I won’t ask personal questions
I can’t really prove myself to anyone
It could take a year or a day
I won’t give you suggestions
Unless you ask me to
Maybe it’s just better to pray

The past is the past
you can tell me things if you want
but somebody like me,
new to your life
may not be able to confront
the lines they drew,
on your heart, on your face
the one’s you carry, good and bad

When memories can’t hurt anyone but us
When we don’t know how much time we have
We won’t have to say their names out loud
Because the echoes of their voices remain
What is the point of it airing it all anyway
When what we know now is we’re both proud

You had to love somebody
Out of all the hearts in the world
When it was my turn
You’d given so much it hurts sometimes
It’s not a tree for me to chop down
It’s only a wish, what took us so long?

Nobody ever met me in a bar
There’s not enough room in there
Where do I put my childhood
All the friends I’ve known
All the times I've been alone
I wonder if anybody would care

I wonder if I’ve had my finest hour
Maybe I could ask my daughter
I think it was when she was a baby
But only I remember those times
Only I remember those rhymes
And not the baby held by her father

I’m not hard to get to know
The book is always open
But there aren’t any pictures
You’re gonna’ have to read it on your own

I left myself behind in the car
I just don’t want to talk about it
Being a stranger is easier
Just someone for you to walk by
Just someone who won’t make you cry
You’ll never know that I’m worth it

I’m not hard to get to know
Sometimes the book is out on loan
But I’ll be back on the shelf soon
I know there's a lot of pages to turn

My face is changing, I know it
Like sand dunes after high tide
Spread about, white with no end
Seaweed hair, tossed, unable to hide

People leave footprints, looking
The shells left behind don’t last long
Sand dollar smiles, conch wisdom
So much to say, I hope it’s not wrong

I’m glad someone thinks I’m worth it
Though the ocean beckons, I’m close by
Lay your towel down, I will warm your soul
Shifting time sands, either a laugh or cry

You burned your feet, I’m so sorry
Shadows became night, they felt a chill
I can’t get it right, the sun or the moon
My life can only bend to the wind’s will

I found God's green earth
Or maybe somebody pointed it out
I wiped my feet off on some dirt
So I could leave the tracks of what I’m about

One time I was so sure of myself
Then somebody said wisdom is what you don’t know
It’s too bad it took me all that time to change my mind
The things I believed took a long time to grow

I can take a horizon anywhere
All you have to do is remember to look
Walking ahead of me, it said it’s time chico
I’m not going to wait to read it in a book

There isn’t anything about you that I assume
I’m going to give you that chance
We don’t have much time to interest one another
Maybe we should just stick to that one glance

I’m going to wade on in to my world
I’m going to wear a slow moving gold band
Time isn’t as pretty as it used to be
At least I can watch the sun reflect off my hand

That’s really it isn’t it
Seeing what we need to be holy
I’m only worth the dust that begins to covers me
Maybe that’s why my heart beats so slowly

What I've been afraid of
It changes every ten years
It would have been about dying
Now it's just dying before my time

The only thing that has passed is a memory
The hot flame I once held in my hand
Is now the sand upon which I run
To the ocean to cool the turmoil in my heart
Only the ways of the wild and tameless
Can understand me now

I don't know my fate
I just know my plan
I haven't written anything down
Did you really think I wouldn't remember?

Why were you so sure of yourself
You thought you could find something better
The sun at midnight does not burn
But it knows the path you run
I tried to follow you once
Only a fool can describe you now

All I have to do is look at my children
It's like seeing the moon at night
Nothing else matters anymore
It's all up to me now

I stand with my arms folded
As if I know what to say
It’s no life without a broken heart
We can live longer than we should
The way love fails is too cruel to consider
But what I see in you is how I want to die now

I'm not so weary of life
That I cannot build another future
But when I think of you it's so hard to know
Can I love you enough to keep you?

