I lean against the trunk of a tree,
Gently embraced in its roots-
The leaves murmur to me in the wind.

Its tall shadow stretches before me,
Reminding me of its strength;
In a storm, it does not sway or bend.

My mind calms as my worries are fading,
Allowing me to relax,
Reclining here in the timber arms.

I rest now in the ample shading-
Breathing deeply with eyes closed-
Yielding to nature's persuasive charms.

The scratch of pencil to paper takes over my senses,
And I'm completely immersed in what my brain dispenses:

A turn of phrase.

I'm feeling poetic
And a bit chaotic;
Kinda frantic,
Somewhat hypnotic,

Paralyzed by this single thought:

Oh heavens what to do?

My tears have been cried,
My cheeks have dried,
Oh how I've tried,
But my hands are tied.

Paralyzed by this single thought:

What if I did the wrong thing?

A part of me is holding on to everything I know is wrong;
The other part is letting go of everything I used to know.
This simultaneous hold and release isn't freeing in the least.

I am standing here, on the brink of something new to fear,
And my breath catches in my throat as I allow myself to hope
That something good will come and I'll not be left feeling numb.

I feel as though this is the end of something that I will never see again,
But it also seems to be the start of something that may touch my heart
And shape me into my adult state, guiding me toward my fate.

Life has taken me to the strangest places, presented me with so many faces -
I still don't know how it will end or even what will happen when.
I'm waiting not too patiently for my life to catch up with me.

This double gate in my path gives me pause and makes me ask:
What have I done that is worth remembering in future verse?
What will I do that will be the making of my legacy?

The clouds today were wispy and soft
And a little like cotton candy.

The grass today was cool and green
And felt good underneath my toes.

The sky today was bright and blue
And like nothing I've ever seen.

The trees today were tall and strong
And swayed gracefully in the wind.

One blanket, one friend, one Frisbee,
Two sandwiches, two smiles, four bare feet;

Two souls enjoying nature,
One nature so beautiful it mystifies;

One summer day
Preserved forever in verse.

There're some things I'd like to change-
Some things I need to rearrange.
Things like my heart, my mind,
My whole **** life.

They need some tweaking,
Some fixing up,
But I don't know what went wrong.

I made it up as I went along;
I had no plan to follow.
Now I'm empty and hollow
And looking for something
To fill me up inside.

My head knows what I need,
But my heart refuses to believe.
I don't know how to make me better,
I only know I feel bound and fettered
By the choices I've made,
The things left unsaid,
And the things I've said too much.

They're killing me.

'Cause I can't take them back,
Or hit rewind and fix it.
I just have to build on top of it,
And, man, that's so hard-
To forget all the things
That make life so rough,
And act like they never happened;

To just keep on going
Like I never made that mistake,
Like it never cut me to the bone,
Like it didn't leave a scar.

It's too bad they don't make Mederma for the heart.

The miles melt beneath the tires
As the odometer climbs higher
Towards my next oil change.

The sun shines in a cloudless sky
As the green fields go sailing by,
Their cows oblivious to my passing.

The needle on the gauge sinks lower
As the gasoline powers the motor,
And I make my way home.

These empty words
Fall from my lips
Like so many imperfect pearls.

Instead of wisdom,
They offer lies
And semblances of the truth.

I wish I may,
I wish I might,
With all the strength I have,

But no matter how
I wish tonight,
Nothing will fill them up.

Because real words-
Words with a purpose and plan-
Come from inside

With assurance
And hope
And oft-spoken love;

These of which I have few.

Empty words-
Ambiguous and unsure-
Have similar origins

But get lost
Somewhere
Along the way

Among the uncertainty
And sadness
And solitude;

These of which I have much.