I want to be free...

From everything
That holds me back
Free from the confidence
I too often lack
Free from the guilt
Of things I have said
Free from the secrets
That I have kept

Free from the thoughts
That I'm not enough
That share the same space
Of why, just because
Free from the lack
Of forgiveness
For my fellow man
In whom I think less

Free to be happy
With who I am
Free from the thoughts
Of you know you can't
Free from the lies
That my mind often spreads
All the negative vibes
That fill my head

Free from the worry
Of what others might say
When I first awake
Not to dread another day
Free from the bad
Decisions I've made
Free to find love
And have them feel the same

I need to be free...

I am just a simple man
In these United States
Not quite clear how many years
But nothing much has changed

The same with my father
And his father before him
All because they base it all
On the color of my skin

Where judgement weighs out heavy
Underneath the thumb
Of the government whose plan it is
To rule this plantation

They talk a big game of freedom
For the likes of simple me
But to this day, it's been the same game
Of mental slavery

When you don't pay attention
To "The Man's" sleight of hand
This much is true, he'll rule over you
Every chance he can

Does his best behind his back
Out of sight, out of mind
He finds that he gets ahead
Continually pushing rewind

Never aware, the character
Of the man I am within
All they ever seem to care
Is the color of my skin

Quick here with a promise
They seem to never keep
Far from being honest
With this mental slavery

I struggle with the living
Give out about time to get
I know there's something missing
I've narrowed it down to this

Upended world of reasoning
Where I keep seasoning the why
In this constant spin of struggling
I barely try to just get by

It behooves a man perfection
In the middle of a yawn
Somewhere deep there is a lesson
In this mix of right and wrong

Is this the end of the beginning
Or beginning of the end
As I barely try to just get by
In this constant spin of struggling

The only time I find to exercise
Is when I'm in mid-shrug
I also find I'm afraid of heights
So I don't try to climb that much

I can sign the dotted line
I'm not that tight with do or die
In this constant spin of struggling
I barely try to just get by

Cemeteries can be scary  
Passing by whistling a tune
With the shifting of the shadows
Below the glow of a blood moon

Tombstones whisper their owners names
While trees creak in the winter breeze
As both my mind and my eyes
Play ghastly tricks on me

The sound I fear, I hope I hear
Is that of a lone Owl
And not a hootenanny
Of Ghostly Spirits on the prowl

It's hard to keep these knocking knees
From giving out in protest
As my racing heart skips a beat
Imagining what will come next

As I pass by this graveyard
Whistling the driest of tunes
Cemeteries can be scary
Below the glow of a blood moon

Wait a minute, is it already Christmas again
Seems I just took down the lights and the tree
Is there no rest for the downtrodden and weary
This season sometimes takes the Merry Gentleman out of me

So I load up the sleigh with the dog and the kids
The old beat up station wagon I drive
On the hunt for this years perfect tree
We'll be lucky if we make it back home alive

As we jingle all the way to the local tree farm
Six kids and a dog singing at the top of their lungs
With only twelve days left before Christmas
My **, **, **, is already long gone

Picking the best tree out within our budget
My wife says Charlie Brown would be proud
I ask smarty pants Mrs. Santa what she meant by that
She'd rather not say with the little elves around

Before an argument even ensues
I've lost the battle before I hit the front line
You wonder how I'm so confident of that
The same thing happened last year at this time

As I struggle to get the tree off the roof of my jalopy
While Jack the dog in the frost is nipping at my toes
I fall to the ground with visions of sugar plums dancing in my head
Waking up to the dogs frozen tongue stuck up my nose

Finally with the tree set up in the front parlor
I notice it leans bad to one side
Taking my chainsaw to alleviate the problem
The gas fumes **** my kids parakeet out right

With Hobby Lobby open late for the holidays
I was able to purchase the product I need
Working late into the wee morning hours
I did a good job shellacking the parakeet