Who would willingly live in the shadows,
except sadness and shame
Something changed their nature
The ruins of a past life, eclipsed,
by a story they refuse to tell

But the shadow is once again, alive;
drawing you near
It is your weakness that is strong; enough
to give you a life of meaning
And so to light you bid farewell

No reflection to guide your conscience,
only your lessons
You  gave fortitude away; in its place,
rationalization and suspicion,
within the walls of an abandoned shell

But there is a tree that remains, where
shadows exhaust themselves
It is in every memory of the heart, alone,
but ready for harvest; look upon it
and by its light God will make you well

She tried to deafen love's call
covering her ears to old words,
unable to stop their torment;
but she was an unknowing shell
cast upon his shores and the
changing sounds of what she was
hearing and where she had come
from would not be revealed until she
realized the echos of the ocean that
swept her to him now whispered a
destiny that came from within her soul

An island swept by the tide
But was soon to dry
Palm trees bent further than the horizon
But their roots held fast
The birds and their nests scattered by the wind
But they remembered which way was south
For they know that life is made of such things
And that every broken heart is blessed

Go ahead and tell me
Don’t save me for tomorrow
If you love him today
Then let me live with the sorrow

Go ahead and tell me
Take the weight off my heart
My quiet tears have rained down on it
It’s time for the water to depart

Don’t save me baby
But I need to cry one more time
Don’t save me for your rainy day
Just tell me so I can finish mine

It’s been too long
Too long hanging on
You’ve been too quiet
It feels like moving on
You once loved me
Then you said it was wrong
It’s been too long baby
Tell me how to finish this song

Don’t save me baby
But I need to cry one more time
Don’t save me for your rainy day
Just tell me so I can finish mine

They say everybody has a past
But why can’t I get past you
Tomorrow was our promise
But today it’s no longer true

You said I would be the last
And I said you would be too
But love that once was honest
Is telling someone else I do

It’s love that holds memories fast
If it’s the only love we ever knew
To hear them say goodbye to a promise
Is etching on a stone someone drew

They say everybody has a past
But the past is nothing new
You can pretend without being honest
But who are you going to compare it to?

I’m not in despair for who I  am
What my eyes see
Are the worlds that you are chasing
I found myself but I can’t be too free
The children that look to me
Make me realize that being a man
Is being myself but also loving them

I can find a moment in every day
When I’m the crazy enough for  my tastes
I can’t make the world a bigger place
But I can know more about it
You know being lost is still an adventure
What you learn is how to cope
You just to have the strength to try again

I haven’t fallen from grace
Because I never opened the gift
Maybe I climbed the wrong mountain
But I see the light I once set adrift
My mistakes were only slightly ajar
But still my door is open
I know I can tell you anything
Being a friend is loving what’s broken

Is there anybody who gets me
They never will if you live to discover
You can’t worry about an opinion
If it’s meant to make them feel better
If someone trusts you
They will let you bleed openly
Because they know where you’ve been

I haven’t eaten my daily bread
Because I didn’t know I was hungry
Maybe I walked on water
In a dream I thought was reality
I didn’t mean to hurt you
It’s hard to live knowing what I said
It may be too late for us
I guess only God can raise the dead

She was always afraid to be alone
And it was for this reason
That men were drawn to her door
You can’t see her fears
You just know they are deeper than your own
And it’s a sad man who uses her
To make himself feel strong

Just below the surface
Are things we cannot know
We sense their presence
But not how deep they go
We spend so much time denying
What it is that we cannot see
Even though we know they are there

There is so much to reveal
And though we know ourselves
Somehow we don’t know it all
We search for our gifts
And yet what we are unable to achieve
Are in the things in which we believe
We are unable to revel beyond a moment
Because of the depths we fail to explore

In our noisy explosions of the failure to control ourselves
We allow the frustrations of a lifetime appear
And then we are judged by those who still remain calm
For their day has not arrived to ask for forgiveness
For being a human
For being afraid
For not being able to hold their breath
Longer than two minutes
Only to turn back
While the depths of who they are remain still

We put too much value on the past
It can stain us or sustain us
But it is gone and we allow it to exist
It becomes a dream that we summon
Either to prove ourselves
Or to make ourselves feel unworthy
For even in pain what is familiar is comfortable
And what man would live on faith when he has a past?

