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Jul 2016 · 531
Parenting
Michael Murphy Jul 2016
Teach your children  to love
Not hate

Be careful how you scribe
The slate

Wait too long and it's
Too late

Teach them now to love
Not hate
With all of the trouble in the world I was thinking that the solution is in all of our homes!
Jul 2016 · 659
Aging
Michael Murphy Jul 2016
My body is aging
My story is true

It's happening to me
It will happen to you

My right knee is steel
So now I can't kneel

I'm sure God understands
He/She knows how I feel

You see blue sky
My right eye sees just cloud

I hear no music
For you it's so loud

I once had two kidneys
Now I have one

I agreed over dinner
My sister had none

My hair is all white
It used to be brown

It's going away
Without making a sound

I'm not complaining
Just telling you true

It's happening to me
It will happen to you
laughing at myself, getting a running start to get out of a chair!
Jul 2016 · 1.5k
Power of Silence
Michael Murphy Jul 2016
The POWER of silence
Is so seldom heard

Instead we attack
With an ill chosen word

Though intelligence deems
Throwing fuel on a fire

Is a fools way it seems
To help it expire

Nothing I say
Will change how you feel

So I say nothing
Until our wound starts to heal
One of the most important lessons I learned as an adult that I pray my children learn!
Jul 2016 · 684
Alone
Michael Murphy Jul 2016
No one knows
No one cares
Where he goes
What he wears

If he comes home at night

He’s all alone
He’s all he has
A silent phone
Old photographs

Why should he come home at night?

An empty bar
A glass of gin
No loving arms
To tuck him in

He should have came home at night

She sat alone
day after day
While he roamed
She slipped away

He should have came home at night

She loved him so
She would've stayed
And now he knows
The hand he played

He should have came home at night

An empty bar
A glass of gin
No loving arms
To tuck him in

He should have came home at night
Started as a poem and turned into a country song!  Oops
Jun 2016 · 540
Rain
Michael Murphy Jun 2016
I am a thirsty man adrift on your waters!  

Love abounds, but I dare not drink!

It is the promise I made that if you keep me afloat, I would not ask for a drop you did not willingly offer.

      I sit and pray for rain!
May 2016 · 1.1k
Energy
Michael Murphy May 2016
Plug into me
And you will feel
A love so strong
You'll know it's real

I'll charge you up
I'll make you smile
For what I feel
There's no denial

Can you feel
My Energy
Let it flow through you
In  all you do!
Was playing with writing lyrics.  First try.  Always amazed at the lyrics of great songs.  Humbled when I write
Apr 2016 · 404
I Pray
Michael Murphy Apr 2016
I pray you sleep
I pray you smile
I pray you dream on this awhile
Where love abounds,
I pray you know
Only happy seeds will grow!
Mar 2016 · 593
President Lincoln
Michael Murphy Mar 2016
A revelation I had
While watching a lad
Who swore, he was President Lincoln

Couldn't be, I did say
What had made him this way
Seriously, what was he thinkin

Oh so happy he seemed
He was living his dream
If only the Doctors could see

He was content just to stay
In his dream world all day
So I prayed this would happen to me

Now my sadness has lifted
And my thoughts are all sifted
Only delusions remain

I might seem a bit odd
In my mind I'm a God
Yes, as you guessed, I'm insane

Yours truly,

George Washington
Mar 2016 · 562
River Wild
Michael Murphy Mar 2016
I feel like I'm on a fast moving river

Sometimes I row hard and try to steer

Sometimes I just let the current take me where it will

Sometimes I feel lost

Sometimes I duck the low hanging branches

Sometimes the river widens and the current calms and I can rest

Sometimes the river narrows and the whitewater throws me into the boulders

It is in the turbulent waters that I am tested and my skills are sharpened

Always I try to appreciate the journey and the breathtaking views

I know around every bend, a new challenge awaits

Never knowing around which bend lies the non-corporeal sea of dreams

No more branches, no more bends, and no more boulders

Only calm waters, gentle breezes, and smooth sailing
Jan 2016 · 779
Insanity
Michael Murphy Jan 2016
Slipping, I can't hold on
Sliding, on the icy pond