I'm not sure that my kids even noticed
Or brought up the question what for
But they sure like the shinny new ornament
Hanging next to the hamster that disappeared the year before

Well, I survived another preparing for Christmas
As subconsciously I'm being led
To wrap myself in last years present 'The Snuggie'
And dream of those sugar plums dancing in my head

If you'd care to know how I grew up
It was in the shadow of country folk
Days spent on the family farm
Young and dumb, loads of fun

Swimming in a catfish pond
Having my toes nibbled on
Days on end spent in a rash
Rolling round Bahia grass

Hours of play in summer hay
As through my youth I made my way
Flying high on a rope swing
Are some of my best memories

An entire summer with no shoes
What came next, I had no clue
Half of what I did meant certain death
That's how you roll when you're a kid

Living life down on the farm
Empty fields at night beneath the stars
That's the best way I can show
Growing up in the shadow of country folk

My daddy passed away today
Though he died a long time ago
Brought a monkey back from Afghanistan
That killed our once happy home

There was horror in his eyes
Which really was no surprise
I hated what that monkey did
Every time he took a bite

My mommy died the day
My daddy passed away
Left an emptiness in all us kids
That will never fade away

Have to wonder what was going on
Inside my daddy's head
What that monkey took away
And what the war behind him left

Of this once a happy home
It's hard to understand
The day my daddy went to war
And brought a monkey back from Afghanistan

Just stay where you're kindly at
And gently nod along
Don't fuss over facts
About what's going on

All we need you to do
Is to do what we tell you to
Line by blurry item line
To our own brand of the truth

Until every wayward soul
Is under our complete control
Heart, body, feeble mind
Overtime, bought and sold

Just nod along
To kindly get along
In the spin from our end
You'll never know there's something wrong

We'll tell you that it's day
When clearly it is night
Back up what we have to say
With our own brand of half-truths and lies

After all
What have we got to lose
If you just nod along
And do exactly what we tell you to

I'm telling you now
I've had enough
From this and that
And all the other stuff

Going to change my name
Rearrange my face
Leave this place
Without a trace

If I do come up
They won't remember me
With no bat of an eye
Or a single blink

It'll all be like
We never met
This side of life
No one will guess

That I was ever
Even here
Like anyone
Would ever care

So, excuse me now
While I bow out
And leave this place
Without a trace

To tell the truth when I look at you
Before I even know, what you've been through
One of the first things I do
...don't you know

Is to find the perfect spot
With just the righteous amount of rocks
And give it all I have got
...don't you know

Don't even think to look at me
Not a single word do I heed
No insightful instructions do I need
...when throwing stones

Far and wide justice is blind
Well to tell the truth, so am I
When my own sin I deny
...don't you know

In judgement I stand tall
Keep it simple and that's not all
In my own righteousness I applaud
...don't you know

It doesn't take a giant leap
Or intelligence all that deep
To see where the problem lies is me
...when throwing stones

If you live this life
Live it out in peace
If you need a sign
There are those in need
Try and do your best
For the ones that come to mind
Live it out in peace
When it comes to life

If you live this life
Give freely of yourself
If it is not you
Then I ask who else
Is there to show the way
Pointing to the signs
Be a shining light
If you live this life

If you live this life
Don't you dare think twice
About the daily need
To live it out in peace
Far above all else
You would care to find
Don't you dare think twice
About having peace in life

We thought we'd live forever
But keep dropping off like flies
Changing of the weather
Right before our eyes

Way past who's the first to go
Standing randomly in line
And those that go seldom know
Till they reach the other side

We make plans for the future
With death one tick away
Seldom crossing our minds who's next in line
With no part in its say

We thought we'd live forever
But childhood dreams don't count
When innocence made better sense
Before we grew up into doubt

Way past those first to go
As we stand round randomly
In this line where Father Time
Prepares our day of leave, without losing a single beat

We sell our souls for a price
We barely can afford
Then try our best to buy it back
Going door to door