What will you do with the love you lost?
She is still afraid of the dark even though she loves another
Can he protect her from man?
Or from the ghosts in her womb?
For she gives birth to her fears with every sunset
And as she drowns herself in the same cup
Her lover feels lost because though he can make her smile
He cannot make her sleep soundly

Why would I
cry away my tears when my burning heart begs to be cooled
Why would I
close my eyes to the past when my mind keeps looking
Why would I
pretend I never loved you when you know I'm lying
Why would I
keep tomorrow waiting when yesterday didn't wait for me
Why would I
go to sleep when the dream I once had will never wake-up
Why would I
write songs that mean anything when love stopped caring

To know who your true love is
Is to know of something good

Time holds the secret close
Suppressing reflections of the past
All the mirrors have been removed
For to see yourself is to remember
The things you know to be true

You say look into your eyes if I’m leaving
I say look into my eyes to know I’m staying

But I stay with you from a distance
Suffering from the paleness of still blood
Trying to make it run listening to the news
The world is killing itself because living is too hard
It’s not hard for me even if it really is
It always turns out alright
But every minute feels like the end is near

Just knowing someone like you
It’s why I know waiting is worth all the rest

I’m not throwing my life away
Living for something meant for you is life
Because we met
And it can never be taken away
Somebody is thinking about you
Always

Do not fear the love that can live alone
It is the fantasy of life
And it is real my love

I know you wonder
how it is that I forget you;
but that is not true

I remember every flower
though they have been picked
and pressed between the pages
of an old book

I remember birds that once flew,
between wind-stained trees
though they are gone now,
replaced by others too soon to leave

I have only forgotten how to live,
for what I do now is wait,
for another spring morning
the same as last year
and the year before
because I know my memories will bloom

As will you

Though I have not fallen apart
it is not a sign that I do not love you;
it is that strength of being alone
that sustains us

I will light the fire once again
and in the candles light
I will see you and know
that what burns in me
also burns in you
and that neither of us
can extinguish the other

Even if we must live apart

I don’t care if I lose
Even if it never ends
The feeling remains
Though I blame myself

If I was driven to you
It had to happen then
I watched you walk by
I thought I was involved

The wrong side of a shadow
The wrong side of your heartless eyes
I don’t know why the sun doesn’t blind you
You blocked me from love

I’m strong enough for life
But I’m not getting away with it
I try not to notice the falling rain
By crying only in the shower

The wrong side of a shadow
The wrong side of what you see
I don’t know why the past doesn’t blind you
It only tries to do it to me

I have a headache
And I'm tired
Once I was young
But now I'm unwired

Anymore
Meaning I not

I can accept the truth
Even if it hurts
Maybe that's why I'm tired
But lying makes it worse

Anymore
Meaning it does

You don't mind saying it
It's easy for you  
I have to accept your life
You told me what was true

Anymore
Meaning you are

I took a walk
I could hear the traffic
But I was far away
The trees eased my panic

Anymore
Meaning I was

It's the change
When they don't tell you
You know where you stand
And they do too

Anymore
Meaning I know

Still, I can take it
I'm still the same
If it means to be a man
Then I can't complain

Anymore
Meaning I  won't

I don't know why I think about what I'm going to say next. It's like I have to entertain her constantly. Why do I think that way? Is that really what she requires? A court jester? A man who can carry any conversation, no matter how long it takes? I never feel as if I can keep them happy. But is that what I'm supposed to do? Make them happy all the time?

I don't know if I can go through this again. I don't know if I can trust him. It's happened so many times. I used to think my nerves were exciting. Now I dread them. It's as if I'm expecting him to be a failure. Why am I so pessimistic about it all the time? I have to stop thinking about it being the greatest love affair of my life; the last man I will ever love. How can anybody have a conversation like that?

The sun could only wave goodbye. It was once a rite of passage; they watched me and then made love without a thought of tomorrow. Now forever or nothing is all they can think about. And yet they think it's only about hope that will never be true. All this and they don't even know each other yet. Yes, I will return. I always do. But they don't know me anymore. They don't know how to love anyone or trust themselves. How did this happen?

