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

All I have now is this saccharin smile
Plastered all over my face
The sweet one I had lost all its pizazz
As it dragged on through the day after day

It might have melted in the turmoil
When things started heating up
It's easy to sour in this world
When that's about all you've got

This saccharin smile that I've had for awhile
Leaves a bitter aftertaste
On the tip of my tongue with all that is wrong
And everything out of place

Yet I guess it serves its purpose
To those still hanging around
I'm sure that it's well worth it
Being better than that of a frown

I know someone
Who loves you, yet
Can't say his name
But here's a hint
His name and mine
Are both the same
He'd tell you himself
But he's afraid

I know someone
Who dreams about you
Can't say his name
But here's a clue
He pretty much thinks
The same way I do
Every chance that he gets
To dream about you

I know someone
Whose secrets been kept
Can't say his name
But here's an idea
If he opened up
With his heart on display
Would you do the same
While saying my name

How often have you tried it on for size
Only then to realize
Try as hard as you might
It doesn't fit your busy life

If only then you knew
How it would be affecting you
Sometimes it's best to choose
A different shade of truth

Try your best to simplify
A past that you can't hide
Still, it doesn't make it right
This out of mind out of sight

A battle rages inside of you
Hard pressed to let it loose
Sometimes you just need to use
A different shade of truth

You might find picking sides
Doesn't always make it right
It's hard at times to read the signs
If the blind, follow the blind

Who has control over you
Taught you how to jump through hoops
Think again on how you choose
A different shade of truth

when did
this start
cold wind
colder heart

i see my brother
lost on the street
i turn to another
more likely like me

when did
it turn dark
dry bones
callused heart

mother and child
with tears in their eyes
i turn my head
and quickly pass by

when did
compassion depart
long list
hard heart

no longer patient
with those that are blind
with purpose in life
i've also lost sight

welcome to the town
of monotony
where everything's the same
as it used to be

every single day
is just another day
from rise of boring morning
to the fate of uneventful late

slowly make your way
down to common place
to repeat another day
underneath the skies of gray

where you once again might feel
that you've been here before
on the edge of weary
across the street from bored

the only excitement here
is in hoping for a change
soon enough to wake up to
just another day

What's it like going through life
Thinking that you're owed
That all the signs up in the sky
On your life have never shone

That the breaks you have had
Have all been bad, out of control
And with that said all that's left
Is thinking that you are owed

Are you afraid to try and make
It out on your own
That your mistakes for heaven sakes
Have all but made you lose that hope

Is it such a leap to sit and think
This Kool-Aid drink, goes down wrong
Can you not see how deep you sink
To even think that you are owed

If you had a second chance
Tell the truth
To do it all again
What would you do

With no questions asked
Of whom or when or how
If you have a minute, this very second
Your time is now

The time that you have
For regret is gone
And with that said with what is left
It's best you leave it all alone

Move beyond your circumstance
Step out from the crowd
With every breath that you have
Your time is now

Don't let this moment in time
Slyly pass you by
Where once again you find
A lifetime of questions why

Why could you not have done it
The first time around
The measure of the sum is
Your time is now

On a hot August night in Memphis
At the tinder age of forty two
Behind the gates of Graceland
America lost its tune

Gather round the throne room
The king is sadly dead
On the cold linoleum floor
Is where he last laid his weary head

Fought so many battles
In the star filled lonely life he lived
If you're keeping score this is one war
That he lost the battle in

His scepter it was golden
His voice it was the same
He just lost his soul is all
Somewhere along the way

With papers read the words they bled
Out on the written page
Tears that poured as the world all mourned
And still  do to this day

So bow your heads the king is dead
Elvis has left the building after all
Although long gone there is still the song
And he still is the king of rock and roll

Self-proclaimed prophets among us
Promoting their brand of fear
Saying won't you please come join us
The end is drawing near

From the heating of the planet
To the cooling of the same
If it doesn't work to suit us
We'll just up change the name

From their long list of dos and don'ts
One thing is perfectly clear
I'll be sitting here with the remote
In my underwear

As the world collapses around me
There's only so much a man can do
While both sides argue over
The latest lie disguised as truth

They all have their major talking points
As they point to the falling sky
Either it will or it won't
But we're still all going to die

They can raise high all the banners
Waving doom, gloom, and despair
And me I'll just be sitting here
A couch potato in my underwear

With no time left to fix it
And chicken little on the loose
The only option we have is to write the check
And let so called experts do what they do

As they grumble their Mumbo Jumbo
Scream out their Heebie-Jeebies
They're digging a hole for every last soul
Including the likes of me

Guess you already know how I cope
As if I really care
Remember the part about the remote
And me in my underwear

I gaze upon the stars at night
And I have to think
They're the very same ones Abraham saw
Along his God journey
As he stood strong on his faith
In man's river of doubt
Making his steady way
As these very same stars came out

Or King David on the roof top
With his vulnerable gaze
The same stars held his wonder
Till he foolishly looked away
Diving headfirst in his sinful plunge
Which many a man has done
Taking his sight off the stars that night
And off of his first love

Or the same stars the shepherds saw
While out tending their flock
Blessed are you who see the truth
This miracle of God
The very same stars I see at night
The angels parted in praise
As God's master plan to save fallen man
Came to fruition that day

No one out here knows
Or cares to expand
How issues sit with us
Exactly where we stand
Whether bathed in truth
Or whitewashed with lies
In all we say and all we do
Masters of Disguise

Flow this way and that
Courtesy of the wind
And if we find there's any left
We come back round again
You might have seen this all before
But look another time
You never know who's behind the door
Masters of Disguise

You can talk about what's going on
But don't dare mention names
In these times of all alone
These days of give away
Drawing of the shades
Blocking out the light
What else is there left to say
Masters of Disguise

How will you ever dance
If you first don't take the chance
Or raise your head
Above your circumstance
Let go of the knotted rope
That continually holds you back
If you don't take the chance
How will you ever learn to dance

If you never spread your wings
How will you ever fly
If you seldom try
On this side of life
In time we're remembered by
All our words and deeds
How will you ever learn to fly
If you first don't spread your wings

How will this life ever count
If you don't show your true self
Remove all of the doubt
On what deep down can be found
Go beyond the boundaries of
What you've let your fear allow
Show off your true self
For this life to count