Sell it for a penance
Paupers on display
Hoping for acceptance
As our first love, we forsake

Hoping for acceptance
Given half a chance
Turning on each other
Then try to sell what little's left

Sell it all for a *** of gold
Somewhere over the rainbow
Then hang our coats on little hope
As if all of this matters

Sell on the assumption
That all of it is gain
Then all we gain we give away
As we sell our souls without a say

After all these many carnivore years
You can call it guilt or you can call it fear
I've made up my mind to decide
I'm going vegan this November time

So I broke down hard and read some books
Heard some tapes on what it took
From veggies steamed to veggies raw
From beans of green to yellow squash

As my nightly dreams were all filled with meat
I pushed back hard with collard greens
But still had no clue of what to do
With a turkey substitute

And that is when a friend came in
Who Tofu's the line at turkey time
So I read more books and heard more tapes
On Tofu fried, boiled, broiled, and baked

Opening up my kitchen to fine cuisine
Minus the best part...that being meat
As I promised myself I can make this work
My Tofurkey would be the finest in edible art

I had bought my Tofu by the pound
Lucky for me it is pliable
As I stretched and pulled and pulled and stretched
Until I had something that looked like a head

With my artistic abilities seriously in doubt
I'm pretty sure what I conjured was the head of a cow
So I pulled and stretched and stretched and pulled
No ones going to call me an abstract fool

As I bring to boil the "Rodin" juices in me
And baste at my skills repeatedly
Where I come up with a turkey, giblets and all
And just for good measure I gobble a turkey call

Of course cooking the thing is another road and
I sadly lost a few in the explosions
When finally scored I invited my friends
Whose friendship with them will take time to mend

Just because a turkey looks like a turkey, don't mean that it is
I'm now learning all this while I clean up the mess
As forks went to the mouths at the very same time
So did the retching along with the crying

But in a month they'll forget this entire sordid ordeal
When they get the invites for my Christmas holiday meal
With my time in the books and tapes I will spend
Looking forward to  Christmas and a delicious soy bean ham

I think about this often
If not most all the time
Keep wondering what happened
To those I've left behind

Do they also have a space
Etched in their memories
And to tell the truth, if they do
Is there a place there for me

We live our lives in busy times
In the moving of to and fro
Where we sometimes find in mid-flight
We've left behind those on the go

Which often has me wondering
As this life moves along
Of the ones I've left behind
Just how they're getting on

Did they find their purpose
Along the straightened path
Was life for them well worth it
And how many of them are there left

As I draw ever closer to the end
I begin to realize
I may never see again
Those I've left behind

...fading memories in my mind

Do you choose the easy
When this life gets hard
Take the path with less stress
Hoping to make it through without a mark

Do you sit back and relax
Watch it all pass by
Without the lifting of a finger
Or blinking of an eye

Do you hide from watchful eyes
When something needs be done
Turn your back on the less fortunate
Only thinking of number one

Do you jump in waste deep
To the creek that flows upstream
Deciding to tread water
Only after you see what's in it for me

Do you choose the easy
Hoping for the best
Then sit back with less and wonder at
Why you're still such a mess

Told him and warned him,
if he continued to hit me
Told him and warned him,
just what I would do
Swore on his life,
he was willing to bet me
That was one bet,
he would willingly lose

Told him and warned him,
but he didn't believe me
Told him and warned him,
he had no clue
Of the gun I kept hid,
on my side of the mattress
Guess he never figured,
that I'd follow through

Told him and warned him,
still never saw it coming
Told him and warned him,
of this raging storm
Apparently,
he didn't believe me
Of this promise kept with no regrets
wasn't like he wasn't warned

Growing up without much luck
On what I thought I deserved
Who it was that dealt my deck
Well, they had quite the nerve

I always envied others
And the fact of what I lacked
Thinking they were better off
With everything they had