As long as the sun drifts by
I'll make believe we'll be together
I thought you would be my last
And if you are I still have long to live
As long as I believe

As long as the moon lingers
I'll make believe we never broke up
I thought you were just away
And if you are then soon you'll be home
As long as I believe

As long as I believe
As long as the sky is seen
By eyes watching the distant edge of longing
As long
As long
As long as I believe
There's still time

As long as magic fools a child
I'll believe in rabbits and top hats
I thought you were playing a game
And if you are I'll soon hear laughter
As long as I believe

As long as I believe
As long as a boy can dream
In memories longing to make some more
As long
As long
As long as I believe
There's still time

It was the same during his time
His blood came from a bottle
The shape was the same
The cork
But he could not live by its memory alone

The further he descended into feeling
The less engaged he became
He could only observe
A ******
But he could not live if he could not love another

He drew every wall near to his hands
As they gestured aloud
His voice listened
A thought
But he could not live if it did not matter to anyone

He was a canvas for every person he met
He remembered their smiles
More so their tears
A reflection
But he could not live if he judged them wrongly

If only we were in love
We’d be planning our day
We’d be excited about flowers
And romance our special way

If only we were in love
We’d know just what to do
But it wouldn’t be just one day
It would be all the others too

If only we were in love
If only we were in love
If only is all we can think of
Because if only
Is only what lonely people think of

If only we were in love
We wouldn’t have to wonder
Our eyes would burn like embers
From the spell we are under

If only we were in love
Every day would tell our story
We would believe in tomorrow
We’d know when to say I’m sorry

If only we were in love
If only we were in love
If only is all we can think of
Because if only
Is only what lonely people think of

I only have myself to depend on
That’s what I realized today
I can’t ask too much of you right now
It would be romance and not love

The hands on the clock won’t wait
We can’t seem to slow things down
You might think I’m hiding from you
I’m just waiting for time to tell you it’s ok

You have to decide if it’s wrong to stay
But first you have to come my way
We can cry about our sins later
That’s when we will ask to be forgiven
If only we have the time

My hands are reaching for you
But first I must pray
Pray for love
Pray to love the right way
Pray you won’t decide to run away

I have to think about the light of sunrays
Time is the only thing I can depend on
There’s never been a day without tomorrow
I have to ask you if you believe in it too

You have to decide if it’s wrong to go
But first you have to tell me what I know
We can cry about longing later
That’s when we will try to keep living
With what’s left of our time

to have you tell me you approve
a woman's touch
it is the truth in your life
no matter how it may hurt
when it is the right time
you will be glad you are there
no matter though how great you are
the life you share is so much more
Never forget
It is her love that is the art of her life
If only you could understand

What I’ve heard from the mouths of the men upon which the spirit was laid
Are words once thought spoken only where sins are finally paid
They read with fire gleaned from where they thought the book was stored
But the bush that burned became only ashes that were soon ignored
Will his truth find faith inside the blind?

What I’ve felt while a boy suffered before the eyes by which he was made
Was the silent burning reminder by the light that made me afraid
As leaves fell upon themselves one will live by the point of a sword
And one would live by the winds risen from the womb of the Lord
Will his truth witness what was left behind?

What I’ve said only opened the skin of a woman that bled upon my blade
And as I watched the shroud softly cried waiting while she prayed
It was the lost chapter of a sequel that could only play the same sad chord
But as pages vanished he remembered repentance was its own reward
Will his truth wash away the doubt from my mind?

It's not how he touches you
It's how he whispers in your ear
He tells you his worries
And it softens your heart

You said he treats you good
But why did you tell me that
It's as if you're setting me up
To tell me about your new start

Just tell me baby
I can take it
You know what we had
That's why you can't fake it
Just tell me
Just tell me he's your new man

You do things on your own now
Things you used to ask me about
But you don't have to burn bridges
When we're living so far apart

I don't worry anymore
But I still think about it
I know how you love a man
Are you going take him where I've been?

Just tell me baby
I can take it
You know what we had
That's why you can't fake it
Just tell me
Just tell me he's your new man

Until you can walk alone on your own
You cannot with someone else
You will only be carried in one direction
The one they choose
For the breezes that blow
May not fill your sails
And though the wind makes a sound
It is the quiet of uncertainty that you hear

But as I watch you suffer from loneliness
I ask to walk with someone who knows me well
Because they will understand how it must be
The way I am
How my tears no longer hide behind manhood
For the water before me must be my own
And I cannot begin my journey
Unless the path has been laid upon my emotions

Walking with someone else’s dreams
Or is it our own?
How can we know what is right or wrong?
But you can be never wrong
If courage becomes your bow
And your heart becomes your sail
Because it is who you are
And the wind is now at your back

Which miracle should I believe
And which one should I reject
When I was neither alive or dead
Nor witness to who laughed or wept
How can I be sure or feel at home?
Deliver reason or madness
What will it be?

