Keep it close, do not disclose,
That thought you had, don't let it be told.
Spiralling downwards, gaining momentum,
Familiar now, fermenting the unscented.
Just one step towards the darkest past,
Listen to what you once were told,
"Take two steps forward, one step back".
Letting fears unwind, twisting the truth,
A blanket of confidence unveiled,
Now that your no longer you.

Not knowing where I belong; 
Here, at home or beyond?
Spreading thin, cut in quarters,
What became of the unity we fought for?

Afraid of the landscapes built upon
We paint over lived canvases,
Struggling to focus for too long,
Looking for the creative thread among the masses.

Saying we will settle in years to come,
Waiting for a moment telling us its time,
"Don't you know that settling isn't for some",
They shout as they search for a place to call "mine".

Firstly perched close to the shore,
Seagulls as a waking call,
Horizons as signs of furthermores,
Avoiding any reminder of the restricting city wall.

Secondly a little closer,
To those who we hold in our hearts,
Greeting mornings with a train tracks murmur,
What an adventurous start.

Then wishes slowly lost their power,
Landscape stretch to resemble concrete cubicals,
Lighting up in the midnight hours
Yet another sign of the lost will.

Third is when we return to where it all started,
A full circle without filling the core,
Was this what all the searching led too?
Is home where I began reaching for?

It doesn't need an ending, 
just a beginning and middle,
Endings are the one sure thing,
In life's great sodden riddle.

For a brief moment I am here, but not for very long,
Take me for everything before what is blissful is gone.
And when time has past, when we are through,
Know that I'm perched somewhere thinking of you.
Each day that evening light begins to shade those once glistening eyes,
I'm aware of losing that glowing gaze
But taking your heart, your warmth, your years
As nothing but caused me, tears upon tears.

Forget me not for it is true that I long for your sweet touch
In moments of purity it is only you that can hurt so much.
Bounce through my dreams,
Rip up my hopes,
Knock me off my carefully plotted feet.
All of my worth, my strength and my hope
Is gone, leaving me weak.

Forget me not in all of your days
Remember who has touched you so.
Longing and laughing and humming sweet tunes
Making them only for you to boast.
Into my arms you softly align,
Slipping softly down on my skin,
In those few moments I know your mine,
But never forever, not him.

Forget me not, I do beg you
To picture me all of your days
And think of movements that could only be us,
Then we will stay that way, always.
Can I just have one more chance, to declare how I feel
On blended knee I'm bleeding the truth
Telling you how you should feel.
Is it madness to profess such pain, the wishes of mine were once yours?
To shout it out for all to hear
When will you listen to my bowing down
Just say it, you don't want to be here.

Why am I pleading to those lost brown eyes
When its plain to see that your gone.
Is it possible that you were never mine,
How did I get it so wrong.
Will you listen when I say that it is only you each night
That star that we once wished upon is no longer shining bright.
It happens, you know, or so I hear
Love changes with passing time.
Remember the look I gave to you
But know in time I will be fine.

Forget me not but give away
All you couldn't give to me.
Know that all of what we once wished for
Was never meant to be!

Walk a mile in my shoes,
Tell me how it feels.
Do you skip the cracks?
Do you kick the fallen leaves?
Can you read the signs,
placed high above the trees?
Is the sky blue in your eyes?
It's always grey in mine.
Do you ponder time,
passing by in minutes?
Days were longer weren't they?
Now darkness invades hourly.
Take a stroll in my shoes,
give the branches names.
Listen to the traffic moaning,
pick flowers in the Spring.
Yearn to give love freely,
hide that aching smile,
notice that others hurt,
See it in their eyes.

Water swept softly, caressing the malecon.
Fisherman hung tirelessly to rods unbent,
Lovers perched next to seagulls,
Looking to distant dreams,
Embracing one another, folding arms against freedom,
Denying the waves flirty approaches.

A place where coloured plates were signs of class,
Fumes of gas enveloped rusty car interiors,
Locals spoke of their better selves,
All a show, an act of unity,
Clothes hung loosely, less is more.
Skin soft from the sun's spirit.

Tourists hummed over finely tipped cigars,
Remains of better days memorilised with frames,
Sweets passed as currency for cemetario tours,
Family tombs, shines, the dog at her side,
Saint Amelia listens to gratitude for answered prayers,
Where gomez, Alvarez, gonzales make hay,
Guantalamera sung gently in the bay.

Queues formed on corners, no end to each line,
Rations existing in such plentiful times,
Disregard for professionals,
Hailing of crimes,
Hemingways cocktail maker still pouring in the Floridita,
Murals of Che plastored to the walls,
Architectural past dotted out in each street.