Until I came to realize
Life is not all that it seems
If the outward appearance causes interference
Then all I need to be is me

Being younger doesn't make you dumber
You're just dazzled by bright lights
And the foolish pull they have on you
Is stronger in their might

You find that the older you get
The less you are impressed
With all the hooey and hubbub
Leaving little left

It's then you come to realize
Life is not what you pursue
If the outward appearance causes interference
Then all you need to be is you

Have we become apathetic
In the way we handle life
Sit back, relax, try our hand without a catch
And watch it all pass by

Comfortable in our daily walk
Where we tend to walk away
Giving up on the eagerness
That we once proudly displayed

Lost out on our Godly zeal
In a constant loop of hide and seek
Trading in a life that's real
For this one of make believe

White-washed tombs that look beautiful
With dead bones on the inside
Attitudes of leave me alone
In how we now handle this life

Running round in circles
Giving the devil his due and credit
There I went and said it
Have we become apathetic

I remember my sweet mother
Crying as my brother went off to war
As the train pulled out of the station
She whispered, have mercy on him Lord

If memory serves best it's been 10 years past
If not less or more
Time means nothing when you’re just a kid
And there's no one there keeping score

Moms been crying since she heard the news
Guess she can't wait to have him home
I've been reading up on what brothers do
Since he left when I was young

Mom she had me dress up real nice
Wouldn't want him to think any less of me
Hope he has stories of his daily fights
And that he shares them all with me

I tell my mother I think I see the train
As tears well up in her eyes
I hold her hand as best I can
At 14, don't need no reason why

As the train pulls up in front of us
There's soldiers there to salute
Guess my brother is a hero
But that's something this kid already knew

The war that day replaced my brothers smiling face
With that of a Flag draped box
One of the soldiers said something to mother
As she whispered, Lord have mercy on us

I never did get to hear all the stories
Though I talk with him all the time
As I try and make it daily
To his grave up on the hillside

While my mother sits home and cries…

I have come to realize
That most of what we buy
From those supposedly in the know
Isn't always worth the price

We buy their lame excuses
On why the world is bad
Instead of what the truth is
They've made this mess the way it is

Plan it, can it, in a frantic
The need to go green
Pompous piggies in a panic
We buy the mud tossed in mid-scream

We buy their fiction over fact
Like it's the gospel truth
When what we're left with once again
Is as I say not as I do

We buy they know what's good for us
Like we can't tell ourselves
Rust or bust, dust to dust
Anything they can sell

We'll buy it all, above all else…

In my walk with God
I've both stayed and strayed
Up and down, left and right
Walked by faith and still lost sight

Been on the straight and narrow
And path that's ten lanes wide
Holding hands with my fellow man
Blurry lines have filled my time

But God in his faithful mercy, grace,
and unconditional love
Has been my constant companion
When I stumble, there to lift me up

He's been my two steps forward
When I am one step back
Waiting for a better tomorrow
He stands firm where I am at

I've climbed to the mountain tops
And crawled in valley's low
All the while knowing full well
God through it all has held me close

Sitting around the charcoal fire
The Savior calls us in
Three long days in the grave
Forgiveness for our sins

A fresh start for humbled hearts
Escape from the past
Throughout the generations
A promise God has kept

Asking, do you love me
Then please feed my sheep
Give a hand to those you can
In doing so, you do for me

This turning of the tables
Turning of the tide
Fill the warmth that gives us hope
When in the Spirit we reside

As the sins of our transgressions
Are removed from our lives
Forgiveness we are left with
Sitting around the charcoal fire

Around the charcoal fire
We deny that we know Christ
Warming up to this world
Finding it's all steeped in lies

We do it out of fear
A faith that's laid to waste
Grinding of the sinful gears
Where would we be without God's grace

The chill that's in the air
A bitter cold that crushes bones
Before the rooster crows
We'll deny we even know

The one who gives true life
Who took on himself our shame
This battle fought, a gift from God
Sacrificed in our place

