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Nov 2016 · 278
DESIGNATED DRIVER
B L Costello Nov 2016
They say they are my friends,
I guess I work cheap,
I use a plastic bag to protect my seats,
They tell me I am boring,
They do things I never did,
They spend the night in jail cells,
For calling cops pigs,
“C’mon just one!”
“What could be the danger?”
Well…..I could **** someone,
Or wake up with a stranger,
Nah,
I’m good,
For that…..
I’ve no desire
Sure,
I’d love to go…..
As your designated driver
© B L Costello 2015
Nov 2016 · 360
DEATH OF A POET
B L Costello Nov 2016
I would dare to begrudge you heaven
I prefer you here with me,
I would chain you down to keep you,
Forsaking the memory,
I will lie,
I will deny
Like a stone…..
I’ll represent,
But I will never speak of you in the past tense,
I will not surrender,
You to the black earth,
Trust me,
Your loss will cause a rebirth
All that you gave,
Will persist and inspire,
As long as there are words,
And birds on a wire
© B L Costello 2014
"That's no way to say goodbye".  It couldn't get any Darker.  
RIP Leonard Cohen.
Nov 2016 · 820
HOW I HATE TO DUST
B L Costello Nov 2016
I dusted off your picture,
A task I had denied,
But it became embarrassing,
I could no longer hide,
I held it much too long,
My hand caressed the frame,
So long since I had held you,
Nothing is the same,
I stared for much too long,
Such common sense I lack,
Into your eyes I lingered,
Though you cannot look back,
Fighting back the tears,
I returned it to the stand,
Seeking more diversion,
I went to wash my hands,
And now,
I do not touch it,
Its cleanliness,
I’ll trust,
I really need to vacuum,
How I hate to dust
©B L Costello 2016
Nov 2016 · 276
HOPE
B L Costello Nov 2016
No cure,
No treatment
No change,
No effect,
No signs of life,
No answer…..
YET
©B L Costello 2016
A common English word that when used as a conjunction, is equivalent to "but" or "nevertheless". However, used as an adverb, yet defines an action's persistence in time. The word can define an action in the past, present or future:(Thanks Wikipedia)
One of the most optimistic words I've heard.
Nov 2016 · 318
OF WHAT DREAMS MAY COME
B L Costello Nov 2016
Once I had a nightmare,
But it turned into a dream,
Wide awake,
I would  meditate that I could hear you scream,
Imagine how I suffered,
Exhaustion lasting weeks,
Guilt without sedation,
And tortured in my sleep
Finally,
You....said ‘Hello’
But it made me feel sad,
Imagining that pretty smile smothered
By a gag,
Eyes that see me clearly,
Then Clouding full of tears,
Afraid to beg for mercy
Your scream is all I hear
©B L Costello 2016
Just something scary for Halloween
Oct 2016 · 1000
UNCONDITIONAL
B L Costello Oct 2016
I did not bring you into the world,
But I was happy that you came,
I took you home one afternoon,
Took pictures…..and gave you a name,
And you where my baby,
Dayenu……that was enough,
And like all things God gives you,
Someday…You must give up,
How blessed I was to have you,
To love and watch to you grow,
I did not bring you into the world,
But, I was there to watch you go.
© B L Costello 2016
For the friend and mother of who lost a wonderful daughter.  Sometimes....you can pick your family.  We were so fortunate that she picked you.  RIP SRS
Oct 2016 · 345
YOUR CT SCAN…..
B L Costello Oct 2016
It’s still there
No change
No effect,
The most optimistic word was…
“Yet”.
Intensely
We listen,
The doctors so smart,
To find hope,
We tear each sentence apart
Clawing through facts,
Sorting out rumors,
God,
I hate that ******* tumor,
It takes all our time,
And we still need more,
There’s none to waste,
He is stage four.
©B L Costello 2016
Please excuse the profanity.  I can not express my contempt for that tumor any other way.....
Oct 2016 · 724
UP ALL NIGHT
B L Costello Oct 2016
Is tomorrow enough?
It has to be,
Today is almost gone you see,
Yet here I linger,
Alone at last,
My memories repeat the past,
The moon does rise,
Still I am inspire,
Embracing my muse,
Thou I am tired,
In the dark
I smoke,
I wait for the day
I will meet tomorrow….
Unafraid
©B L Costello 2016
Oct 2016 · 268
CRADLE TO GRAVE
B L Costello Oct 2016
They only had eyes for him
They smiled and laughed,
As he reached to feel the new air around him,
Tears flowed,
“Oh, he is beautiful”,
And he was……like a promise,
He filled them with hope,
Like a gift his bassinet was adorned with a blue satin bows,
They could not wait to embrace him

