Red dirt haunts the bottom of your boots
All of your curiosity cannot be contained in one suit
You will do the things most men dream of.
You will colonize a land unknown.
I asked you what your dream was
And you said you wanted to go to the stars above
Apparently Mars has always been your dream home
You want to colonize that red speck in the sky
And believe me, I know how good you can colonize
I mean you’ve already taken over my heart
Your footprints will stay there even if we were to part
Your words are more treasured artifacts in my chest
And so far I think I like them better than the rest
Stay on my planet for as long as you need to
I will help you here until Mars needs you
Use my poems as your rocket fuel
Keep them with you until they are useless
Let my hands be your shelter
Make my mind your control center
I will be whatever you need me to
Even after you’ve blasted off into the blue.

I watch in wonder
Wide eyed and mystified
As the highway lines sway like jump ropes in the wind
My eyes are playing tricks on me again as I see a jack rabbit hopping in the dark
Pitch black mind you, only my headlights in the sky of the new moon
I'm not afraid of the dark anymore
Seeing life in slow motion, changes your perspective,
not only your perception

Listening only to the sound of the wind flying by the side panels sometimes the car rattles just to fill the silence

A new knowing that I'm not quite willing to accept.
How do you let go in to the magic of the universe
when you still don't trust yourself?

I suppose that will come next.

Light
Overcomes
Vast
Evil

Written by Keith Edward Baucum

You never really know how strong you are until you're alone,
crying and forced to pick yourself up off the floor.
That is when you can truly see how big your emotional muscles are
and I promise
they are bigger than you ever thought possible.

clouds more
intense in their
deep questionings,

the sky blossoms
like an early rose,  

the earth takes a deep breath
mourns for the brightest stars,

the moon gathers
mirrorings and soft
icicles, dreams of summer’s
thin feathery wings.