All whilst we warm ourselves
On this our funeral pyre
Hands held out to the heat of guilt
Around the charcoal fire

They're out there on the streets
I can see them as I crack my blinds
They're passing by so silently
I'm to freaked to step outside

I know that if they catch me
They'll put me in an imaginary box
And keep me there til midday
Where they'll have my brains for lunch

Or tie me up with an imaginary rope
To an imaginary tree
And force me to watch them preform a rendition of Thriller
Like a bad episode of Glee

Yes, those Zombie Mimes are freakzoides
Long before they became the preforming dead
I've been uncomfortable in their presence
Could it be because of something they once said

Wait...now here they go
Pretending to walk against the wind
Will I ever be able to venture outside
Will this silent madness ever end

I don't know where they contracted the Zombie virus
Or even how this all went down
I only hope and pray it doesn't infect
Any of the Circus Clowns

Just like Sleeping Beauty
Waited for her Prince
I've been in this body
And bed ever since

I was born into this world
Broken beyond repair
Looking for my one true love
To take me away from here

The main sadness to all this
Is man looks on the outside
Only judging what they see
Never taking time out to find

That this Sleeping Beauty
Just like everyone
Needs someone to hold her hand
Someone she can love

A man with understanding
That this is just a shell
And what resides on the inside
Needs love just as well

Just like Sleeping Beauty
Had her own circumstance
I've been in this broken body
And bed ever since

...waiting on my Prince

Packed tight in this colorful life
All caught up in crazy mid-flight
The masses always ask for a sign
But not everything is in black and white

Throttle up on this push button cruise
As the screws seem to come loose
Toss the dust of us where the wind moves
Just cause they eat it up don't mean that it's true

Some go high while others sink low
With both sides holding out hope
You think you do but do you really know
Just cause the crowd goes with the flow
don't mean that it's so

Sold out to the other side
How many times have we caught them in lies
You can run but you really can't hide
Swept out to sea in this turning of tides

On a scale of ten how many rate
Do you jump right in or hesitate
They say not all heroes wear capes
When the end rolls round will you save the date

There's a crowd at the short end of this rope
Where none really know how to cope
All going down with this sinking boat
Just cause the crowd goes with the flow
don't mean that it's so

I collect feathers in all kinds of weather
I find lying about on the ground
Not sure if you've seen but I'm building get away wings
Where one day I'll pick up and fly South

Spending time on the beach, far out of reach
From the hustle and bustle of life
That today's society has forced on me
Time after time after time

I'll use Elmers glue to stick feathers to
A frame that I'll strap to my back
Then with a running start on that day I'll depart
Never once looking back

Taking time out for me as I'm flying free
On this, my latest endeavor
Doing my best to keep, this side of sanity
From one end of this life to another

Oh look, there's another feather...

tomorrow is
a yesterday away
no matter what you do
no matter what you say
twiddle your thumbs
with what you've made
there's still no way
to hold time at bay
with tomorrow being
a yesterday away

you can set your sights
shoot for the moon
swear on your life
to all that's true
in what you've said
and plan to do
tomorrow is
a day you can't cling to

tomorrow is
a yesterday away
with the brought about
of sudden change
give half your stuff
all away
it comes too soon
before too late
with tomorrow being
a yesterday away

I have no regrets
The past I have left
Debauchery and sin about did me in
Till God held out his hand

God held out his hand
Where no words need be said
Pulled from the pit that leads to death
Just as his word says

Just as his word says
Erased this sinner's past
Died for my mistakes, Heaven celebrates
A promise he has kept

A promise he has kept
Took on this sinner's debt
Took it on himself so I'd be here to tell
That I have no regrets

Today men need to be knights
Whether in shining armor or not
Stand against wrong for all that is right
Give of themselves freely, not bought

Move where they must with a purpose
To bring about justice for all
With no concern, is it worth it
Answering to a much higher call

