Dull and grey
What has become of you
Lying face down, not a care anymore
Stripped of pride and redressed cheaply
So much passion and truth
Gone, taken in your youth
Go on and listen to your pendulum
Go on to your Annabel lee
Rest now, man in the street

I walked the streets
Lined with silver
Wishing they were gold
I lived a simple life
Yet foretold
I aimed so high
But never reached the sky
Others ran to place their bets
While I lived a life
Filled with regret

My niece
made me bangle
of letters, stars, unicorns|
and colored beads

Then it hit me
that's her poem to me
a set of random things
that sit beautifully
side by side
around in a circle

and I noticed that
that's the first time
someone wrote
a poem
about
me

No one listens
when you talk
in black and white
Only when
you color
the conversation
can you get them
to think twice
Black or White
they fight back
Turn to color
sweeten truth
Make it smell better
they hear only
what they want
Their minds
have become
untouchable
There is only
Silence
now
in the black
and white

At the door comes a knock or a beating
That demands an uncomfortable greeting
So you hide from the guest
And deny the request
For this most unavoidable meeting