In a nation torn with racial strife
Where killing seems a way of life
Where rappers hold the people’s court
And looting is a favorite sport
Where drugs and thugs, both black and white,
Govern day and rule the night
When Superman is fast asleep
And shadows o’er the addicts creep
And rain don’t wash away the smell
From where it comes it’s hard to tell
Cuz truth ain’t always what it seems
When judges judge and lawyers scream
At least two sides in every fight
And everybody knows what’s right
Cuz the FacebookYouTube miracle
Sends evidence empirical
Across the globe at speeds of light
While the real truth stays out of sight
Hidden by gray overcoats
While politicians gather votes
And make the nation safe again
For women, children, mortal men.

But there are heroes on the street
Men and women you don’t meet
Unless of course you break the law
And you know that sticks in your craw
When a thousand thoughts are in your head
And you don’t see the light turn red
Or you’re headed to a meeting-late
And you’re only going eighty-eight
And the State Cop says “The Law is Clear”
“The limit’s sixty-five right here”
You grumble but you pay the fine
And wonder why he wastes his time
But the Cop has seen a different view
He knows what eighty-eight can do
The mangled steel and shattered glass
Maybe he just saved your ***.

In cities large and village small
Policemen answer every call
In every town and every city
Sometimes it ain’t very pretty
Protect and Serve when Hell breaks loose
Mere seconds, all they have to choose
What course of action they must take
And pray to God there’s no mistake
Cuz each Monday Morning Quarterback
Will pick a side and then attack
And argue based on “evidence”,
“What they would do”, and “common sense”
While sitting in an easy chair
So very thankful they weren’t there
And radicals from either side
Make threats and say the other lied
And which of us, if we weren’t there
Could ever judge a verdict fair?
Families grieve and loved ones cry
Both innocent and guilty die
Sometimes truth ain’t black or white
Only God knows wrong from right.
pwl 1/7/15

I threw my heart port side

I didn't want it anymore

I watched it sink

so

         deep
              
                     down

                                 and
    
                                            now:

It is an orphanage for shipwrecks

It is a home in the dark

When it thinks no one can see

It bleeds


I feel it bleed


Hearts are supposed to be light

But mines made of iron

And sunken fathoms

Have you ever ran your fingers
across bumps of Braille on a door sign?

Ever wonder what it's like to be informed by
a language you can't hear but feel?

I can imagine

When I read the contours of your body
the ***** of your cheeks or the valleys
your hip bones leave behind

When I find joy just sitting next to you
eyes gazing into mine, without words
I sense the stories you're telling

Secrets only we know, an understanding
tongues couldn't share on their own

Alone together

We were made for one another
like the gears in a clock

I touch your inner workings
and tiny moving parts

We are interlocked and spinning
yet still we run out of time

Separated but in sync
our hearts beat harder
for each mile in between

What other communication do we need
when we are tethered together
like two kites on one string

But for everyone seeing this
who can only read about being
the reason you're smiling

I'll translate the feeling into Braille too
so they understand
how it feels
to love you

If he did not matter
And I did not care
Why does his voice echo in my head
On sleepless nights

Mornings cold, sheets unmade

If he loved me so
And I did not want him at all
Why can I still see his smile
Every time I look up at the clouds

Sun blinding, skin pale

If it was my choice
And his heartbreak, his loss
Why do I find myself
Writing these lines today

Clock ticking, time slowing

If I am unhappy
And he is long gone
I know for sure I'm stuck here
Regretting, longing

I thought I was the one
Who got away
But clearly,
He's the one who got away
With my heart.

Just once,


                                   I want someone to be afraid of losing me.