They travel towards the sky
As expression of our mood
Explosive bits of joy, ascending
Past the full lit moon
An enormous color spectrum
Magnificent and loud
A demonstration of celebration
As we stand together, proud

A fascination with what’s to come
By any means of an escape
Allows the blind to see; posthumously
While embracing their own fate
The end is daunting and inevitable
It brings shivers from the cold
Though frail and weak
What we all seek
Is the light that shines like gold

The light that shines between us
During a sunset loves embrace
Diving deep into your ocean
From high in outer space
I’m immersed in who you are  
Like the sand between our feet
Grounded, looking back at you
Entrenched in my belief

It’s his bottle of light
That fills empty cups
It’s his melody that touches our souls
It’s the words that hit home
For the scared and alone
That leads them past the fiery coals
It’s a glimmer of hope
A pause in the scope
That allows us a moment to feel
To connect in a sense
Under no false pretense
To the sounds with a vast loved appeal
It’s his journey embarked
That we feel apart
Watching him grow and transform
In front of our eyes
His music revives
And shields us from the eye of the storm
From mainstream to obscure
His message is pure
He sings, and the audience hears
His guitar is his wand
That tightens the bond
To the things that we all hold most dear
And it’s artists like him
That keep us filled to the brim
With joy that they’re sharing their gift
With something to say
In a meaningful way
Through performances that shouldn’t be missed
He implements ideas
That brings crowds to tears
When evoking emotional tones
Or he’s quick with a pun
In lighthearted fun
Using beats that he made on his own
He’s a writer, producer
A linguistic abuser
Using rhymes that are multi-complex
His schemes are unreal
He’s got skill; the real deal
And he’s not shy to show you or flex
He’s a force on the scene
Far from routine
He’s got a voice that needs to be heard
He’s got an ear for his pitch
That’s melodic and rich
And he’s got talent that’s borderline absurd

Forged in their youth for rebellion
Through hardships of need versus want
They sweat and they bleed
For profit and greed
And they’re made to believe what they’re taught
A rebellion was a foregone conclusion
When everything is a made up illusion
Put in place to deceive
Their focus and dreams
With a filled head of lies and confusion
They don’t have a leg they can stand on
No leverage to balance control
Just a misguided youth
Without knowledge or truth
And can’t do anything, but do what they’re told

Where does inspiration lurk
When you’re trying hard to work
But the ideas won’t form inside your brain?
Where do you go to seek
An audience of sheep
Willing to flock together
To be entertained?
It’s no easy task
Reaching out to grasp
What little is left but somehow still remains
Without ideas there are no plans
Tempting to alienate your fans
Before becoming the man, the myth, the spark to light the flame
It’s not the bumblebee that stings
But the pendulum that swings
That sets the tone
On how things are the way they are despite the pain
And the more you fight the cause
The more often progress becomes paused
And the better the chances are
That all changes stay the same
I think stimulation’s key
Because the brain needs food to eat
Or you’ll undoubtedly starve it
If you don’t feed it what it craves
So just so it’s understood
There is no would, or should, or could
There’s only do or die with tears in eyes
While dancing in the rain

I stood still and I waited
I listened, I heard
A melodic symphony
Like a bird, but with words
The message was relayed
Acted out and portrayed
In an unusual manner
With clear genius displayed
It gave me the goosebumps
By what all was said
About massive struggles
To feel alive before dead
I was moved, but unwarned
For the performance at hand
To be swept away
By a young British man?
Captivating and impressive
With just his voice and a guitar
Shedding light on his illness
By exposing all of his scars
He’s a vessel to carry
Innovation; through tunes
Attacking each topic
That help heal opened wounds
Things in the present
Or through memories shared
Expressing raw emotion
When most would be scared
The talent oozing, exuding
With every pluck of each string
I’m immersed, baring witness
Watching an angel earn wings

A fluorescent pink sky
Dictates the mood
Serine, like a dream
Euphoric and smooth
The heavens reflection
An estranged interlude
Of angels and demons
Both seeking out truth
Boats in the boatyard
Made of skeleton crews
Succumb to the rhythm
When the tide sings the blues

Beaten and busted
Loved all the same
Fabric and cotton
With an obvious name
Teddy, the teddy bear
Had seen better days
He’d been through the ringer
He’s mangled in ways
But with a pure heart
Soft as could be
These memories
Have stood longest with me

