Your origami snapper came along
tucked into my wallet
things like that don't travel well
but I managed
they suffered a lesion to the spine
snappers are apparently weak there
maybe we can work on growing a backbone together

handmade gifts mean the most
less, when it was made in whimsy and flimsy
more, because it gave me false hope
maybe it's a sign
like a uke-playing octopus
maybe friendship is all I need right now
your origami snapper is a great listener

It sits on my desk
Either mocking or pondering, I can’t tell
Snappers are hard to read that way
Maybe if we showed more emotion you’d
           notice

but action requires reaction
and somehow the origami rose I made forgot it’s origami thorns
But there could be blood on my hands
From a beautiful friendship I so recklessly slaughter
pulling up roots like weeds
adding wistful thinking to inimitable memories

I saw a man at the park today
Boldly creak out of his pickup
Eyes so set and determined they shone
          Through transitional lenses
darkened by the fire in his eyes
He must've had a hip replaced
Because I couldn't tell which side the cane was
         On and which one was the wooden leg he
          walked on
Each step more of a leap forward
Ending in a few inch shuffle
Maybe he's a vet
Mind racing fast
Between the comrades lost and
a lover on her deathbed

He sits
Breathing in the world around him
Not missing a ripple on the lake or a single gull's call
Just alive
No more, no less

Then, as quickly and silently as he arrives, the man creaks upright, rubs the pain out of his hip
And walks back

A king’s funeral, no trumpets no band
Is now arranged by a snake’s cruel command
Who stole the throne-room where he used to stand
And marries your mom with his ****** hands

The uncle who put your father inna grave
Ignores approach of the Norwegian knave
His passion for power, it’s all he craves
Not even an ounce of goodness he saves

I get why you’re mad and why the man, who
Took away your dad, and the life once had
The villain, the cad, deserves nothing more
than poison you add with just a small pour

You have hidden your feelings in plain sight
Screaming and ranting, you look for a fight
Polonius, curtain, Oh! I am slain!
Is it the king? No, P. dies in vain

‘cause they are all playing their crude games, right
Trying to play you like musician’s pipes
While the floutists break their stereotype
Their life of fiction, removing the blight

I get why you’re mad and why the man, who
Took away your dad, and the life once had
The villain, the cad, deserves nothing more
than poison you add with just a small pour

But it’s all in vain
You die just the same

You were going to **** him while he prayed
But fear of death your humanity swayed
conscience struck and your cowardice stayed
Lost all action, decided not to slay

Your goodness beat out the pain he did cause
you snatched your righteousness from evil’s jaws
Grace had beaten out the justice of laws
Fie! Claud sends you to England just ‘cause

Look, I get why you’re mad, but come on man
Life is too short, you should not end the span
You human, you gad, to your dad you swore
Either end him now or mercy, implore

But it’s all in vain
You die just the same

What happened while in the graveyard that night?
Chap-fallen Yorick? The digger’s delight?
Ophelia, Her corpse drownéd, snow white?
“To Be” you chose, but King Claud you (still) spite

I get why you’re mad and why the man, who
Took away your dad, and the life once had
The villain, the cad, deserves nothing more
than poison you add with just a small pour

Look, I get why you’re mad, but come on man
Life is too short, come up with a (good) plan
You human, you gad, to your dad you swore
Either end him now or mercy, implore

But it’s all in vain
You died just the same

Should the earth be but a quiet manor
A palace in forgotten elder oak
Where what used to fly, a threadbare banner
and all-conquering poison ivy chokes
Well, we'd explore every nook and cranny
leave no dusty, unread book on the shelf
our nose for secrets would be uncanny
until we know it better than ourself
No immovable stone will be unturned
No forgotten corridor will be unwalked
until all its riddles we will have learned
and every bolted door has been unlocked
for we discover what the world conceals
and go until the last secret, we steal

I have eyes of hazel
a mosaic of greens and browns
olives, avocados, old bananas, oaks
seafoam and swirling driftwood
they've got the life of a tree
        ––– the strength of a cedar!
there's not a trace of rage...
red, I meant a trace of red

Sometimes they shift
with the lighting or my outfit
or the situation and my comfort level
'cause I'm pretty good at hiding pain
behind humor and kindness like Robin
or simply a stoic gaze and an "oh, I just have an RBF"

There's no electric blue
of piercing, unquenchable energy
of lighthearted laughter and joy
Just verdant meadows and rich chocolate
steadfast and authentic

Silence is a strange noise
Trees applaud my solitude, boisterously ruining the moment
Or maybe it's the distant insects and frogs that break the silence
I can't seem to find them, constantly at the very edge of my
      perception
There's a plop to my right on the bank
(or maybe it was a sploosh... too noisy to tell)
but other than that the river is keeping its mouth shut
That same cool breeze riling up the wood whispers in my ear:
nature's static; she says everything and nothing

I wonder long and hard about their thoughts,
their hopes and aspirations and fears
and whatever else may occupy the silent minds of my companions
are their thoughts as loud as mine?
Does that little voice ever ******* shut up?

Ya gave this old cynic hope
real. authentic hope that
courses through your veins
patiently pulsing a potent potion of purpose
perplexing passers-by repeatedly

'cause the heart finally matched my mask
my smirk splitting stygian skies so starlessness simply seemed inconsequential
'cause there was a light a the end of the tunnel
roaming blackness became romantic ambience
inside darkness finally reaching a shred of light, deafening death's call
budding blossoms began bringing ambition back to the barren soul in me

And then you took it all away.

As quickly as it came, you were gone.
and I pretended to be strong,
to not care, and to understand
because it happens; sometimes you just lose feelings for someone

And yet, I can't justify the radio-silence
the horror movie-esqe once there, once gone of your voice
telling me we were fine, and that I was fine
a single hand bringing boatloads of bootlegged peace
yet it was all just hormonal infatuated affection
affecting affably and offering alliance when I needed it most

So no thanks for the stab in the back
I'm doing fine, thanks for pretending to care
(as the boiling bathtub of blood blemishes floorboards below)