Falling now, without a rope
Desperate, I can not cope

Screaming, without a voice
Insanity is not a choice
Jan 2016 · 639
A Bridge to your Heart!
Michael Murphy Jan 2016
I stand here on river's edge trembling with excitement
Gazing through the morning mist to distant shore I seek
A vision, once only dream, now slowly reveals

A silhouette of form so wondrous appears
The answer to the only prayer I've ever prayed
The destination of the only path, I've ever traveled

Only raging water of pounding force separates me from journeys end
Will it be the end of me, or will it be my destiny?
Jan 2016 · 490
Angels Whisper
Michael Murphy Jan 2016
There are words, not yet said
Not yet written, so not yet read

They're magic words, that make real
The love we share, the way we feel

Such magic words, you can't resist
They hold the key, of lips yet kissed

With these words, I will wed
Not your body, but soul instead

Forever mine, your heart will be
When Angels whisper words for me
Jan 2016 · 613
Boxes
Michael Murphy Jan 2016
I keep my life in boxes, neatly labeled and arranged
Here's the box I have for you, no surprise, it's named deranged
Dec 2015 · 667
Eutopia
Michael Murphy Dec 2015
Come live right here in my magical village
Everything in abundance, so no need to pillage

You'll see that there's more than you ever will need
So no need for money, and no need for greed

All the food you can eat, or drink if you please
All the shelter you want, so you never will freeze

All the *** that you crave, love the birds and the bees
**** robots provide, and they're free of disease

We don't allow violence, evil doers beware
Sentry robots galore, ensuring your care

If drugs are your pleasure, use the ones we supply
They're clean and they're measured to ensure you don't die

We suggest that you work 20 hours or less
Still having a purpose we find it works best

There's no one that governs, restricting your choice
So do as you please, it's time to rejoice

Just one simple rule, and I'll tell it to you
"Do no harm!!"
Stick to that rule, pretend that it's glue

No hurting the fish or the animals here
No hurting each other not even a hair

Break that one rule and you'll leave us that day
By our sentry robot, promptly taken away!
Argh! I tried to buy beer at 7 am, but there is a law against buying it before 8!   Makes me crazy!  Just sitting in a room thinkin dumb things up so they keep their job!  I want my own country! Jimmy Buffett has it right!
Dec 2015 · 1.1k
First Kiss!
Michael Murphy Dec 2015
Our lips first touch, so sweet, so tender
Fulfilling dreams, my Angel's render

I breathe out, you breathe in
Now it's me, you feel within

Feel the warmth, my soul exude
Drink the love, my heart has brewed

Get lost in me, I'm lost in you
Old world gone, we're born anew
Dec 2015 · 1.1k
Chewing Words!
Michael Murphy Dec 2015
Chewing words, this one's sweet, look a sentence, more to eat

Crunching nouns, I love the sounds

Grinding pronouns into grounds

My favorite words are adjectives, like herbs they're flavor additives

Conjunctions help to bind the meal

Verbs now helping chew with zeal

Not sure I can articulate how much I love what I just ate!
Dec 2015 · 612
Fertile Ground
Michael Murphy Dec 2015
Oh, the fertile mind of a child, plant a thought and watch it grow wild

So much to explore, and they always want more, with such vigor, which leaves me beguiled

Tend it well, give it light, plant good seeds, keep it bright,
most of all keep it safe from the prey

Using love as the feed, it is all that you need to keep it warm at the end of the day!
Dec 2015 · 2.5k
Funny Words!
Michael Murphy Dec 2015
There is rutabaga, and ratatouille, gotta love alliteration
Then Albuquerque and Tallahassee, are somewhere in our nation

And Saskatoon, Saskatchewan found in Canada, my dear
In old colloquial, there were hooligans and shenanigans, I fear

At school I use a dongle it connects me to my work
I hope I didn't bumfuzzle you, didn't mean to be a ****

Just one more word on my short list and to see what it can do
Find the one you love and in sweet soft voice just turn and utter **"pooh"
Dec 2015 · 757
In Afterlife
Michael Murphy Dec 2015
I gaze upon the universe, so vast but yet so small

Thinking is the fuel I use to travel through it all

In a thought I'm in our Sun, a solar flare I ride, so fun

I hum a tune, guess where now? It was "Fly me to the Moon" , oh wow!