Which language is only of man
And which one is from my soul
Will my tongue know to choose
Or will silence keep me whole?
How can say these things to you?
Deliver wisdom or foolishness
What will it be?

Which man should I fear
Will it be too late before I know
Would trust betray my open hand
Or will your warning make it so?
How will faith prove itself to me?
Deliver courage or cowardice
What will it be?

Which man should I ****
And by order of sinner or prophet?
Who will be most blessed
Those who pray or those who profit?
How will I ever know these things?
Deliver right or wrong
What will it be?

Should I tell you all my dreams, quickly and
at once before the shock of it all sets into
your life again or should we only pretend
that what is happening is only a day and an
hour between two friends?

I once was willing, so easily, to give the rest
of my life, sixty years or more; now I fear for
the time remaining, maybe a day and an hour
or maybe twenty years fading away into the
recesses of conversations and silence as if
there is a gap that could actually be filled
with meaning

How could you possibly compete with the
things I value that are always with me, songs
that make me cry, words I think of for weeks
on end before finding each other as we once
did, freedom to wonder about the beautiful
faces I see all around; how could you compete
with these things except to be so vulnerable
that you would be terrified enough to run away?

Are we thawing in the winter and freezing in
the summer; is there something that is so
different about us that we can be together
and give one another the freedom to climb
trees as leaves returning home or like the wind
that would blow without oceans swirling
or mountains standing in our way?

Is there?

i’ve never been an actor
only degrees of myself
the mercury keeps rising
as if it has a mind of itself
it feels like a neo noir movie
dark, grim like a detective
so much I didn’t foresee
so much that’s unexpected

i have a friend, beautiful, caring
we had drinks at a restaurant
she wanted me to meet her friend
what is it that she could really want
i keep wanting to ask her about it
it’s as if my heart is afraid to die
it’s as if i can’t risk one heart beat
if only she knew my eyes don’t lie

which one is worse
being unhappily secure
or sleepless fulfillment
it’s something we all endure
i don’t worry about lunch
or buying someone a ring
i have you in all my prayers
but you only live by the wing

i wonder how one-sided it can be
dreams are only what we remember
if I tell someone then it’s not a dream
it’s just another line from an actor
it's like watching people board a plane
i’m not sure if they know why they’re going
waiting to get there is how they live
but arriving is how you’ll soon be knowing

Did you say it again?
How many are you up to?
Not the words you say
But the men trying to love you

You don't have to say it
Don't give it away so easy
I'm still alive and it's not over
Pretending is not living freely

Don't give it away
Some words mean more left unsaid
It's not time yet
Time lives forever
You think love may be left for dead
But not for me and you
We are never ending
Love is life and life is your heart
And not something else instead

The distance between us is far
You think comfort is another man’s charms
But your soul is not asking for that
Dreams don’t live in somebody else’s arms

Don't give it away
Some words mean more left unsaid
It's not time yet
Time lives forever
You think love may be left for dead
But not for me and you
We are never ending
Love is life and life is our heart
And not something else instead

The light we seek has no shadow
Yet we close our eyes to find ourselves in darkness
We can only dream in the ways of our existence
In this life even transcendence must share the night
You must find the heart of everything
It exists inside a chestnut cabinet
Because it once existed in a tree
Changing form is not death
But change is only when you are ready to die
To be born to another life within the life you live
There is no desire that cannot be challenged
For what is desire but the pursuit of pleasure
Mastering yourself means rejecting yourself
And then the battle must begin
Against who you are
Against who you are to become
Because you do not know what you will become
You only know it is time
The coffin has not been lost
It has only been moved
For where you must lay is not where you will die
But inside were the emotions of those you once hurt
The inconvenience of their desires lie together
And now the coffin lives above ground
Waiting for you to open it
Not to climb in but to give them new life
But the question remains
Will they be close to you or on the edge
Where your fears gather in darkness?
Asking you if you are willing to walk past them
Because change is not turning your back
To cast shadows on those you once buried
But instead to walk into the light of their forgiveness