Today a thought or two sped into center stage,
Disguising the space that surrounds the seas,
What if the lands we ran from were where we ought to be?
What if the green leaves of summer could no longer be seen,
Autumn colors only reminders of pastures in a dream.
Birds singing unfamiliar songs, ones we had never heard,
Yes, it is great to be part of the new but it isn't as new as it seems.
Dave, John and Mary have been here before,
Sure didn't they talk about it in the times?
No, that was some other folk, turning memories into sweet rhymes.
You weren't the first to open the door, spreading wisdom, giving new hope.
Remember all lands were founded so play in them how you may,
All of these pastures were built for your pleasure,
New characters created each day.
Its not that you are less special then all who have gone before.
No, you have a purpose, so use it, adding blocks to the core.
In memory of Seamus and Thomas, sing out to all who will listen,
Give them your whole hearted vision
Explain that a pasture isn't a prison.

There were many who believed in ideals,
Fretting about in their heels,
With bollards and plackards,
They marched and nattered,
All hell they would repeal.

ISIS let rip in the east,
Fear more important than peace,
Assad called the Russians
We heard the percussion,
Aleppo mourned daily deceased.

The climate was caught unawares,
When it realised nobody cares,
The smog came in strong,
Al Gore wasn't wrong,
When people flirt with despair.

Brexit was no laughing matter,
The public blind to what they were after,
Trigger at the ready,
It isn't looking steady,
For a kingdom with too many actors. 

Trump, we thought at first glance,
Didn't have much of a chance,
But Hilary's scandal,
Left the US at a stand still,
Now the world's in Russia's trance.

Farewell to the icons we'll pine,
Our culture was built on their spine,
Prince, Bowie and George,
With legends we forged
The moments that will surpass time.

Ireland became a haven for a few
Pity there wasn't a queue,
With a fight for corporate heads
Banks left dry and bled,
Tech an oligopoly? Who knew.

Aleppo left drenched with no fate,
The little reaction to late,
UN cries unheard,
Media reports blurred.
It's hard to keep up at this rate.

Silicon Valley is offering free food,
to workers becoming robots or goods,
12 hour days,
extraordinary pay,
But with no creativity they're *******!

Sporting greats made their way to the stage,
this year's Olympics causing outrage,
medals were plenty,
seats were empty,
And controversy graced every front page.

Here we go blindfolded into 2017
Only the wealthy living the dream,
while most young folk,
believe politics a joke,
Tell me, is it time for a new regime?

There was a place where a light wind blew
And swished away the leaves,
Pushing past the great, exposing the new,
Meandering through the trees.
A place where many trod but few could see.
Where all had been and come to pass
But more than often leave.
Considered by none, walked on by many,
This place was no ones first time,
A venue so guilty of mass interception,
Now a place that is momentarily mine.
Fingers sweetly stained, ripe for a licking,
Bushes bow to greet, the artist who is picking.
Carefully placed signs to protect outsider intrusions,
No handprints or footprints in sight.
All access not granted, made more appealing
By the unmasked blanket of night.
Bowed branches hung slightly,
Not tampered, cut or blown.
This dwelling reserved for nobodies pleasure,
Leaving the lost be unknown.

Ignited by two unwanted stones, we charged straight for one another,
In a valiant battle, only we can describe, there you became my lover.
In not one but three drums beating, you marched right into my heart,
Afraid of no on-coming ambush, knowing that you could get hurt.
No trumpets or whistles did i hear you blow,to give me a warning sign.
No sooner had you begun fighting when I completely knew you were mine.
The battle roared on, they drew swords but you marched to the finish line,
Are you happy now that you have won? Listening to triumphant chimes.
What you hear is not blissful, there are no medals to be had.
Only a poor injured whisper, why couldn't you have been bad.
Now that you've reached your safe haven, is it what you thought it would be?
Could it be that its different?
You don't see yourself in me.

With no pointed angles to hold us up,
We fall, fall forcefully among the masses,
No sparkles in the dust below,
How easy it is to get pushed.
As a child on a swing so eager to jump
But knowing that there is no soft landing,
We are thrown into a new discourse.
Distant excuses ringing from afar,
No loud bang just murmurings
That it won't and could never be our place.
It shone too brightly to allow the other in.
Now that we have learnt our fate,
Masks hung innocently over our faces,
Cloaks of greys and blues.
No bells chiming when we made the landing.
Far away from the who knows who.
Take those hands from deepened pockets,
Remove the swollen scarves,
That zip doesn't hide the demeaning brow,
Unpack all the anger and hurt.
A battle of stars against bridges of stone,
Made tall with stacks of mortar,
No frown will give us prominence now,
Is that what we are after?