I travel now to other worlds, even bluer than our Earth

Look, I see people here, and a mother giving birth

Will her child both love and hate, and will her brother agitate?

Will she worship?  Will she pray?  Will she pledge her life obey?

Is her God, my God, and heaven all the same?

Of Jesus, she has never heard, and God is not his name

Here me now, I know this true, for I'm am dead, yes me, not you!

When she dies, she'll be with me, floating free, as energy!

Amen
Who knows?  I do believe it will be beautiful! It has always bothered me that most religions exclude other life, both on Earth and in the Universe.
Dec 2015 · 772
Stranger on a Plane
Michael Murphy Dec 2015
Oh, Stranger on a Plane, we connected right away

Confiding all our deepest thoughts, the love game we did play

Through intimate words and loving glance, as we flew we did romance

In fleeting flight and fantasy, in moment loved, now memory!
Dec 2015 · 1.1k
A Mother's Gift
Michael Murphy Dec 2015
You learned to be a victim, at a very early age
Father beating mother and witnessing the rage

Crying mother in the night, her pleas that went unheard
Knowing that it wasn't right, your life you thought absurd

Mother learned from mother, then passed it down to you
There is no blame, there is no shame, for it's all you ever knew

Now the time has come my friend, to rise and fly above
You have a daughter of your own, the one you truly love

You say that you're a writer, you wield a mighty pen
I say to you, "then write your life," pay attention to the end

Write of new beginnings, your history be ******
Write of all your strength, and love, and feel your joy expand

So be the author of your life, your legacy control
Now break the cycle of abuse, dig deep within your soul

On stormy seas your daughter sails, seeking mother's light
So brilliant shine the life you pen, to guide her through the night
Dec 2015 · 661
Life
Michael Murphy Dec 2015
I am good with life, and life is good with me*

We have battled

shed blood, and puddles of tears
fill the footsteps of our struggle

We have loved deeply

melded spirits lifted above an unswept life
exposing the naked elegance of the universe

We have learned through reflection*

now in evening hours, battered and cut, toothless and bloodied,
looking out and laughing at conquered obstacles

wiser from experience, fear is now friend, not foe
love is embraced as the magic elixor, and learning continues
Dec 2015 · 878
Morning Thought!
Michael Murphy Dec 2015
A morning thought, please think on this
I have woken up, feeling angel kiss

Heavenly visions dancing in my head
Placed in gentle slumber, while warm in bed

Wings of angels carry me
Through brilliant light, I cannot see

I'm blinded by the ecstasy
Just thinking of, what we could be
Dec 2015 · 686
Legacy
Michael Murphy Dec 2015
Brothers and sisters come gather near

There's something important that you need to hear

Our mothers and fathers have squandered the earth

The question is why did they ever give birth

The oils all vanished the lakes have run dry

There's nothing to do now but sit here and cry

It should be our time now to take up the torch

Look what they've done here, the earth is all scorched

The trees are all gone with the air that we need

We're condemned like the earth to just lay here and bleed
Dec 2015 · 621
Last Kiss
Michael Murphy Dec 2015
I know that we're done, you said that we're through
There's just one little thing that I need to do

When we're all alone, and the moment's just right
Then I'll make double sure that there's no one in sight

I'll look to the left, and I'll look to the right
Before I reach out, to pull you in tight

I'll carress your face, with a hand on each side
Waiting to kiss you, my time I will bide

Remember this moment as the last we will share
As my fingers, they run through your silky brown hair

I'll cover your lips, with my lips, oh so tender
Once again to your heart, I sweetly surrender
Dec 2015 · 529
Three Rivers
Michael Murphy Dec 2015
The first river is the river of lust, it is a narrow turbulent river, full of hazards
The ride is fast and fun, but brief, destined to wash you ashore cut and bruised, the river's end is seldom seen

The second river is the river of love, only calm waters
Also a narrow river where beauty abounds
Very easy to forget you're alive, floating towards the rivers end,
a spring fed pond