the earth was once molten
then frozen
but the sun did rise
though man knew not to record its passage
the seas once surrounded the land
then it was divided
but the moon did shine
though man could only gaze upon it
and as nature lived
and lives
so does man now
within himself he must decide
to fight as a civil man would
or to live in the moment time will judge harshly
our fears cannot remain calm in the face of death
our adherence to principle will not remain unchallenged
who will hold the line as horses charge knowing no rank
in the pages that will be turned
and argued
what will be said of us
that the idea of civilization was intended for the generation that followed?
will we be judged as saviors
or despots?
we cannot know how a man chooses
to fight
to control
to terrorize
to survive
and in the time of man and his children
can he accept that history will remind others not to live as we did
or is it that history will laud his leaving for a time
within the walls can we sleep soundly
knowing that those who cannot prove their innocence died in the fields
between absolute evil
and the relative good that was unable to fight without fear
all men will die
it is in the hands of the few to decide when
and though our time is unseen
and the consequence of decision cannot be traced adequately for justice
will we decide what to believe by the will of our soul
or the perception of our mind?

There's plenty for me to cry about
So many hearts in heaven touching mine
At least it was real and it's still the same
But your eyes, where I now see the truth
It's where I finally understood time

Passing quickly and taking it's toll
On the way we live and the way we love
Too much for granted, too many mistakes
But what I could never understand
At least I do now and what it's made of

It's not a long night without missing someone
But heaven is always bathed in the light
It passes quickly for spirits that finally know right
While we learn the hard way after it's done

You help me live, you help me give
Even though I don't always know it
The way I look at you, a reflection
Of the things I wanted to see
I need you more than I like to admit

It's not a long day without missing someone
But what ends begins again in the night
Feelings that once fell short become so right
When everything becomes what was once none

What could be so powerful yet not seen for
a man to cross the gulf between freedom
for himself but slavery for his people?

What could be such a mystery that a man
would never know why a woman could feel
so empty after her baby is born?

What could be so sad about a man’s passing
that the memory of his life as a part of your
own becomes who you once were?

What could be so dark in the night that the
light that draws a man near to you neither
reflects or absorbs the sun until after it sets?

What could be so deep about lust that a
man would give up his soul for one night
only to destroy the woman he loves?

What could be such a reason to love that
a man can know not by her touch but by
how purpose is unafraid to live once again?

It is an ordinary world in which we live
As do I
With faded carpet
And blinds that carry the dust of my past
Yet it is not what I want for you
I want to say the things you've never heard
I want to show you the light you've never seen
I want you to know the love you've never felt
But how can I put my mind into yours?
How can I when I exhaust myself with these things?
To be always shiny new
To be always what it is you are searching for
Is it too much?
Because to dig into fertile soil
And to vanish into the depths where ships are laid to rest
Is to walk alone with only a match in the darkness
Who could follow the glow of a single point of light?
Could you trust the direction in which I lead
Or is it an ordinary world in which you wish to live?
Can you when it is I who would resist?
I see the path that leads me to you
But what if I can only follow the path of expression
Would you still believe in me my love?

Water to quench my thirst
Wine to soothe my mind
A book to consider truth
Another to consider a lie
To be assured or to doubt
That is why I drink the wine
The water is only a curse
Because it keeps me alive

I don’t need to be told
I’ve heard enough
My heart is involved
But is it what I want?
I cannot turn away
I hear howling music
Like wind when it is cold
And the nails that haunt

Bright and steady
Confusion masks itself
How could it be this way
The entrails of an answer
It tells of our failures
How can we be sure
Will we ever be ready
For joy instead of anger?

Only a child can be honest
They will soon learn otherwise
Only facts live in their eyes
But within us there is sin
We teach them that it is so
Because it is all that we know
Chastened we think of a promise
But innocence is not for men

If there is no solution
Then why do we fight
If we can't change a heart
We can't make it right
It's not so easy to say
What one man will do
He has lived his life
He has his point of view
He doesn't know you
There's no time to try
He only sees your anger
And can't understand why
Who tells us the truth
Who tells us to repent
Is it a poor man crying
Or the one collecting rent

Is there another way
Where we are no longer plagued by guilt
For the time we must take for ourselves
Or by people who cut corners and sleep well
While we must choose between judgment
Or forgiveness
Know each will fall short of its mark

What I’ve imagined
Is only a dream that can never be true
For there are too many of us
But where we belong
And where we are needed
Is the same place
Yet what is further away
The discovery of our true self
And the peace it promises?
Or the journey around the world
Taking pictures
While we try to forget?