That all men are created equal
No matter race, religion, or creed
A knight at heart is no fool
For every lost soul is a reason to bleed

Today all men need to be knights
In a world forgetful, a day to remember
Courage is easy to find
If you take the time to show that you care

Someone here for the downtrodden
Those with no hope, giving up on themselves
The lost, forlorn, forgotten
Those above all who need all our help

In a world that is less chivalrous
We all could use a good knight
Because in this life of hit and miss
Try as hard as you might a good knight's hard to find

Little boys and little girls
Playing in the sand
Taking life for all its worth
Without a care in hand
Enjoy it all little ones
While it is you can
Before this life grabs hold of you
And you begin to understand

Time you spend with mommy
Daily in the park
Good times for you to have
Till daylight kisses dark
If you're  within the sound of my voice
Take a moment where you are
Hug them tight your inner child
For all that they are worth

Childlike innocence always is
The first thing that we lose
Trying to get it back seems to be
The last thing that we choose
I'm sure we would try harder
If we only knew
How much losing it would change
Our very point of view

When we stop to view it all
Through wide open eyes
Hits us all so very hard
Should we be surprised
Happens to the best of us
And so goes our lives
Dreaming of forgotten years
Innocence of a child

Forward in our motion
As we sway from side to side
Everyone is hoping
To enjoy this pleasure ride

Although we spin out of control
And take it with a grin
There’s no path that takes you back
To where it all began

We scheme into tomorrow
Then dream of yesterday
Hold the hand of sorrow
As we give it all away

Make a list, we think best
Then hope for bird in hand
Still can’t go back by way of beaten path
To where it all began

you crawl out of the gutter
straight into the dumpster
another day on the streets of zombie land

living for something
if something was nothing
then nothing would be all that you have

just follow the tracks
the needles have left
have they notified your next of kin

leaning on a lamp post
hoping to hold up your ghost
as insanity blows in on the wind

how long will you last
in this life of pass the trash
high expectations combined with low demands

a drying up puddle of mud
here to bathe and drink pain from
this is not going according to plan

the hollowed-out shell next to you
was once someone you thought you knew
with what little memory you have left

as you both sit here and melt
dying in this living hell
another day on the streets of zombie land

What once kept us warm
We seem to have run from
Which makes me think the gig is up
Put a fork in us, I think we're done

What used to be all smiles
Is overloaded now with frowns
We picked it up only to put it down
Whatever happened to "Happy Town"

Slicing and dicing mincing words
Letting our mouths run off course
Nothing sadder than this soup de jour
Being spoon-fed with pitchforks

We often dream but wake to doubt
In black and white, we find this out
One eighty in our turn around
Whatever happened to "Happy Town"

When did our plans all fall through
Out of our hands, we let them loose
We lost the gander and the goose
******* in knots with a noose

Is it so hard to figure out
All we have is heading south
In line at the slaughterhouse
Whatever happened to "Happy Town"

From this moment forward
Will you tell the truth
No matter what the people say
No matter what the masses do

Will you stand for what is right
When it all rolls round
Picking up the age-old fight
And never set it down

Bringing up the bitter truth
In these times filled with lies
Forward motion in your move
To the side that's always right

Take up the injustice
That is thrown your way
Tell the truth, the whole truth
Daily in your day to day

The only sound that really counts
In this world that's filled with doubt
When you open up your mouth
Let nothing but the truth spill out

You might find this easy
But then again find it hard
Nothing is simple
In that regard

You could show up early
And still be late
Not having the time to change your mind
Or have a say

If you're deep in the game
And find it cramping your style
For heaven's sake every choice you make
Makes it all worthwhile

You can hold yourself back
Or get back in line
All you think you have that you lack
Just let it slide

With the attitude
Of do it or die
I'm telling you there's nothing new
That you can hide

If you're deep in the game
And find it cramping your style
For heaven's sake every choice you make
Makes it all worthwhile