In another room,
Another time,
Another place,
He is horizontal,
His hands are folded together,
There is nothing to reach for,
Adoring family lean over him,
Tears and praise together again,
“They did a good job”,
“The flowers are beautiful”,
The dark mahogany frames him like a picture,
How they hate to let him go.
© B L Costello 2016
Trying my hands at prose.  Please be kind.
B L Costello Oct 2016
GRANDMA’S TATTOO
“You could cover that tattoo,”

She said….

”show some respect”.
“Do you think if I did….
the world would forget?”

“But your old”,
“And……it’s strange,”
“It looks like a price,”

Grandma smiled and said….

“Well I’ve paid all my life”,

I challenged her vanity,
And…she fought with her pride,
Never again,
Would she ever hide,
I am older now
I no longer wonder……
…..about that tattoo,
Or the cost of those numbers
© B L Costello 2016
I think it is finished.  I just had to add more of her.  Please stop by again and comment.  As always it is appreciated.
Oct 2016 · 578
I’LL CHANGE YOUR MIND
B L Costello Oct 2016
You think that I am silly,
Just lyrics and some rhyme,
Your comment is judgmental,
Not constructive,
Not kind.
Still,
I choose to write,
A poet……
I am resigned,
A lover……
Not a fighter,
Someday……
I’ll change your mind
©B L Costello 2016
Sep 2016 · 261
EVERYONE DIES
B L Costello Sep 2016
It takes such courage to believe what you know,
Courage can be a frightening blow,
So far….
I’ve been right,
I wish I could hide,
I would love to be wrong….
At least surprised
©B L Costello 2016
Knowing is all, but do we really need it "ALL"?
The truth is not always kind, comfortable, or convenient.
Sep 2016 · 528
I’LL CRY AT YOUR FUNERAL
B L Costello Sep 2016
Sure you can “take it”,
I’m not to blame,
You stick that needle in your own vein.
People’s opinions mean nothing to you,
Yeah,
You can “handle it,
But that’s not what you do…..
Instead you blame others
You argue,
You’re “free”,
You only exist thru chemistry,
So now,
You can “take it”,
“Life is so beautiful”,
It is also brief,
I’ll cry at your funeral
©B L Costello 2016
Sep 2016 · 641
SOMEBODY’S BABY
B L Costello Sep 2016
Long before she was ever rejected,
She was planned….
At least expected,
Before children laughed,
Before the police….
She was loved,
She kept the peace,
I wonder if they see her now,
They who loved her…..and who taught her how,
To tie her shoe,
To washed her face,
Who left her in that awful place?
Somebody loved her…..
Before she went crazy,
Once…..
We were all….
Somebody’s baby
©B L Costello 2016
Sep 2016 · 280
THANK YOU, NURSE
B L Costello Sep 2016
Thank you nurse,
But your sympathy stings,
Every time you say…….
“Poor THING”
The tumor is still there,
His future is uncertain,
But behind the curtain……is still a person.
©B L Costello 2016
Sep 2016 · 307
ERNESTINE
B L Costello Sep 2016
A little dull,
Not too sharp….
Her bite is weaker,
Than her bark
Silenced if she knows nothing,
She smiles when she is right,
She loves recognition,
And a thunderstorm at night,
Most of all….
She wants a stamp
That says, “She is approved”,
For now she is silenced,
And…feels a little used
She listens because she still has hope,
Not because she’s a child,
She still believes in love,
So she always will smile.
©B L Costello 2016
The name Ernest is derived from Germanic word ernst, meaning "serious".
Sep 2016 · 194
AFTER THE RAIN
B L Costello Sep 2016
Like ants on a peony bush,
His fingers so infesting,
Spilled the dew that once was trapped between the petals resting