We wait and then our life changes
Nobody can teach us how not to be sad
Because it is sad
It is not something that we should ignore
And we pray for the time to pass
So we can find that place

What we are known for
War
Leisure
Comfort
Power
And we read the ancient words
Written by those who knew of these things
But who died in anguish
As confused as to their fate
As to their birth

We watch people perform
Their actions staged for us
Rehearsed over and over
It all seems so natural
And we escape in amazement
But we cannot rehearse
Our life is improvisation
An artist is given latitude to experiment
We believe in their courage
Yet we are expected to get it right
Every time
Every day
Or else we are judged

And that is where we went
To be judged
To live with it
No matter the good inside of us

I wanted to ride a slow mule
And let it decide where I should go
Could I survive if it chose the wrong direction
Would I have enough water
Would the moon guide us?
Would it make me crazy
Maybe it would be best
The old man nobody talks to
Only trailed by their opinions
Thinking I’m already dead
But they would never know
For the crazy man watches them
He no longer matters to them
So he walks alone
Freely
Watching how you improvise
But still he learns
That is what is crazy
He is old
Yet still he learns

He does not want to die in confusion
He wants instead to die with hope
The hope a mother has for her baby
And he will be ready
For he found what was inside
And he no longer needs to take pictures
For now he can see
Because he decided to look

And he believes what he has found

For it is only to love someone
A humble woman
One who does not think she is pretty
Even if she is
It is not to be better than her
But instead to share your own humilty
For this is how we must wait
Knowing our place
And who better to be by your side
But someone who will wait
Because she taught you how

How did it happen
My foot isn't straight anymore
But still I walk with purpose
I know what I am living for

How did it happen
I forgot someone’s name for an instant
But still I remembered to be kind
I know what is important

How did it happen
I don’t laugh as much as in the past
But still I have a warm heart
That part of me will always last

How did it happen
I ask questions as never before
But still I have my faith  
That is all I need and nothing more

What is the motivating driving force?
Will you see it through in some way?
It's not a hit, nobody knows it
Can you make yourself anyway?

What new ideas do you have?
Don't say you're too tired
How much time are you awake
Yet you say you're retired

But from what, is comfort all there is
Empty your pockets, remove your ego
Forget success, it ****** the life out of you
Radicalization is where creativity goes

A projected furnace, burning the wall
Floating away, learning to drift
Contact with leaves, the wind parts
What makes no sense is the seismic shift

Holy hands, touching the air
Was it ever in your nature
If only you could find it, discover it
But money was the wrong teacher

The line in the sand
Once crossed
Is where slaves are made
And there is no return
Behind his back
The line became the spell
And blinded him
To the immoral slow death
The filling of the mind
Not of the calm spirit
But the stress of demand
Deep tension
With no way out
No care for the soul
Or dignity of the mind
Without self-reliance
Instead compliance
Where is the inspiration
Instead drudgery
Where is the purpose
Instead repetition
Where is the peace
Instead turmoil
Where is the love
Instead fear
Where is the happy
Instead depression
Where is the identity
Instead of I it is they
Where is creation
Instead destruction
In the belief we hold
It is to be forgotten
In a state of captivity
Like an animal
Waiting to be fed
It is to be lost upon us
They have bought our life
We wait for our time
To think freely
To speak freely
But we do not dare
We can only hope
That there is still time
Beware ambition
For it is only the few
Instead you will know
Dying of unknown causes
The trail of blood
Cannot be seen
Only felt in fatigue
Not a bent back
Or giant knuckles
But in temperament
As anger grows
While tolerance wanes
But his children smile
Because he goes
And comes
And everything in between
What they only see
Is the food
And the sun
But not in his eyes
They have grown soft
Like running water
But he is swept away
A branch that fell
From the tree he helped grow
Do not be fooled
The eternal life is not here
Do not be fooled
It is not near
Do not be fooled
Not in the sand
Once the line is crossed
Tell your children to run
Run from the line
Run the other way
There is nothing for them
Except to lose themselves
What importance do they pursue
If it is not inside
For no man can provide
If they cross to the other side

i want to love
but not just you
i want to love freedom
and taste of its fruit

but for those who cannot
by either the law
or by another man's hand
love is all they have

yet it must share its place
with hate and bitterness
and what is love
that cannot live freely
in the heart, unbound
on the land, unchanged?