On the day I finally stop and drop
Into that old, knotted pine box
And they wheel me down front, put on display

All I ask is you raise a cup
Make something good about me up
As you send me off along my merry way

There is no need for you to fret
Or think of this situation as sad
I did all I could in the realm of give and take

Just find for me a shady spot
To cover up this dusty pine box
And a marker for my final resting place

And after that if you think of me
In the coming days and going weeks
I hope a smile comes across your face

If you think about it and
Every now and then again
Feel free to come and dust the cobwebs from my grave

Then maybe sit for a just spell
Then again if nothing else
Tell me a little something about your day

And as you sit and reminisce
Over that and because of this
It's best you have your say before too late

You never know when we'll go along our merry way...

It's not me...
It's my phone that keeps calling your name

If you happen to be...
Looking for someone to blame

If you think that you hear heavy breathing
On the other end of the line
Want you to know that me and my phone
Were no where near each other at the time

You have my word...
It's my phone that keeps calling you up

It must have heard...
That at one time we were two birds in love

It must not realize
That you and I are no longer an item
If it did, otherwise
It wouldn't be spending all of it's dimes

What can I say...
It's my phone that loves the sound of your name

Since you left that day...
Things around here have not been the same

As my phone sits in its cradle alone
It doesn't seem to have much of a choice
To tell the truth I really think that
My phone misses the sound of your voice

After all the games you've played
The back and forth inside your head
You tend to wonder how you got
Yourself into this tight spot

Start off early, show up late
Can't help but make the same mistakes
Add another to the list
In your line of hit and miss

Looking for someone to blame
Conveniently leaving out your name
Never been one to hesitate
It's all in the choice you make

Spend most your time in cleaning up
This you did, that you've done
A completely different frame of mind
Might help to shine a little light

But when it comes down to change
The unknown makes us all afraid
Before you know, you give up hope
And once again set out alone

Looking for someone to blame
Conveniently leaving out your name
Never been one to hesitate
It's all in the choice you make

We never know quite honestly
What the future for us brings
From one minute to the next
In the grand scheme of things

Bloom with what you have, where you're set
In life's up's and down's
Enjoy the time you have left
In the here and now

When I looked last the past is past
No matter the depth you can't bring it back
Move beyond all of that mess
To the point where you're now at

We tend to keep our hands
Fumbling in the lost and found
When we should be more in command
Of the here and now

We dream of better tomorrows
That for us may not arrive
Yet we're never promised a minute borrowed
In our hourglass of time

So, enjoy this day, every grain of sand
That you are allowed
In this life while you still can
With the here and now

inside my head
there is this voice
feeds me lies
tries to coerce
while i smile
the secret's kept
swinging by
a gossamer thread

argues with
my sanity
makes excuses
who to believe
feel like i've
been left for dead
swinging by
a gossamer thread

shows up early
stays till late
opens up
the flood gate
on wobbly knees
afraid what's next
swinging by
a gossamer thread

What's this you say
Oh, it's just the dumpster fire
Been burning for countless years now
Just close your eyes and mind and you'll be fine

They've been promising to put it out
For umpteen years gone by
You'll eventually grow numb to it
After all it's all a part of life

Not quite sure who really started it
So many passing blame
But say they have the answers to
The ever-growing flames

Using our hard-earned dollars
As a means of kindling
Getting hotter now than it's ever been
With manmade hate as gasoline

One thing we can all be thankful for
Is the heat it's putting off
For the homeless on every street corner
And Winter coming on

When it comes to dumpster fires
This one seems to be burning on mankind's decline
And the people that keep on stoking it
It's bound to burn itself out in time

With tight grip on the wheel
Trying my best to steer myself clear
Every sign I pass says yield
How in the world did I get myself here

Never sure of my direction
Left, right, up, or down
You can tell by my expression
Driving in a heavy mist of doubt