There is a joy in nothingness, all the way from Donne.
Just being and believing that nothingness has won.
Let others strive for the something's, the battles to be fought.
Whilst we rejoice in the mundane that is so often lost.
When pleasures prove to troublesome, love fades away
Enjoy the chance in nothingness,
Let it help you find your way.
To be, to smile, to cry, to laugh,
To wake up everyday,
It's the nothingness that pushes through,
The something's never stay.

There is no more mystery, no hidden gem,
No unfound treasure, no rock unturned,
No land untrodden, no holy ground,
#unfiltered all around.

No want for tomorrow, no story to tell,
No chinese whisper or wishing well,
No unheard tick of a clocks pointed handle,
No unchartered water or unlit candle.

No patience to bare just one more day,
No unscripted plays, leaving nothing to say,
No route unmarked, no map undiscovered,
No unbeaten tune, no songs uncovered.

No sitting, wandering what might never be,
Why bother wondering when google is free.

No crime unreported, yes, a marvelous thing,
But if crimes become nothings is war a greater thing?
No boundaries obeyed, as cultures melt together,
Empty replies downpour with "whatevers"

And we stand back to witness,
Life moving with such speed,
Unable to slow it, barely able to breathe!

Forgive the grey sea for its intrusion at this hour,
Don't believe its breaking hum that holds such power,
Meaningful strokes sweep the bed where it weeps
The grey sea trying hard to evade those who sleep.
Succumbing to the swish, the swash unfolding,
Unbeknownst to all the dreams its withholding.
The break ponders before deciding on its course
Underneath its caress is a knife that is sharp,
Unafraid to utilize its brutal force
How easy it is to drown in nature left ajar.
The grey sea lies still, calm and unruly
But what of the waves that linger in our paths?
Find them, stroke them, brush by them cruelly,
Their present once wanted, no need to look back.

Palms sprinkled with white dust,
Stiffened in the frosted gaze if the sea.
Speckled mountains stand protective over miniature villages below.
New light strikes hidden ridges, cliffs tempting us to leap,
Meandering rivers flowing parallel to wandering tribes,
Hear the Parakeeps chirping, they don't have to hide,
Land so unfiltered, untamed by the norm,
Obscure now a pleasure, a rose with no thorns.

I am a wanderer,
Searching for the somewheres,
In the middle of nowhere,
Taking in everywhere,
Entranced by anywhere,
Believing in whats never there,
Wishing I was elsewhere.

Praise for all who have taken to the sky,
Given another existence a go,
Believing only in those who TRY.
Praise for all who long to conquer
foreign lands, embracing the other.
Learning to RESPECT both major and minor.
Devising new rules, a pastiche of history.
Praise for all who seek to do more,
then ponder, longingly by the bay.
Those who dive, unafraid, into deeper waters,
Seabed nutrients paving the WAY.
Praise for all of the daily routines,
The bricks that build our paths,
The bristles that brush our teeth,
The caffeine that wakes us in mornings,
The pillows gently aiding our sleep.
Praise for all who embrace it,
That hope making futures seem bright,
Mixing primary colours,
Creating their own special LIGHT.
Praise for all who can switch,
Between feelings, careers, space.
Warning signs only act as directions,
Not evidence of an unavoidable FATE.
Praise for all those who let go,
There are times when you must close the door.
Forever is never a given,
If it's a struggle to love anymore.
Praise for all who have found them,
That ONE we all long to meet.
The lucky position of few,
The masses admitting defeat.

Time passes slowly now
that you are no longer here,
Moments have turned into hours,
hours have turned into years.
What are you thinking of each night
when your eyes roll into the dark,
Are you concocting new wishes?
Confused upon which journey to embark.
Don't worry yourself with old feelings,
they get washed away in new streams.
Enjoy tomorrows meandering rivers,
that's where you will find bigger dreams.
Let sleep invade on your sorrows,
tear stained pillows dry in the night.
Never give up the vibrant you,
the strong you who took the first flight.
Waiting won't do you any good,
precious time ticks on by,
Know that there are no forevers
no matter how hard we try.

Clouds parting, dark, the world begins to take shape.
Puffed up, longing to show their fluffy side, we lament.

The web of stars shine, disconnected patterns fading.
The background, a foreground for curiosity.
A horizon sits quietly, gently caressing the coastline.
It takes centre stage.

A coast hugging the archways, ominous, renewed.
Now filled with life we walk, invited.
A hum of scooters guides us down a winding corridor of road.
We gain momentum, marching towards the sea.

