Do not weep for our dear friend
Think of him this night
In terms that he would really love
Nascar turned him "right"
We lost a friend we loved today
Our family down by one
Remember Al in your own way
He's now a star, a blazing sun
A father, granddad, brother
A friend to all who crossed his path
A man to share a story with
A man to share a laugh
A green, white, checkers finish
Is the way our friend lived his time
He was a mentor to so many
I'm glad that his path did cross mine
I will toast his life in honour
Break out the port and praise his name
For I am proud I knew him
And I hope you all feel the same
We all share many stories
Of our time with our dear friend
And though we're hurt so by his passing
The tales we tell will never end
A hangover on drambuie
A trip to watch a race
Each story shared is special
Each story has it's place
Remember now our friend Al
How he'd laugh and tell a joke
He'd not want us to weep for him
But, to go and sneak a smoke.....

Two teenagers, unknown to each
Each wishing on a star
She, for eternal love
Him, a brand new car
They never knew their paths would cross
And their wishes they would get
She found her love, and him...a car
Don't leave...there's more here yet....

College years and future dreams
Still to come, with who?
Two teenagers growing up alone
I know what's next...do you?
He bought his car with money earned
From working hard at night
While she still waited for her love
Do you think they'll meet.....they might!!

When you wish upon a star
Remember which you picked
For now, you may get what you want
But, in the end....be tricked

Their paths did cross while he was out
He saw her walking in the rain
He couldn't stop to help her out
But he had to get her name
He did his run and went on back
Hoping she was still en route
She was soaked right through as he drove up
So, a dry ride home was moot

He took her home and she dried off
He sat waiting with a drink
She got all changed and then came out
He was not sure what to think
A t-shirt and her housecoat
Was all that she had on
She was sending him a message
He thought it time that he was gone

When you wish upon a star
Remember which you picked
For now, you may get what you want
But, in the end....be tricked

They dated from that night until
They decided they should wed
They were both near graduation
And they knew where they should head
They married and had children
They were perfect in every way
Imagine all this from a star
You wouldn't get all this today

As time went by, like it always does
They realized that their dreams
Were not the one's they used to share
They were ripping at the seams
The kids were always fighting
And I guess, they were too
Her dream of finding eternal love
I guess, had fallen through

When you wish upon a star
Remember which you picked
For now, you may get what you want
But, in the end....be tricked

They now slept in separate bedrooms
The kids were out and off to school
No matter what the weather
The house was always cool
They never spent a moment
Together anymore
The only ***, was a quick "*******"
As they passed on through the door

His car was dead and buried
With their marriage close behind
She'd wished upon a shooting star
And didn't like what she did find
Your dreams are what you make them
A star has a shelf life...don't forget
Before you wish upon one
Beware of what you'll get

When you wish upon a star
Remember which you picked
For now, you may get what you want
But, in the end....be tricked

The cigarette butts were piling up out front
Where was that steady breeze?
So she wouldn't have to get the broom out
So, they would blow off to the trees
Way back in the corner though
One man continued to smoke inside
It was a right given to him years ago
No one ever argued, no one ever tried
The bar was smelling musty
No matter how hard she tried
The owner couldn't make it fresh
That's because all the food was fried
In the window, a brown and crumpled card
Notified the world "We're Open" now
But, outside of the old man, and the crew
No one in the outside world really knew
Visitors never came here,
they stayed away from here
The regs didn't care though
To them, it meant more beer
A college game was on TV
Two crap teams from the west
No one was really watching them
The regs liked the East the best
The carpet, full of burn marks
From cigarettes long burned out
Dropped from pursed and drunken lips
Who also no longer were about
The barkeep could tell stories
Though there was few there who hadn't heard
The stories of the past long gone
The regs knew every word
The posters drab and dreary
Selling beer from years ago
From breweries long since empty
And with tag lines nobody even knew
A poster for Black Label
and one for Jolly's brew
In the back sat a piano
Out of tune and never played
It had been out of use forever
The keys were cracked and grey
The bar itself was dying
A relic inside four walls
It was dressed in papered squalor
Like an old man with no *****
The windows showed their age
Shaking when the wind did blow
Ice was always building on them
There was more inside that in the snow
A breath of life was badly needed
The bar was really already dead
They hadn't made a dime in decades
They always ran it in the red
Today though, things would change
The door opened from the past
In walked a man of substance
Another character to the cast
He sat down on a bar stool
Ordered up, and looked around
And there standing in the corner
He saw the piano...with no sound
Asking if anybody played her
The barkeep said "No, she's long since died"
"Do you mind if I go and play her"
"It's been a while since someone tried"
He rolled it out from dark in hiding
Hit a key, and hurt his ear
Lifted the lid to look inside her
And then he ordered up another beer
He hit the keys and played a little
"Let's give this thing a whirl"
The sound it made was flat and pokey
"There's lot's of life in this old girl"
"I'll tune it up and come and play her"
"If you'd like...that is of course"
"Mr. if that's what makes you happy"
"But, I think you're beating a dead horse"
"By the way, they call me Johnny"
"Johnny Fingers if you please"
"I'll tune her up and play a while"
"I'll get her clean and bang those keys"
The barkeep offered up a contract
Tune her up and play for free
"If you're good, I'll pay you extra"
"The jury's out, we'll wait and see"
Johnny laughed and said "You got it"
"I'll play whenever you decide"
"I'll play whatever's asked for"
And he had a smile ten miles wide
The barkeep said "The venture's on then"
"Let's have a talk, and grab a seat"
"There are some things I have to tell you"
"Johnny....welcome to The Street".