He left her in that garden,
A child of the earth,
She was just another blossom,
Rooted in the dirt,

The weather changed so fast,
With no hope of escape,
She bowed her head and died,
She never knew a vase
© B L Costello 2015
Aug 2016 · 260
FOUR YOUR ENTERTAINMENT
B L Costello Aug 2016
I could have ran the circus,
But I guess I’m just a clown,

I may have loved the wire,
But the height kept me down,

Intrigued I swallowed fire,
It hurt and I was burned,

If I could have stood the smell,
I would have the pick the pachyderms!
©B L Costello 2015
Sometimes my life is just a four ring circus!
Aug 2016 · 185
LAZARUS’ WIFE
B L Costello Aug 2016
Surprised,
Grateful,
And always amazed,
She praises Christ for another day,
Another day,
She prays for more……
Happy to see him stand at the door,
Smiling…..
Through tears that still have not dried,
Remembering all the times he died
Fearful still,
She still has trust,
The women that lives with Lazarus
© B L Costello 2016
Aug 2016 · 229
WHAT’S THE MATTER?
B L Costello Aug 2016
Sometimes,
I can’t see clearly,
Things are not what I think,
I really cannot not help it…..
After all….
I have to blink,
Sometimes,
I’m overwhelmed,
It’s more than I can keep,
You know,
The plumbing's old,
There’s bound to be some leaks
Sometimes,
I’m irritated,
I remember what was said,
Sometimes I just drip,
It makes my eyes red,
I wish it didn’t happen,
I wish you weren’t so mean,
I wish I had a wrench,
Or an antihistamine
© B L Costello 2016
Aug 2016 · 319
FAMILY REUNION
B L Costello Aug 2016
People you can’t remember from when,
Some you may never see again,
In a week you hear a knock at the door,
“They just stopped by…..”
You’ll wonder…“what for”?
In your car you wonder….
"Why did I go?"
"Most of those people…..I don’t even know",
And…**** it,
You came,
You saw,
And… were seen,
What the hell…
You brought baked beans!
Yet…..saying goodbye…..was sad,
And hard,
Maybe you’ll get more Christmas cards.
Without condition,
Always beautiful,
They'll see me the next wedding or funeral.
©B L Costello 2016
Aug 2016 · 205
HIS SHIRT SAID………..
B L Costello Aug 2016
HIS SHIRT SAID………..
“*******, I’m from Detroit”,
Almost like it was his choice,
Angry,
As if it was to warn,
Who gave a **** where he was born?
The thing that left me so amazed,
He did not have the ***** to say……
Freedom of speech,
What is it worth?
Probably more than his stupid shirt
©B L Costello 2016
Aug 2016 · 1.7k
STUPID AND FAT
B L Costello Aug 2016
Before you became a diabetic,
Before the pain and the anesthetic,
We ate,
We smoked,
We slept past noon,
We played until we were out of tune,
We laughed at the cost,
“Go ahead…bill me,
I guess something has to **** me”,
And now…it is,
Imagine that,
But ****,
I miss being stupid and fat
© B L Costello 2016
Aug 2016 · 506
HE HAS A TUMOR
B L Costello Aug 2016
I thought that he would be my last,
My promise,
I was sure,
Now…I may be his last,
If there is no cure,
Every second I want with him,
But I cannot decide,
Every moment away from him,
Tears me apart inside,
My needs do conflict,
There really is no win,
He has the tumor,
But I am sick for him
© B L Costello 2016
Jul 2016 · 162
KEEP GOING
B L Costello Jul 2016
Unfamiliar
This sickening path,
No fork in the distance,
I hear someone laugh,
In the darkness,
I have to cast my own light,
In his weakened state…..
I watch him fight,
I hate it here,