The final river is the river of love and lust, the widest of all, and the most diverse
Navigation is tricky and requires a skilled hand sailing towards an ocean of wonders
Your attention is required, but rewarded with the most amazing journey
*There is time to ride and time to rest which is why I love this river best!
Inspired by John Lennon
Dec 2015 · 493
Pillow Talk
Michael Murphy Dec 2015
There are things I can share, only now, only here
Skin on skin and sin on sin, I will open the door and
allow you into my closet of skeletons

Only now, only here, do I dare reveal, my inner thoughts
It is in trust earned loyalty that I do share

Be prepared, for it is through this dark passage that you also enter my heart
No turning back, Angels await to forever join our love!
Dec 2015 · 715
Clumsy
Michael Murphy Dec 2015
I keep drpping a letter, all _ver the fl r
There g
es anther, rlling ut _f the d r

I stepped _n _ne n
w, it's under my tes
Why s
clumsy tday? Nbdy knws

_h well


  o   o                   o   o    o    o    o     o       o   o o ooo
Did funny things with my underscore, oops!
Dec 2015 · 465
Thinking
Michael Murphy Dec 2015
see                      arranging                               ­                 puzzle
        do                   all                   web          posterity                       for

                                      is                                         my
                       sow                 for                   answer                   synapse                
                                                                ­                                                          
               the               filtered                   which     I    in     words            
                                                          to                                                           
                 flow                thoughts                   ­                       of*                      
                ­                                                                 ­                                
In synapse web my words do flow
Arranging thoughts of which I sow

Filtered puzzle for posterity
The answer is for all to see
The idea of how a jumble of words can come together to become something beautiful is always amazing to me! They take on a life of their own!
Nov 2015 · 587
The Swing
Michael Murphy Nov 2015
Mighty swing tree that carried me through summer days of yore

To-and-fro, I try, with each pump I fly higher than before

So strong, you stand, with single hand, you hold me safe and true

With me here in rocking chair,  from wood where you once grew
Nov 2015 · 468
Waking World
Michael Murphy Nov 2015
It is in waking moments, before thinking intrudes, that true happiness resides

With remnants of dreams still governing my reality, I fly, I love, I am invincible.

You are still in my waking world, we are still as one in my waking world!
Nov 2015 · 872
My Holiday Prayer!
Michael Murphy Nov 2015
Pass the potatoes, the stuffing and sauce
If you don't do it soon I'll  reach right across

You've been cooking for days and I still haven't eaten
I tried that one time but you gave me a beaten

Wooden spoons hurt, by the way, you should know
There's a black and blue mark that shows every blow

Carve up the turkey while drinking the wine
Wait there's two turkeys, I've been drinking since 9

There are rolls in the oven, I think I smell smoke
Now there's a fire, I'm starting to choke

Open the windows, open the doors
Turn on the fans and out the smoke pours

You'll tell this story every year, I would bet
Somehow when I'm stupid, you never forget

But I guess its OK, it makes everyone chuckle
Like when Grandpa is full and he loosens his buckle

Let's not forget why we're having this meal
All the love in the room, and how happy we feel

So much love in this room with plenty to share
May it reach out and spread, to all, everywhere

Amen!
I hope some of you can relate to this and it makes you smile!
Nov 2015 · 783
Who am I?
Michael Murphy Nov 2015
The brightest candle seeks the darkest room
illuminating perceived demons of night
exposing them as the floor lamp in the corner
the window cracked with fluttering curtains
slippers on the floor

Every corner, every crevice now reveals the true beauty of the room
As the room warms and daylight breaks the candle fades under the power of the sun
Still lit but now hidden from view as the room wakes from from its long slumber

I am your candle!
I could say what this means to me but it is more interesting to know how others understand it. Always an education!
Nov 2015 · 562
Our Soul
Michael Murphy Nov 2015
Dig deeper to know the matter of man for there's really no matter at all
Just energy moving incredibly fast, so fast, yet incredibly small

Think of blades of the fan, not the blades, but the space, yes the space you see in between
Turn the fan on, and the space disappears, what you saw is no longer seen

