gone, they’re still your dear

Do not shy away
Cause they cannot forever stay
As much as you hope and pray
They could be taken today

They took him too early
Leaving us less burly
Leaving us together
To love and remember

What should I believe?
How should I perceive?
How should I receive
the ones who deceive?

Both sides like to lie
Where I am the "Bad Guy"
And no one turns an eye
To when bad ones pass by

How can I tell what is true?
Also, what else can I do?
So many thoughts are askew
Please, will there be a breakthrough?

There are too many opposing sides
With these concrete, airy divides
Where the lies need not any guides
And where the devil comes and hides

It has been like this for all of time
Where generations study and mime
Where these acts of maleficence climb
Is there no end to this heinous crime?

My hope is that they will say what is real
When a lie is told, it is a big deal
That they should not stand around, they should kneel
But this is just what I think is ideal

For I just want the wheels to start to spin
And in this long battle, truth will come to win
And the slimy serpent snake will shed its skin
Show off its beauty that was hiding within

I hope I have made my point incredibly clear
And that I have helped you conquer this scary fear
To help yourself, your family, your friends, your dear
To take the great leap onto this empty frontier

Would I be friends with myself?
Would it help my mental health?
Would he see me over there?
And give me some of his care?
Or leave like most often else?

Would he like the way I act
When I’m with my friends intact?
Would he see straight right through me
Extremely very quickly?
I give no eye contact, fact

Would he see I try too hard?
When thing are good, I discard
Would he think then it is weak
That I’m never at my peak?
Or would he mend my great shard

Would he catch me if I hide?
Even if there was no guide?
Would he know the words to say
When I do not want to play?
Or just walk and keep his pride?

Would I be friends with myself?
Would it help his mental health?
Would I know the thing to do
If his mind was turning blue?

Would I help him if he’s down?
Would I change his life around?
Or would I leave him alone
If he wants to be at home?

Would I let him win the game?
Or let Ego get the fame?
Would I take a stand against?
Or would I sit on the fence?

Would I help if he buckles?
Help him with all his troubles?
Or would I let him fall down
Cause the ego on my crown?

Would I be my classic self
As if I am with no one else?
Or would I fake my whole life
As I have done my whole life?

I was born different
I believe in science
Yet is it defiance?
Some call it angst
I say it’s strength

You can be different
Your parents can have opinions
Yes you’ve lived in their dominion
But you can do what you want
Don’t let them give you a haunt

I can have a distinct thought
Because I am not their bot
Religion, career, goals
Afterlife, love, friends, souls

I am strong in the way I speak
I am proud that I am unique
No one can put words in my mouth
For example, North, West, East, South

I can make this a short poem
I can make the rhyme scheme open
I can make stanzas parallel
Or make this syllable swell

Or this poem could be longer
Making my words even stronger
This poem has no distinct sound
But isn’t that what makes it pound

Five, five, four, four, four, four
Maybe this stanza will have even more

Is it wrong to take from myself?
Stealing straight from my bookshelf
“Got to think, got to focus”
“Or my life will go unnoticed”
I think it is mostly alright
It’s fine if I take what I write

So what is this poem’s message?
It seems pulled out of a wreckage
Words mismatched, lines have been detached
The focus scratched, but the theme patched?

Here it is
Was no quiz
It can be hard
Life can be scarred
Yes, you were born rare
Show it if you dare