The painting manifested
Into a work of art
Encompassing the beauty
That was envisioned from the start
Hummingbirds fly feverishly
Around emerald green sachets
Which drape over divinity
In the most complimentary of ways

I’m approaching a doorway
With the doors now ajar
That’s been protecting the contents
Of a once fallen star
They tried to contain it
But the bright light shone through
They were told not to enter  
But their curiosity grew  
A sacrifice, a martyr
With caution, subdued
They burnt into ashes
As if right on cue

I’ve come unraveled
I’ve come undone
I’ve been burned by more than just the sun
I’ve made mistakes
I’m not immune
My walking music’s out of tune
It’s as if I don’t know what to do
What it is, I want to pursue
So I dillydally, and wait my turn
I guess some people never learn
Thanks so much for your concern
But my urge is gone, set fire, burned
Extinguished for posterity
And sealed tightly with a kiss
In a hundred years
There’s not a chance
I’ll be remembered well or missed

There are few things that give me peace
Like the hesitation, just before release
Having comfort in my skin and home
The two places I spend my nights alone
What’s unbeknownst, will set me free
Instead of mulling over my misery
Filled with broken hearts, and catastrophe
Not trophies for my victories

I can’t get over our insignificance
What’s it all matter for?
What’s the purpose of our being?
Who’s tallying up the score?
What’s my motivation?
Why’s there rich and poor?
What’s inside Pandora’s box?
What lies behind each door?
A speck of dust on a speck of dust
On a speck of dust we are
In a universe containing
An immense amount of stars
The number is too lofty
The mind can’t hold a grip
Of the infinite amount of knowledge
We’re simply unequipped
We couldn’t fathom
Couldn’t grasp
The swarms of trillions
The size, the mass
And here we are on planet earth
The weak, the strong
A death, a birth
Evaluating what we’re worth
Until we’re buried under dirt
There are no answers for the questions
But someone has to ask
Nothing lasts forever
So let’s enjoy and have a blast!

The fear is severe
When the unknown’s unclear
Until we gather our gear  
Then ****, disappear  
Into the night
While traveling light
Solemn; contrite
Ill equipped for the fight
The battle of self
With poor mental health
A monopoly of wealth
For the pills that get dealt
Out of the cupboard  
And into our hands  
Along with the side effects  
And a list of demands
There may be reactions
They’ll come out in waves
Searching out healing
Or what the body most craves

Staring at a ticking clock
Wondering where the time has gone
Instead of living for each moment
And pretending to belong
The monkey looks
The stork rolls dice
The view around the room looks nice
I took two looks
I looked twice
Then fell in love and paid the price

Somewhere in the distance
The world comes to an end
Some call it a horizon
Some call it their only friend
Either way, the sun will set
The moon will rear its head
And gleam just like a lamppost light
Through the window on my bed

I’ve avoided the places that clutter my mind
While getting lost in the labyrinth
With walls too high to climb
A large maze of my thoughts
With shivers down my spine
In the cold early morning
When I feel most alive

‪A clock reminds us that time never stops ‬
‪Never forgoes it’s hold‬
‪So take time to read ‬
‪It may plant a seed‬
‪Of ideas that continue to grow ‬
‪There’s no time like the present ‬
‪Or a particular segment ‬
‪Of time to relinquish control ‬
‪So squeeze every minute ‬
‪While you’re still in it ‬
‪And you have some semblance of soul‬

There’s no one breaking down my door
Believe me, rest assured
That if they showed the current score
Your jaw would drop and hit the floor
It’s unfathomable to think
I could just see a shrink
For all of the many thoughts I have
That have me on the brink
The brink of destruction
The brink of despair
The brink of extinction
And I don’t even care
Broken and beaten
Unfit to fight
I’ll pour on the gas
And watch it ignite
Not to die as a martyr
Just to shed light
To a life without meaning
And a death out of spite

I caught a bit of a breeze
When I noticed shaking leaves
In the evening, before the sun went down
We were in for a cool night ahead
So, I wrapped myself up and laid in bed
With big blankets and pillows underneath
Cozy by the fire, until we fell asleep

I made a mistake
I trusted a snake
That slithered and hissed
Was conniving and fake
He reared and he bit
Uncoiled and spit
His venomous poison
Right where I sit
By what has transpired
The situation is dire
I need the anti-venom quite quickly
Before I expire