Could our soul then exist as an energy field not needing the matter we see?
Then all that we knew, and then all that we know, would always continue to be!
If you enjoy this concept, then check out "Dr. Stuart Hameroff, M.D. — Microtubules & quantum consciousness" on YouTube.  Quantum Physics is amazing in my humble opinion!
Nov 2015 · 559
Secrets
Michael Murphy Nov 2015
I am a seed.
A pebble vault.
Secrets of the universe abound within
my humble form
So tiny and inconspicuous
I know without knowing how tall I will stretch,
How I will bend or not with the breeze,
How I will veil myself in dappled leaves
and invite bees to velvety garnet petals,
or thistles made of silk,
How do I know these things, you wonder, being so small
without wit, without sage?
How can I do this
With no teacher?
The teacher is in me
My secrets are my own.
Nov 2015 · 1.0k
Six
Michael Murphy Nov 2015
Six
Six babies born
Six babies nurse
Six babies loved

Six children play
Six children sing
Six children loved

Six teenagers driving
Six teenagers dating
Six teenagers loved

Six young adults kissing
Six young adults making love
Six young adults loved

Six adults married
Six adults loving their families
Six adults loved

One is Muslim, one is Jewish, one is Atheist, one is Hindu, one is Christian, one is Buddhist, all are loved
We are not so different!
Nov 2015 · 862
Cat on my Keyboard!
Michael Murphy Nov 2015
In spring after a long cold winterjscldj
Chjnlsl nojcdsosdjc nksdkc j cnojsencru
Kitty
It would have been a great poem, but my cat had other ideas.
Nov 2015 · 784
The Ruse
Michael Murphy Nov 2015
It's only a ruse, I know its not right

I'm keeping my feelings way out of sight

You're mad and so crazy, is that venom I see?

Please swallow, then speak, you're spitting on me

Bad chemicals, I know, it's not all your fault

Your brain, at this time, is under assault

You're yelling and screaming and out of your seat

Is met by the same with a mighty chest beat

I can be louder than you, if that's what it takes

I'll stop your train by applying the brakes

The truth is I'm acting, I'm not really mad

The truth is I love you and I know you're just sad

Now you are silent, your anger did cease

My ruse it did work, and now there is peace!
Nov 2015 · 875
A Simple Man
Michael Murphy Nov 2015
I'm a simple man

I don't understand

The hatred that you feel

You killed someone

You used a gun

How does this help you heal?

You say ISIS this and ISIS that

I do not comprehend

I'm a simple man, I know Ice Is cold

I fear this is the end !
Nov 2015 · 681
Shadows
Michael Murphy Nov 2015
In whispers I hear the voices of past

So very loud once, I thought they would last

In shadows I see the loved ones I knew

But the clearest of all is the shadow of you

I can still feel your touch, with eyes closed and mind still

As if heaven allows my heart now to fill

The gift of your love was so strong but so brief

The love in my heart has turned now to grief
Nov 2015 · 487
Equation of Living
Michael Murphy Nov 2015
Living = Love + Learning + Laughter
Not so complicated in theory!
Nov 2015 · 1.2k
Orange
Michael Murphy Nov 2015
Since I've been writing, its been just great

Except for the one thing that I surely do hate

My family says that, I am speaking in rhyme

Not just right now, but all of the time

I can not simply, just ask for the juice

Without a poor imitation of the great Dr. Suess

But wait, on my site, there is prose, so you say

Oh, I was much younger when I wrote it that way

Help me, help me, tell me what can I do?

Surely this problem has happened to you

I just had a thought, not a thought, just a flicker

You could have answered, but I guess I was quicker

I'll think of a word that never can rhyme

And start using that word, all of the time

I know there's a word, I once heard from a fellow

I think it's a color but not red, blue, or yellow

I hope it's not pink, cause that would sure stink

I wish it was gray, I've been rhyming all day

I know you think orange, except that rhymes with sporange

And a mountain in Wales, that a poet named Blorenge

Until I stubbed my big toe, I used to think purple,

And now I can't walk, instead I just hirple

It sure would be gold if the color was silver

But that **** little lamb, also known as a chilver

There's no hope for me, I've been rhyming all month

I'm sure you can see, that I'm totally ??????