Cars break, beep, whizz; a melody for our route.
Disassociated with emotion, only impulse moves us now.
Reactions slow, we salute the passersby.
Don't accelerate, ignore if you must.

The surrounding pleasures measure me
And all that I have become,
The petals fall so slowly,
Telling time for the passing young.
Beauty triumphs from corners
Of mouths bursting with stories to tell
Who rose to conquer new places
How they differ from those who fell.
Motions depict a serenity,
Once followed with wonder and awe
Now punching with rhythmic nothing's,
The small screen has become the new law.

Don't pity the poet lost in a battle for words,
Pity the child lost, wandering unthinkable plains,
Muddy sand Squelching through crumpled toes,
Hardened soles beaten over and over,
Arms hung loosely, the energy to march onwards, lost
in the foreboding rhythm of steps too many times taken,
Bleak are the darkened dreams, corrupted scenes invading the innocent,
Desperate lies concocted to pull a cover over the real, the danger, the hunger.

Did I ever tell you you hurt me,
The day you said goodbye?
That night you left me wondering,
"Why is it me" I cried.
Why did you leave me sitting,
Alone in this silent room?
Why did it hurt when I knew
I couldn't see myself in you.

Did I ever tell you I longer for you
When sunsets turned to light,
When knowing with each moment passing,
I was losing the fight.
When all thoughts seemed so thunderous,
New settings couldn't edit the pain,
When waiting was no longer an option,
I was the one facing the blame.

Did I ever tell you it was never enough,
Those nothing's that kept crawling by,
In your nothing's I felt only emptiness,
Too arduous for you to even try.
Its been said that you are the greatest,
The best thing since a fresh sliced pan,
Finding solace in this myth is difficult,
As you were never my man.

Did I ever tell you of the greatness
That I found in you each day?
I did, I know through my actions.
Yet still, you gave nothing's away.
Can I let you in on a secret?
One I can no longer keep.
You tore my heart into pieces
But without you I no longer weep.

Grand memories of places, scenes,
adventures carried out in distant landscapes.
Smiles so full of wanted kisses.
The body talking in a nervous language,
accent pronounced, gesturing wishes.
Watching as one sips a newer grape,
the old no longer worthy.
Teardrops forming puddles on pillows,
a stream of stories washed away.
All hellos, goodbyes, greetings unnecessary.
Uneasy replies to questions unwanted.
Truth too painful for innocent ears.
Hearing woes unbearable, seeing is enough.
What was once plenty has gone stale.
In the nights shadows, crawling amongst fallen leaves.

There's a truth in the last moments you share
With yourself before sleep invades
It's those minutes that capture rare plots you construct
From bits and bobs gathered along the way,
Where everything is reckless, hope is renewed,
Manifestations of moments once true,
And all of the doubts that persist in real time
Subside to reveal who is who.
Deliberate intentions of force.
It cannot be examined nor researched in full,
Who is it that is teaching this course?
This awareness is yet unexplained.
A yearning for life, a wanting for more.
A manufactured reality, can it be obtained?

Who would have thought? Well nobody really.
Who would have cared? No one but you.
Did someone try? Yes, quite clearly.
Where are they now? Further than you.
Why don't you bother? Been done before.
What's the use in trying? Can't give anymore.
Are you reaching hard enough? Not sure what you mean.
Have your hopes wavered much? *Yes and all of my dreams.

Standing in rows we took turns to bow,
Pleased to perform for the eager crowd,
Little did we know in our gallantry glow,
The clap would weaken when it should have been loud.

On the first morning of each new show,
Rising to meet myself,
Who is that they would ask? Answering, I don't know,
They must have plucked her from the shelf.

When did the features once unique
Start to resemble the masses,
"If I was me I wouldn't look so bleak",
I think as a pencil in lashes.

Covering any evidence if days before,
Lines carefully smothered in mud,
It would be sacrilege to reveal the core,
Masking tears, fearing the onset of a flood.

Strong coffee aromas greet a powdered nose,
Another day lost in the battle.
The curtain are pulled on empty rows,
Only greeted backstage with a cackle.

A blank page for newer characters is unveiled.
No paper to sign, just a pat on the back,
"Be in touch" do those words mean I failed?
No wonder players starts to crack.

All the while I am the sole witness,
The observer willing to cheer,
Each time you thought only of you,
My applause erased any fear.

Yet I being one of many know of others seemingly weak,
The actors in greater society, that is what makes us unique.