it is not love at all
it is something else
that cannot wait
for tomorrow
or for heaven

for if today is life
and freedom is not
then it is no life at all

it is only death

The young man
listened
He watched a face
move
He thought about  
words
And then he spoke
deeply
They asked how he became
wise
He said it was because of
them
But he did not memorize
facts
Or carry a notebook full of
blame
He only opened his heart to
others
He was not afraid to show
them
And because they knew it was
true
He was able to bring them
near
Because the truth of a
feeling
Is all it takes to make a
friend

I hope your silence is the same as mine
Our senses do not always tell us how to be
While imagined echo’s remind me of the past
The feeling I get is from a light I cannot see

We are so far our bones are crying
Missing each other is the only thing real
Is the next body the one to make me forget
Or is it in the dream I can’t make you feel?

Do you still straighten your hair
Is it for me or just for men to stare
I can’t decide how I'm supposed to feel
I let you go too easy
Now they want to make you theirs

I feel like I’ve been in prison for stealing souls
I thought I was being honest but things change
You don’t know how the next set of shoes will fit
You don’t know which rooms you will rearrange

I know about those other men
Loneliness is something I understand
You said they were nothing special
It hurts that somebody held your hand

Do you still straighten your hair
Is it for me or just for men to stare
I can’t decide how I'm supposed to feel
I let you go too easy
Now they want to make you theirs
Make you theirs
Make you theirs

what right do I have to fail
or to let you make me feel less
is that my right
to let you **** my mind?
you have that gun
words that I allow to penetrate
it's my choice
to let them in
to let them become who I am
but I have a gun too
arrogance
confidence
and it is my choice to offend you
to be so sure of myself
because that is what must happen
or else I will die

I know how it is that I felt
But it was not a frozen heart
Nor did it melt
There was no need for stolid strength
Or ponds for weeping
It was only how I am
Refusing to live falling apart on the inside
Or unmoved by a changing life
I cannot give darkness any more length
Or make stones for keeping
But what I had in my heart
Was the stillness where prayers once knelt
And the whispering sounds of a new winters start

let it be so
we wish to live a natural life
especially our children
to see us off
for they can bear the loss
once prepared for life
by us who loved them

let it be so
we wish to earn our keep
to toil as honest men
without remorse for deceipt
or shame without wealth
only health and respect
for ourselves and others

let it be so
we wish to drop our sword
and our judgments
to feel healed wounds
and heal others
not by miracles
but instead by kindness

let it be so
we wish to envy no man
to find peace without pain
to save those who would be conquered
as well as our own vanquished souls
to give thanks for our blessings
and to help those who have none

I remember your smooth skin
My fingers remember it too
But they never could trace the lines
That waited for me so far away

Now you asked me about my scars
And I remember the one I gave you
But though I didn’t use a knife
It’s deeper than what a doctor did today

I love your scars
The one I gave you
The one life gave you
If only you could love mine

The same old thing we talked about
But you decided to turn from us
It was all too much for you
You said you had too much to say

We only have a dying breath left
Everything until now and then
It’s up to us to cross the bridge
But he has a ring for June
I only have a tear for May

Still
I love your scars
The one’s I gave you
The one’s life gave you
If only you could love mine

It is always something small
Something you hardly notice
A moment,
when clouds form shapes
Our favorite meal,
a father and son feeling the love,
for one another
A ritual,
movie night,
a walk on Sunday
Then it’s goodbye,
forever no
But to the life you built
Not the vacation you took
But the small things
A day,
that became too many turn back,
when your son smiled,
just because you came home

Another good woman
Misunderstood by a good man
She loves what’s right about life
He just loves her

Taking guardian angels for granted
You can’t always count on them
Sometimes an angel needs you
It’s the one standing in front of you

Even if you don’t feel the same way
The further away you get
What’s important seems to come together
Clouds and oceans make a world for us

Another good woman
Up against a wall she didn’t see
Believing in someone who can’t love like she does
But years later he said you hurt him