Not everyday
   is  a  good  day, live anyway.
             Not all the people
   you love will love you back,
               love anyway.
             Not everyone
     you thought you knew
               will tell you
                   the truth,
          be honest anyway.
               Not all deals
     are fair, play fair anyway.
               Not all your love
   relationships will be truthful
                  and  faithful
                     to you, be
             truthful and faithful
             with   them  anyway.
                Not all "friends"
        will  be  there  for  you  when
             you need them to be,
        be  there  for  them  anyway.
                  Never apologize
       for having a heart as big as the
                 ocean to the people
        who would rather stay puddles
and  accept  the fact that  some  people
              didn't intend to let
        you down, but did. Too many
people are looking for the right person
               instead of trying to be
   the right person. Let it all go and
                    see what stays.
               Die  with  memories,
                       not dreams.
                                                         ­                             Jon York   2019

Somehow,  
          we  all  forgot  
     that  we  aren't  here
          for very long.  

                We've
   become time - machines,
          never living
     in  the  moment. And
          now we can't
     remember how to love
             what's right
          in  front  of   us.

               Every
         river  leads  to
           the ocean.
    Stars do burn out.
                So yes,
         everything ends.

             But do you
      want to know a secret ?
            Everything
-- and I mean everything
     -- BEGINS AGAIN.
               Maybe
         we're getting it
             all wrong,
       and  it's  the  stars
             who are
       wishing on us.
                                                                                Jon York   2019

Poetry doesn't
            have  to rhyme, it just
     has  to  touch  someone where
            your hands couldn't.

                 A poem begins
          a  lump  in  my  throat, a
                   sense of what's
                           wrong,
                      what's right.
                 A homesickness. A  
                       love sickness.

                       Why poetry?
               I  am  asked,  I  answer,
                   "because of life."

                      I don't want
                 just words from you,
                     the one who is
             supposedly  the  center
                        of my world.
              If  that's  all  you  have  
                           for me,
                     you'd  better  go.
          We whisper lies to ourselves
               and forget that reality
                   is a light sleeper.
                                                                                        Jon York   2019

Music helps me
           to forget about the world
                           I live in
              and gives me reason
        to   end  something   useless
                      and move on.
           At times I fit into the lyrics
                    more than I fit
                          into life.
            In   many   life   situations
                      and events
          I  find  myself  in  I  can't  
                    explain how I
                        feel but I
           can find a song that can.
                   I love it when
            I  hear  lyrics  that  apply
                          to  my
                  current situation.
      Each memory has a soundtrack
                     all of its own,  
         even  if it is a bad memory
that you'd prefer to erase from your
                   mind forever.
            When  you  hear  that  
   particular song, the  bad memories
         are always there with it.
  Behind every song is an untold story.
              Someday it's gonna
                      make sense,
                     but for now.
no reason to stay is a good reason to go.
                                                                                              Jon York   2019

Life goes on. . . .
               with or
               without
              someone.
               Never let
             somebody
             waste your
              time, twice.
           Rule #1 of life:
                do what
              makes you
                 happy.
       Whatever you do,
              make sure
               you do it
                for you.
             Fortunately
             I don't have
               to beg for
                anyone's
               attention,
                 beg for
              anyone to
              talk to me,
              or beg for
           anyone to stay
              in my life.
           When it hurts
             to move on,
         I just remember
            the pain I felt
              hanging on.
                                                                                           Jon York   2019

You have
                   everything
                   you need.
          Choose to EVOLVE.
                Choose LOVE.
           You  have  a  choice:
            EVOLVE or REMAIN
                UNCHANGED.
                  If you choose
                    to remain
                   unchanged,
        you will be presented
   with  the   same  CHALLENGES,
              the same old ROUTINE,
              the same STORMS,
              the same SITUATIONS,
       until  you  learn  from  them,
                until you actually
       love  yourself  enough  to say,
                      "no more,"
     until  If you choose CHANGE.
                 If you choose to
                      EVOLVE,
           you will connect with  the  
   STRENGTH  within  you, you will
                 explore what goes on
           OUTSIDE your comfort zone.
      You  will  awaken  to  LOVE, you will
                 become LOVE,
            you  will  be  LOVE,
       so EVOLVE and choose LOVE.
                                                           ­                       Jon York   2019