The If's, the But's, the Why's
The Who, the constant sighs,
The mighty, they flourish, you think,
The unwanted, just dither and die.

The popping that leads to forevers,
The chanting, the calling of names,
The longing that heals the displeasures,
The knowing that things stay the same.

The forgotten so eager they were,
Their heads buried in worries so common ,
The gifted, bright, almost shining,
Dwelling on all who have long been forgotten.

What's out there but a sheet, waiting for new notes.
A stave with a treble clef, no rhythm yet sewed.

Brave movements burning from behind the walls,
Lyric upon lyric, spinning towards a greater cause.

All that is waiting to be plucked into life,
A melancholic tune creating such instant delight.

What's out there but snapshots of everybodies song,
Listen to the words telling you to where you belong.

A first step,a page turner, a warm embrace,
All out there, the treasure for you to chase.

What's out there but a person that you don't yet know.
They will touch you, might hurt you but help you to grow.

She who perched on the windowsill,
Allowing time to float through,
White, grey clouds passing slowly,
Admiring books on wooden shelves,
How valiant they stand,
Against the race first and second place,
Each page a testament to dedication,
Covers touching, a balancing act in motion.
She who perched, deserted,
Coins carefully scraped from bottoms of bags,
Pockets emptied deep into the night,
How those notes slipped so easily
from hand to stranger in times gone by.
She who prayed silently
For an unfound discovery,
How great she became at singing the others tune,
Rejoicing in poets long gone,
Humming the others lyrics so frequently.

Did you see what you've become? A consumer of the world,
A lover of those shows for those who long to just be heard.
A breather of the air, so dense, that we can barely see,
A taker of whatevers going, items presumed to set you free.

Did you see what you've become?A product of someone else,
A replica of her or him, a never ending image of the self.
A who, a what, a where, a when, a constant reflection of them.
Don't forget to become what you said you would, be what you ought to be.

Did you see yourself on the screen? I did, on every last page.
A happy, adventurous side of you - no different from the masses.
When did you stop playing the lead, settling for backstage?
Just when social hierarchy is becoming archaic you construct divergent classes.

You are more than you think, you are who you are,
You are the person they want to see.

A worry, a sigh, a prayer, a ponder
A closed fist of fears
The woes, the barriers, the dreams
Beginning, how they end.
A life, a hope, a mirror of the same.
The commentary, ongoing, monotone,
Unresponsive, how it never ends.
A pain, a thought, a look.
A door opened, the enemy is in.
The shame, the loss of life, ending.
A feeling, a cry, a question
Bullets, so many. It never ends.

In Descartes reading misery, contemplating life.
letting go is torture, keep momentum rife.
Seek out the pro's that teach the winning game,
searching for bragging rights, craving all the fame,
Nobody stops to calculate as words tear and multiply,
yearning for the screens real truth, never asking why,
the bumps in narrow roads deepen, crawling closer to the curve,
are pedestrians ready, have they rehearsed how to serve?

I am alive please sing to me,
Imagine the songs in their flow,
Don't put me in that box quite yet,
I am not ready to go.

I am alive please sing to me,
A harmony we only hummed,
In sunlight and sunsets you flourish,
At one with what you have become.

I am alive please sing to me,
Sweet lyrics that tell me you care,
Words so perfectly matched,
You know they are supposed to be shared.

I am alive please sing to me,
That song that reminds me of you,
You sang those melodies clearly,
I felt them all the way through.

I am alive please sing to me,
So that I know you're still there,
Caring, touching, strumming new life
Into strangers who couldn't but care.

I am alive, can't you hear me?
Watch as the darkness subsides,
Escape from behind those drawn curtains,
With me, there is no reason to hide.

I am alive, can't you feel me,
It is me that is touching you so,
Don't think of me as a phantom,
I'm right here, not letting go.

Open if i never wake from the deepest dreams of more,
Open if I give up, succomb to a roaring seashore,
Open if my eyes give way to darkness, where is the light.
Open if my arms fling down, i have given up the fight.
Open if time passes without a murmur, a wanting or a tune,
Open if I run, I hide, seek solace in the flashing moon.
Open if you no longer feel a yearning for a place in the world.
Open if there are no sounds or encouragement to be heard.
Open if it's hard to swallow, the pain, striking right at the chord.
Open if when the rain stops beating, you still can't find the words.
Open if your mind stops wondering, where and when and how?
Open if the door stays locked through bangs and knocks and rows.
Open if I begin to forget all of my manners, my ways.
Open if we're no longer placing photos in frames, of the better days.
Open if all friends have walked by and you find yourself alone.
Open if worry takes centre stage, know that I'll eventually come home.