Yeah!
Just a little light hearted word fun. I hope you enjoy it!
Nov 2015 · 419
Silence
Michael Murphy Nov 2015
In her silence much is said

There is no comment on what she read

She can't tell you how she feels

That in your words, there's no appeal

She doesn't hold what you desire

So let your tears now, cool your fire

Your course is clear, just let her be

And in your silence, you will set her free
Nov 2015 · 1.1k
Both
Michael Murphy Nov 2015
Angel and Devil both

Set their tables with verbal delights to entice and entrance our souls

Both masters of wit and wisdom with polished form we are drawn in

We see beauty in both for they're both well rehearsed

I fear I have been Angel and Devil both
Nov 2015 · 770
Harmonica
Michael Murphy Nov 2015
*******, blowing, play me well
Bending, chugging, the notes do swell

Pounding out from inside of me
Hear my love in the melody!
Nov 2015 · 430
The Gift
Michael Murphy Nov 2015
Two years ago
I didn't know your name, I couldn't see.
My world was dark, so very dark,
And then you came to me

One year ago
I didn't know the friend you would come to be
My world was light, so very bright,
Your love had set me free

An hour ago I didn't know the power of your touch
I think heaven made a mistake today
I'm smiling way too much
Nov 2015 · 499
Journey
Michael Murphy Nov 2015
I've crawled, I've walked, I've run, I've hopped,
But usually I just shuffle

There was a time when I flew through the air, so they said
But that was during a scuffle

I've limped, I've hobbled, I've wheeled a chair
and then I walked with a crutch

While sledding, I flew, what a fun thing to do
But the landing, I guess not so much

I've been in a car, I've been on a plane
and of course, cause it rhymes, I've been on a train

A skate board, a scooter, a bike, and yes skis
and then on a ship, I traveled the seas

I took a bus once, but then gave it back
The promise of prison was too much to hack

I should walk with a cane but I'm really too vain
So I stumble, and fall into walls

I've driven a tractor, backhoe, and front loader
and a wagon I'm using for hauls

I've traveled a lot in the journey of life, I've even rolled in the clover
and with you by my side, we'll keep riding the ride, til the one who's in charge yells it's over
Nov 2015 · 413
Lights
Michael Murphy Nov 2015
He was all at once, at peace.  Looking down at her, kissing his cheek, like watching a movie, he saw himself take his last breath!

Effortlessly, like on a moving sidewalk at an airport, he was moving.  His first thoughts were of amazement that there was no more pain from the cancer and that he still felt like himself.

In the distance there were three brilliant lights off to his left. They were very tiny but so familiar that he couldn't look away. As he got closer he heard his mother's voice coming from the lights.

He could now see his mother very clearly.  The odd thing was that he could see her at any age or just as light.  Like switching channels on tv he could view her as a child, a young woman or any point throughout her life.  "How is this possible?", he thought, but didn't ask.  She responded without him asking.   "The light you see is all of the experiences, knowledge, and love that I attracted in my earthly existence.  As you came closer you could feel our energies joining."
Nov 2015 · 836
The Man with the Cans
Michael Murphy Nov 2015
Sometimes I start to crack a small smile as I slowly open one eye

I smell food in the kitchen, so I stop my itchin, and off the couch I do fly

He's opening cans, he's opening cans, I'm so happy I'm up on my toes

I haven't eaten in days, what's a day anyway? I'm not sure that anyone knows

Scoop it out, scoop it out, oh wow, he's mixing it in

He's looking at me, he's smiling at me, so I know my feast will begin

I could give him a kiss, he's the one that I miss

When he's gone it's just not the same

He's the guy with the food that brightens my mood

If only I just knew his name!

Dave? Nope, Jack...hmmm or
Nov 2015 · 484
Exposed
Michael Murphy Nov 2015
In pages of prose I have removed all, and stand before you, naked and exposed

Nothing hidden, so study me well, but know I am vulnerable now

Pay special attention to the scars on my heart

If you look very close, you will see, a void where your love should be
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