My words, they flow like estuaries,
From my fingertips to the seas,
Spindly, twisting, winding veins,
That run through evergreen plains.

Each word is rich with emotion,
Like the countless fish in motion,
Some vibrant, some dull, some,
Alive and some, floating with bellies above.

When thunder roars and lightning strikes,
And the Heavens in the sky start to cry,
My feelings they overflow, flooding over,
And all around must take cover.

For the once beautiful waves, are now,
Violent, destructive, and they plow,
Mercilessly through the haven in my heart,
Wrecking my world, part by part.

Stay just a moment longer,
Even though your love is stronger,
For a girl I've not yet met,
I'm not letting go just yet.

I'll bet she has the eyes,
Of the brightest, bluest, skies,
Glowing skin of ivory white,
Hair of flowing, iridescent light.

She'll have the loveliest voice,
And an elegant, beautiful poise,
A gentle, yet bruising, caress,
That leaves your heart in a mess.

Isn't that the reason why,
You look at me and sigh?
Because I'm not the girl you like,
Not much longer you'll be by my side.

You'll never bring me down,
No matter how hard you try,
You can shake,
And you can break,
But know I'll never forsake,
The paths I made,
They'll never fade,
Under your strings of tirade,
Cause the sticks may break my bones,
But the words I take and own...

I knew he was dying
I thought maybe a few weeks left
So still and so quiet
This man whose laugh made us all laugh
The man who always had ideas
Where to go, what to do for a laugh
Always a laugh
Sharer of adventures
Partner in crime
For thirty-six crazy years
Dying before my eyes and
Taking much of my life with him

He'd had a massive stroke a year earlier
They said he'd die then
But he defied them and recovered a lot
Proper conversations and learning to walk
Then they discovered that he had cancer
And here we were five weeks later
"How long are you gonna be in here?" I asked
He turned his head and looked hard at me
"I die next week," he said
As though he had an appointment

He got three days, not a week
I cried seeing him dying
But I was relieved for him when he did
Now my old friend is gone
And it's a duller world without him

                                       By Phil Roberts