The words fly off the pages
The pages fly out of the book
Becoming doves towards heaven
At first glance or look
The sunlights on the water
The sailboat sets its sail
On to great adventures
That’ll someday turn to tales
About the fierce encounter
With the granddaddy of whales
🐳
Or the serpents in the water
The shark fins in plain sight
Then there’s the squid 🦑 with its long tentacles
That put up the biggest fight
These are tales that will be read
In books with written word
Then all will know first hand accounts
From the sailers that returned

You can lead a horse to water,
However, you can not make him read
Unless of course, that same horse
Joins a book stampede
With flamingos, turtles, monkeys, elephants, and geese
All carriers of literature
Carrying three, four books apiece
Ingrained in imagination
When nursery rhymes made sense
Hidden between the pages
Is where the situation’s best
The anticipation of conclusion
The ending of the tale
Will it be successful?
Or like so many others, fail?

The pages lift our conscious mind
Through stories that stand the test of time
Truth and tales can both be found
On pages that are leather bound
Imagination is in full effect
And is often how our time is spent
A holiday, or some time alone
Can inform with more knowledge known

I daydream in my daydreams
About the bright light up ahead
That’s even bright when my eyes are shut
Or just lying in my bed
I daydream on a colossal scale
Great goals to reach and more
But the light always shines its brightest when one is on the coastal shore

Time fades away
The wind blows the sand
Into forever
As the clock turns it’s hand
I stand alone in the silence
The tickings gone dim
It’s my quest for survival
And my chances are slim
I’ll take the odds
If it’s all the same
And live for each moment
While the moments remain

Two illuminated butterflies
Are dancing in the air
Giving off an orange glow
To which nothing else compares
Frolicking and fluttering
Around the humans hands
That are reaching out to touch them
Or to see if one will land

She walked in puddles
Under the willows in the rain
With an umbrella, for the weather
Walking down the lane
Her cottage around the bend
With chimney stacks; red
A short walk to reach comfort
For a hot meal and soft bed
She wore a simple yellow dress
Not dressed to impress
Because she knew the weather forecast for the day
She entered into her home
Made of mortar, bricks, and stone
An inviting home, in every sort of way
She settled down to rest
And wasn’t expecting any guests
When she heard a sudden knock ✊🏻 upon the door
She was startled quite a bit
The porch light wasn’t lit
So she couldn’t make out who it was for sure
She asked who it was out loud
But didn’t hear a sound
And that only made her concerned that much more
She turned on the porch light
There was nothing there in sight
But the knock was way too loud to ignore
So she went and got a knife
To fend off for her life
Or for whatever they had in mind or in store
Then came broken glass
A man was coming fast
Now that he had worked his way into the house back door
She screamed for all to hear
But her voice had disappeared
She was frozen in her fear
And quite as a mouse
🐭
He chased, she swung
They fought, he won
And now that man is sleeping soundly on the couch
He knew it wasn’t good
When she was lying in her own blood
When he woke up and saw what he had done the next day
He took some time to think
Had several high proof drinks
And decided to keep her as a conversation piece
ashtray


It’s sad when evils done
And even sadder when it wins
But now that story’s over
So a new one can begin

It was only for a moment
Less than a second of our lives
That our two paths crossed
In a place where love thrives
But the moment never lasts
As time does take it’s toll
When you grabbed me by the heart
Without ever letting go

There’s truth hidden below the dust
That’s gathered over time
There’s unspoken words that never need be said
There’s secrets covering lies
By spies who’ve centralized
That use metaphors
To send mixed signals to your head

I left her there in the dust
What I thought was love
was just lust
I believed only her I could trust
About intimate secrets discussed
But she sold me out for a price
What she said wasn’t very nice
Before I trust again, I’ll think twice
Too scared of rolling the dice

Feet touch down on brittle ground
Dried up from the drought
Waters scarce from scorching heat
No water from the spout
The sun is fierce without a cloud
To shade the light of day
Leading to the cracks in earth
Across the dirt and clay

Between the blades of grass
On a sun-rich day
Where flowers are done blooming
And the hare hop free in spades
There is an open meadow
Where memories are made
And magic tends to happen
In early June, late May

He gathered all his knowledge
Of what it means to be
The center of attraction
Without causing a scene
He wrestled with rejection
While still chasing his dreams
Crying for salvation
Unafraid to scream
He picked up all the pieces
While learning how to breathe
And upon further consideration
In a harsh reality
He shouted towards the heavens
Dropping to his knees
Begging and repeating
On just how much it means
To be dependent on the outcome
Of a long forgotten dream