Nothing is the same,
The only constant is his pain,
And so he fights,
He bravely stands,
Against these demons,
I hold his hand,
Plans are for fools,
There is no way of knowing,
When you’re going thru hell….
You have to keep going.
©B L Costello 2016
Jul 2016 · 459
THE GYPSY’S SONG
B L Costello Jul 2016
The road less traveled is sometimes hard,
My wagon throws gravel,
I read the cards,
This life I choose is wild and free,
It’s better when no one is following me,
The currents do change,
The journey does end,
The road does challenge with dips and bends,
But I am a gypsy,
With fortunes to tell,
I KNOW it’s going to turn out well!
©B L Costello 2016
Jul 2016 · 271
CARE PROVIDER
B L Costello Jul 2016
I was blessed with this,
I know what it is,
I know no cross is heavier than his,
Still…..
I suffer……
I am tired and bent,
My sacrifice,
This is my lent,
“Fail to plan,
Plan to fail”,
I expected the rain,
Not the hail,
It hurts,
My life has been cut in half,
“Man makes plans…….
  And God just laughs”
B L Costello 2016
Jul 2016 · 319
PERFECT BASTARD
B L Costello Jul 2016
The time that you spent hurting me,
Could have conquered poverty,
Healed a burn of the 3rd degree,
Even composed a symphony,
Still, you chose to take your time,
Practicing to be unkind,
Now……….
You are the perfect *******,
I bow down to the master!
© B L Costello 2016
Jul 2016 · 266
ESTATE SALE
B L Costello Jul 2016
Her personal effects displayed on a chair,
The jewelry she hid is sitting right there,
Atop of the dresser she hated to dust,
Strangers browsing,
“Ask how much”,
A man in thick glasses watches the box,
Collecting the cash,
He records what we’ve got……
“It almost gone”,
Then….
We’ll call the truck,
Should I save something?
I don’t know what,
It been so long since I felt really sure,
All that remains is **** without her.
© B L Costello 2015
Jul 2016 · 371
ART IS LIFE
B L Costello Jul 2016
I pray for a change,
I hope it comes soon,
My ukulele is out of tune,
I can’t play,
I am so confused,
He’s suffering,
Where is my muse?
My mind is cluttered,
So is my home,
Without my dog,
I’d be alone,
“I think he is dying”,
Anxiety prods,
My minds begs and questions,
Where is God?
Jul 2016 · 296
CAUGHT AGAIN
B L Costello Jul 2016
The evening sky hid the darkening clouds.  
The only warning was the rumble of their rolling as they smothered a once moon lite night.
Distracted by the ominous consumption,
Stars that once lit an azure glow disappeared under an indigo blanket.
How disappointing I thought it was…….
No stars,
No moonlight,
How selfish I was,
I did not to realize that she was the conquered
It was her loss,
Her rain soaked me,
Like tears it streamed down my face as I ran laughing
My jacket pulled over my head,
Her thunder like fists ponded in protest,
Perhaps she felt mocked,
Finding safety in my car,
I enjoyed the new light show that only lightening can perform.
I just wrote this last night.  I just thought of trying something different.  Please be kind.
Jul 2016 · 266
PREY
B L Costello Jul 2016
She was no victim,
Just not very smart,
Her aim was poor from the start,
All those warnings,
Like ammunition,
They told her “fire”!
But she wouldn’t listen,
A reluctant hunter,
She worried a lot,
Now she is prey,
She lost her shot,
Just to survive,
For her that was good,
Now, she may never get out of the woods
© B L Costello 2016

— The End —