a bottle of wine and some cigarettes
I'm calling off all my bets
I pray for hope, ain't found it yet
I guess this is all I get

a pair of boots and a dusty trail
I walk alone and tell my tale
I do my best, but I don't prevail
I guess it's all a fairytale

some cigarettes and a bottle of wine
I will get along just fine
to try to defy what's in my mind
I guess sometimes I might be blind

a little smoke and a little drink
I'm no longer on the brink
a dying mind, it starts to stink
I guess I just need time to think

a bottle of wine and some cigarettes
I'm holding off on all my debts
I guess I'll live with my regrets
a guess is all a guess begets

I joined this site last year in March
and have found many voices since
that kindly welcomed what I wrote
with ‘likes’ and comments
even messages

thank you, my friends

I was a short-time member of some other sites
and from my past experience I have to say
that hp is the liveliest of all I’ve visited

even if there at times are posts that sound mean-spirited
and the occasional invasions of silly trolls
    make you aware that on the internet nothing is safe
    from the shenanigans of some frustrated idiots

in sum
    and in comparison with other sites
given its size and its diversity
hp is doing fairly well

to keep exchange of voices and ideas
    benevolent advice    constructive criticism
    helpful encouragement of younger members
    and sometimes simply kind remarks
alive    and spread the urge of writing poetry
    that helps us to articulate our loves and fears

to keep alive this spirit of creative art
is  our formidable work in progress
in which we all should lovingly play our part

Tireless Engineers are needed for many a bridge has been destroyed ...
Carpenters , block masons and steel workers from every corner of Earth ..
Every color and creed employed to secure their timely construction ..
Many islands in need of the path by the light , wave after wave of our
brothers are in need of stout bridges tonight !
Love is needed to brighten the skies , to make electric connections to those in the black of night .. Black and white linemen are sought to wire the world in shared pain and forgiveness , to brighten the lives of those gripped in plight , answer the need of the helpless tonight !
Many energetic , compassionate people are needed to address the infrastructure of humanity on this very night !

At Nineteen,
I bore witness to the live Birth of my Son.
He was adopted out via Open Adoption
to a very nice Family a few Hours away in Ukiah.
I'm still in contact with them, I get pictures every six Months
and I'm very happy to also be able to see Him every so many Months.

At Twenty,
I lost my Father. I found him on the floor and called 911. I paid for his Cremation the next day.
It was what he told me he wanted; his ashes are in a box in my room.
Perhaps even moreso than he was my "Father", he was by best Friend;
for better and for worse.

At Twenty-One;
my Girlfriend of Five Years, who was also Mother of the aforementioned Child, and I
broke up on Friendly terms. Now she lives about 200 miles away.
We're still cordial, and I'm glad we still speak.
Eternal Allies are rare to come by,
to say the least.

So far, Twenety-Two has been rather turbulently eventful, as well.
Between Family and their lack, personal choices and relationships,
and the furtherment of my Self as well as my expressive Capacities,
it's been a hell of a Twenty-Two so far,
to say the least.

All of these things leave me with an Understanding
that I cannot ever judge anyone, for I know not of their struggles
and that no One can ever truly judge anyone else,
for the same reason.

Through all of this, I feel evermore
that this Life is ******* great,
and that's no sarcastic remark:

Life
is a trippy and tumultuous Journey
and I'm thankful for this opportunity
to experience this Holiest of Realities, to say the least;
though it is a Lesson in Humility, to say the least.

And thus:

Thank you for reading my writings.
Thank you for taking time out to read what I have to bring forth.
Thank you for existing and expressing.

Blessings upon thy Paths;
wheresoever you've been
wheresoever you're going
thank you just for Being.

Please be your Self; you owe it to your Self,
for that is all you ever have, to say the least,
and so, once more:

*Blessings upon thy Path.

check out my eye piece
I can see to galaxies that are free from pain
acceptance is my beast
I fail to see the fallacies that are mine to blame

within my earshot
whispers that translate to only shame
the ear that hears not
is deaf to the gesture of speaking in vain

check out my eye piece
it helps me see through the ones who are all the same
exception is my feast
I refuse to take up the ways that they feign

When you put your worth, in the people that surround you.
When you put your worth in the things that you do or say.
When you put your worth in what others might say about you.
When you put your worth in what you can do for other people.
Stop , quit selling yourself like this for each of you are worthy.
Just laid down your low self-esteem and pick up Christ purpose.
For one thing that God can not do and that is make junk.
He only creates beauty and Masterpiece, so quit calling yourself junk.
For you are worthy to be appreciated and loved by others for you are Gods Masterpiece.

The loss we have seen lately
of great artist is unbearable.
So many artist have passed on.

One thing that helps me through
is thinking of what they have left us.

The musicians leave behind their
great music to listen to and enjoy.
Other artist leave behind their
great movies, paintings, or even words.

No one ever wants to be forgotten
Hopefully they never will be
With these traces they left behind.

We too will hopefully never be forgotten
With our words
Remaining here
Part of our traces left behind...

When we were younger
the world was full of vibrant colors
who knew however, that as we grew older
the world would turn black and white

as the silken webs stick to you
an ignorant bliss is written in your eyes
you are stricken by a venom inflicted
you're caught in a web of lies

there's a difference between visible and hidden
a difference between spiders and flies
you're a victim of innocence once bitten
you're caught in a web of lies

When you see her cry
     you get a rag,
a gentle delicate cloth.
                                        Lovingly grasp her hand
                                               and dab its tip;
                                       dry each tear as they come.
                                                           ­                               And ask each drop
                                                            ­                                   why it'd leave
                                                           ­                               such beautiful eyes.

  If she wishes
to be in the sky,
  tell her to go.
                              Take the sun ransom,
                              and replace its shining
                                    with her own.
                                                            ­          So you can see her every morning
                                                         ­                          and wish for her
                                                                ­                  return each night.

When you see her scars
  both visible and non-
    touch each gently.
                                             And remind her
                                       that each and every hurt
                                            she has survived,
                                                       ­                                 has only made her
                                                                ­                   that much more unique;
                                                         ­                              that much stronger.

  Show her that she
  is a special person
and is worthy of love.
                                     That she deserves the love
                                            she fears to give...
                                            show her so that
                                                            ­                     one day after you're gone
                                                            ­                      she can find the strength
                                                                ­                    to go on without you.

    Tell her that while
she might not be a goddess
far above worldly desires,
                                          that she is amazing,
                                         for just being herself
                                    for being that beautiful girl
                                                            ­                   who thinks herself damaged
                                                         ­                         when in truth she's just
                                                            ­                    a different kind of beautiful.

   And finally, love her.
  Like a boy loves a girl
Till she finally remembers
                                            that that's what she is:
                                          not a scar, not a goddess,
                                             not a star. But a girl.
                                                           ­                         That deserves to be loved.

Maybe we all feel sorrow stronger than any other feeling
And that is why we all write about it
Because there are so many ways to describe pain
And we struggle to find the words to speak of the joy we can feel
So we simply feel it
And that is why we don't write happy