Continuously flashing the high beams
With my confidence running low
On this rocky road it gets hard to see
Seems so long ago I lost my way home

Pretty sure this is my own fault
How much more will I allow
Before the fool in me is caught
Driving in this heavy mist of doubt

No one said life would be easy
In fact, at times, it's rather cruel
When you struggle with the keeping
Up with all the rules

Overtime I've perfected the lost part
Still looking to be found
Being in the dark is my lost form of art
Driving in this heavy mist of doubt

These days I find, the more they lie
The better off I feel
And over time, wanes the desire
To know if it's fake or real

The world we're in, tends to lend
The short end of the stick
But don't worry none, they still have fun
Beating us with it

Don't dare take the lies and question why
There's no need to know the truth
Just behave and do what they say
If you know what's good for you

Over time we've turned a blind eye
To what is really going on
If you ask me from what I see
Do we even want to know

There's no need to dip your fingers in
Their massive slice of the pie
Just sit back relax, forget the facts
And keep believing all the lies

Until the day you die...

Slipping and sliding
Back into the past
Foolishly buying
All the foolishness they've said

Stacking me against you
Pitting you against me
Does it hurt to stretch the truth
If the lie is so easy

Keeping us under lock and key
Mental Slavery

Under their thumbs
We're being kept
Simple pawns
In their game of chess

We take them at their word
This herd of talking heads
As we rely on every line
That we're being fed

Keeping us under lock and key
Mental Slavery

With the slightest of resistance
We feel we should fight back
But at our own insistence
It's ambition that we lack

So we follow along the path
Eyes closed to reality
Turning us against each other
Makes it hard to see

Keeping us under lock and key
Mental Slavery

You can turn on the radio
Turn on a dime
Turn on the folk you know
And never know why

Turn on the air
As it's hot in here
Turn on a darkened path
That at first looks clear

You can turn round your life
It's never too late
Bury the knife
On your past mistakes

You can even take turns
With family or friends
Turn to your enemy
And make amends

You can turn it all on
Or turn it all off
Without a single glance
Or a second thought

You can turn left or right
Or even go straight
That's the thing about life
You can turn either way

I often talk
Though he struggles to hear
Or see the facts
With vision unclear
A wrinkle or two
Both here and there
Who ever knew
I'd be the old man in the mirror

The graying in spots
And thinning of hair
The same old tired jokes
He continues to share
Says they're laugh lines
But we know why they're there
Blame it on time
Me and the old man in the mirror

His eyes show concern
And a deep hidden fear
As the tables have turned
With death ever near
As conversation moves past
From the past to here
How did we get here
Says the old man in the mirror

I keep wondering if all this I need
Has it really simplified my life
Like the cell phone I hold in my sweaty palm
From the break of day to my break down at night

And this microwave, how much time does it save
When I waste it anyways away on T.V.
What about these prepackaged snacks keeping me wrapped in fat
With a side of guilt and free heart disease

I used to get lost in thought, but todays thoughts are lost
The way I keep on Googling
When the answer is at my fingertips
Would it be insane, to say I don't need a brain

And don't get me started on social media
Which isn't that social at all
All it's really done is made us a nation of want
While socially we've all withdrawn

Which helps in placing orders for my need to feed
And have some stranger pick it up on the move
It's simple online if you're willing to pay the oversized price
And the chance of them spitting in your food

What has happened to us with modern day conveniences
Is life really all that much better
Weren't we happy in the throes when we weren't so in the know
Should have dropped technology off on the side of the rode
and left her  

There, that's better...

I found love, lost and forlorn
Dropped on the side of the road
What to do with it, I was torn
So I took it home

Drew a bath, cleaned it up
Welcomed it with open arm's
I want love to know itself
And that I mean no harm

With love I knew there were no rules
So no rules did I place
In loves company everything's free
And comes with a smidgen of grace

Since love's been here I've been able to share
Love would have it no other way
If you're out and about take a look around
You yourself might find love today