a blank slate
thats what i was

until you painted me with you autumn greens, and dark ocean blues
until you traced my body with the color red, and left me blushing pink
until together we traveled and found new colors in the new worlds

i was a beautiful sunset over the indian ocean
i was a the laughter of a small child
i was the wildflower growing tall and strong in the uninterrupted wilderness

i was it all

that is until you decided to start over on a blank slate

A boy.
A boy,
Who's love I need to feel.
I'm not his girl
He's the love I long to steal.
His voice is the sweetest,
My ears have ever heard.
For him,
I'd do anything,
Say anything
I'd give him the world.

Even with my best intent
I let him slip,
Melting to sloppy wet drips
And flowing straight,
Through my fingertips.
Even when I tried to grab hold,
I grabbed, I jabbed, and pricked,
Still away he had surely slipped.

Oceans apart
However, close we are.
There's still a spark,
It magnifies every emotion
Heightens every notion
And through all the dark,
There is still a shrill
A deep, deep, shrill,
The life-giving *****,
Beats out of turn,
Even still.

I look into those deep dark vessels,
The Windows to your soul.
They search my flesh
They cry out,
Why?
Our future clear as sunniest of skies.
Though it's not a happy ending,
What a surprise.

Reality the way it always does
Creeps close.
It's wrong we know very well
in the heat of the moment, passion swells
We're both thinking stop,
But onward we march
Into this terribly beautiful yet tragic arch,
Of love and lust that cuts so deep.
Our brains know better, but our hearts,
They are weak.

Then it hits.
In that instant a vivid dream
Comes to me lucid and not quite serene.
Your lips dancing in time
With mine closely behind

Stop

You look at me and remember her.
I'm sorry I say "I loved you first"
"Love me" I scream
Without a sound.
The words pouring out silently
My wide and weary eyes
Say it all as they cry.
Kiss me again
To send me away so abruptly.
Would surely begin,
**My end.

Do not just pretend,
that you understand everything,
that could make you look clever
but you'll be soon defeated in your game.

The sorcerer never told me the truth
about his esoteric art or him,
every trick is concealed in shining platitudes
"you'll soon find out" he kept on repeating.
  
Does he really know what he is saying?

There were secrets in every corner of the house
the sorcerer lived.I, as his apprentice have to learn
to live with this fact.I fell in love with his daughter
I followed her everywhere,  in my eagerness to please him.
There was nothing else I could think of, at that moment.
He seemed delighted.By now I am trapped
in the labyrinth from which I couldn't get out.

His truths were partial, hardly believable.
Or his is a truth i would never be able to grasp.
There is no right or wrong that would help one
to break loose.I found the sorcerer's daughter
very resourceful.She was the only one who seemed
to know which way the wind blows.

Am I the sorcerer's slave? Is this a trap he set for me
right from the moment he got me interested in him?
Is his daughter really in love with me, or
all this an illusion, my mind plays or just a dream?

First she is Spring,
Leaping forth with life,
Giggling, stumbling, smiling,
She beams with promise,
Shows an innocent beauty.

Next, she is Summer,
Warm with adolescence,
Bright with new knowledge,
She displays an allure and a willingness for love,
The kind that are almost singular to youth.

Then she is Autumn,
She has found the love she searched for all Summer long,
Her skies begin to gray, and memories of Spring fade,
The lines on her face stretch forth like so many bare branches,
The warmth and elegance from her youth still plain on her face.

Finally, she is Winter,
White and grey, shadows of Spring, Summer, and Fall shine behind fading eyes,
Her hands shake from the cold, and her steps are no longer so sure,
When she rests, she remembers a lifetime of triumphs; not one of mistakes,
And still, she beams as brightly as that little girl in Spring, as Winter slowly carries her away.

And I have loved her all year long.

I think I was thirteen
when I shipped myself out
to the sea of solitude
since then I've tried rowing
back to shore but
currents of discontent
are hard to fight
inevitably I gave in
to the candy-coated
pills and powders
and the minty fresh breath
of men lurking in corners
almost as sweet as sanity
eventually I overdosed on emotions
but I was only trying
to rid myself of feeling
since I was never good
at walking on the tightrope
between wanting and reality
at this point I don't know
who to apologize to
since Hallmark doesn't have cards
for sincere self loathing

it's just that
some days it's really hard
to keep your voice even
when your mother asks
if you're slipping