You are a whisper in the chaos
A tender, lonesome, dove
Always a bit obscure
However, full of love
You are the seeker of horizons
In an endless sky above
A survivor of the mayhem
When push comes to shove
But love shall overcome
Of this, I’m certain of

He saw it clear as day
Even in the night
Visualizing everything
He aimed to bring to light
Each step he had to take
Grasping, holding tight
To the promises he made
After putting up a fight
With a goal to be achieved
When it seems nothing’s going right
Or when doubters; non believers
Disregard you out of spite
That’s when things get clearest
That’s when dreams take flight
Then putting pen to paper
Turning into a passion overnight
When all ideas flow freely
With whichever hand you write
And with a flicker of a finger
We watch it all ignite

Tattooed on her shoulder
Was a colorless rose
Outlined as if it were dying
Given its pose
Hunched and dejected
By the path that it chose
Just to end up as colorless
And the ghost of a rose

Resting teddies under sheets
Blankets tucked in tight
Bunny rabbit counts his sheep
That leap, to sleep, at night
Little teddy smiles in bed
Big teddy wears a frown
They lie awake, with different takes
While bunnies safe and sound….   asleep

The reenactment of something beautiful
Was a preeminent show of life
An oscar worthy performance
On stage, under lights
The roses tend to fall, but lift
The spirit from down below
And a thunderous applause, at length
Can be felt deep inside your soul

They tell me you have ****** eyes
That I should look away
That you’re a victim and a killer too
That I should hope and pray
My instincts are to vacate
To dissipate and flee
Not sure where it all may lead
But I’m curious to see

My fear was evanescent
But it happened all the same
Shouting out my own inadequacies  
Wondering who’s to blame
Instead of being whimsical
While dancing in the rain
If just not to face reality
And return from whence I came
Back to meet my maker
The collector of my soul
I’d leave today if it were up to me
But I have yet to meet my goal
To overcome my obstacles
And forgive my biggest foes
And to strip myself of armor
And be totally exposed

It’s the illusion of protrusion
A not so subtle hint
Something that’s so massive
You barely need to squint
It’s visually appealing
It’s precious, worth a mint
It’s worthy of chasing after
Whether a marathon or sprint
There is no serendipity
There is no second chance
Only becoming a believer
Based off of happenstance

Meet me on the other side of your boundaries
Where vulnerability resists
And the passage to your beating heart
Is proof that one exists
Or meet me in the middle
So that I may soothe your pain
And combat what’s been ailing you
That made you become what you became
The essence of your being
The crystal ball within
The end of the beginning
And the beginning of the end
It at least will serve its purpose
Like when meetings are adjourned
To focus on the soulless
And to all of those concerned

He never felt harassed
By the bonny little lass
Who was distant and detached
Because of her troubled past
He loved her all the same
Smiled at the mention of her name
They had long kisses in the rain
With little chat
He asked her for her hand
Which came highly in demand
But she took off and she ran
And that was that

The crack of the whip
Doesn’t sit well
With whiskers or kittens
Or a cat-o’-nine-tails
Leather and laughter
In a distinct frenzied smell
Wrapped up in ribbons
In a hard candy shell
Was it an omen
Or can’t you tell
If it was more of an archway
Than a gateway to hell

Prisons built by prisoners
Who also act as guards
While running interference
That most will disregard
Confined to the matrix
Where freedom isn’t free
And where brainwashing is abundant
At peak capacity
A form of communication
Where no one is to speak
Profiting the rich
By abolishing the weak

I know I know too little
A minuscule amount
In order to commingle
Without having a doubt
Just some basic knowledge
So I can fit in
And communicate with others
Behind a crooked grin
Showing I have interest
In the subject that’s at hand
Spoken very slowly
So that I can understand

As the year comes to a close
Another year starts anew
With new resolutions
And dreams to pursue
A celebration of ending
For what we’ve been through
And a new understanding
Of what we must do
So walk in the footsteps
Of another man’s shoes
While accepting the change
When you’ve paid all your dues
And sing to the heavens
To drown out the blues
So that your prayers will be answered
And not misconstrued

Will I sit and reminisce
About the opportunities I missed
When focusing on what’s wrong instead of right
Will I stumble all through life
With my struggles and my strife
To end up old and bitter out of spite
Or will I concentrate and learn
Ways that I can earn
A living, and turn around my plight
I must be methodic and precise
Without having to think twice
About how to get my fire to ignite
So I’ll stand up and be strong
And face whatever comes along
Then you can stand back, and watch me taking flight