You can't stop a speeding train
By standing on the tracks in the pouring rain

You can't grab a thunder bolt passing by
If your out in left field with hands in your Levi's

You can't talk a drunk out of his last drink
If he's got nowhere that he'd rather be

You can't stop a wild stampede
With only one hand raised and two left feet

You can't stop a bullet from a gun
No matter how fast you think you can run

You can't stop the sun from showing itself
By promising the day to somebody else

You can't stop the moon from shinning bright
By staying behind locked doors at night

And you can't stop the way I feel
When I'm next to you cause my love is real

Break me Lord...

So in my brokenness you can put me back together

Take me Lord...

Rearange the pieces that do not fit

Into your mold...

Pour me out for better

Bought and sold...

In Christ Jesus I will live

There's talk on the street
Somethings happened to me
I don't look the same
As I used to be

I've got the same name
I've got the same face
But something about me
Has definitely changed

They try to figure it out
There's something about
On the tip of their tongue
There is no doubt

As they scratch their heads
Wondering just what it is
Either something has come
Or something has left

As they wonder what's up
It's starting to bug
They can't take anymore
They've had enough

I just sit here and smile
As they try and figure it out
It's as plain as the day
Let them squirm for awhile

Cause what it is that I've changed
Is my eyebrows I shaved
I now change my expression
With mascara paint

I can now look surprised
As my eyebrows I rise
3 to 4 inches
Above my eyes

Or I can bring them down
Into a uni-brow
Make me look angry
Give me a scowl

I lower the other
While lifting it's brother
Which raises a question
One way or another

There's so much you can do
When your eyebrows you lose
If your afraid to participate
Start off  with one and not two

But I must warn you
That if you do
There's only one expression you'll have
And that is one of confused

So as they keep on guessing
With insistent insisting
I keep doing my best
To change my expression

there are rumors always floating
but very little known
about this tiny mischief nymph
fairy of the poem

to her each poem's a new beginning
on a trail to wanderlust
an adventure taken to the edge
this fairy of the verse

fussing over titles
tweaking of the lines
adding just the right amount of dust
this fairy of the rhyme

only seen when she lets you in
as she flutters to and fro
taking you to the highest heights
fairy of the poem

I can't help but wonder
About the oddest things
Like what's the sense in 9/10 of a percent
In the price of gasoline

Or how did the fly
Get the name fly
When they were passing out bug names
Was he the first in line

And does it make a flower sad
When from the ground it's plucked
Then does the same flower laugh
When it's given away in love

Why has green always meant go
And red meant to stop
But yellow has changed over the years
To you'd better haul ****

And if the saying
Money doesn't grow on trees
Why at the grocery
Nothing is free

If you don't think
You know what I mean
Just look around
You too will be wondering

he's the yin to her yang
the trip of light fantastic
the color wheel to her shade of gray
the breeze if you can catch it

the open flame of the day
the hold it tight, the giveaway
the stop right there, begin again
she the yang to his yin

the raw idea in all that's meant
all that's said, all that's kept
under feet, overhead
yin to yang, yang to yin

I decided today was a good day to pray
For forgiveness all around
For those who need to forgive others
Along with those who need to forgive themselves

When it comes to the heart of the matter
I believe that's where we're all at
Holding onto the thought that rots the heart
That unforgivable circumstance

Can we not see what it does to you and me
As layer upon layer unforgivness unfolds
Like the grip of a vice squeezing out all that's right
A deadly hold that won't let go

That's why today I decided to pray
For forgiveness all around
For those who need to forgive others
Along with those who need to forgive themselves

He cares for the less fortunate
Never judges the weak or frail
He does much to lift them up
Knowing he's only a step away himself

Always there to lend a hand
No matter the circumstance
It is said that he is just one man
But one man that's learned to make a stand

Rare heart
Beats for those in need
Rare heart
Keeps him alive in his beliefs

He never thinks about himself
Or brings glory to his name
With a purpose in life to help others strive
He revels in the give away

Do they ever really deserve it
Has never once crossed his mind
Do any of us more or less
Deserve anything in life

Rare heart
A heart that freely beats
Rare heart
Gives more than it ever keeps

He'll continue on his whole life long
In doing what is right
Not what you find in the world's mind
But in the good Lord's eyes

There are never preconditions
In healing what is hurt
Feels it's his job to spread the love
But never is it work

Rare heart
Always is upbeat
Rare heart
Always filling others needs

she loves me

she loves me not

she's the only

thing that i've got

and this 4 petal rose

that i'm picking on

not sure that i like

where this is going

There is nothing in my heart
That a good dose of love won't cure
Curing that and so much more
This nothing in my heart

There is nothing in my mind
That will take me to the heights
Like a dose of love will every time
Inside this lonely mind

There is nothing in my soul
That can take away this cold
Like love does in a daily dose
This nothing in my soul

Nothing in my heart
Nothing in my mind
Nothing in my soul
That a dose of love won't cure

Each morning I sit
On the edge of the bed
Stirring the thoughts
Inside of my head

One thing I've found
In the finding of out
If my thoughts sit too long
They tend to gel

So I start on the left
Stir to the right
Mixing up thoughts
Inside of my mind

I do what I do
Before I set the cruise
Revs my mind up
For a moment or two

On the edge of the bed
Where each morning I sit
Stirring the thoughts
Inside of my head

First off let me say
I've reached that ripe old age
Can I get a show of hands
Of those who have lost a friend

They are dying right and left
Losing out on their life's bet
No ones more surprised at the fact
That I haven't joined them yet

They're all whistling out a dirge
Flying off like Northern birds
Before the first snow fall
And Winter chills us all

Just keep an eye on Deaths arthritic hand
And watch for who he grabs hold next
Most likely it's someone I know
Pack them up and lay them low

Do I really need to say
I've reached the ripe old age
That all the people close to me
Have either left or are soon to leave

The poison of pride
Once it is made
Cuts quick to the bone
Runs thick through the veins

As it permeates
The seen and unseen
Looks to devour
Every ounce of the being

One drop at a time
Takes from the essence of life
Ruins the heart and the mind
The poison of pride

From the turning tide
of the bitter truth
To the waves of innocence
lost on the innocent youth
As the surface ripples
to its sparkling light
When the river runs dry
there's no telling what we will find

Shadows serve a purpose
from the trees above
Cooling of the survace
hot to the touch
Kneel down to drink its water
In cupped hands if you like
Because when the river runs dry
there's no telling what you'll find

Barely treading water
as the current's swift
No way of getting around
or of getting used to it
The river runs as deep
as the river runs wide
And when the river runs dry
there's no telling what we'll find

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 your 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

What if yesterday, today, and tomorrow
Came together for one day
Would they all dwell on their past mistakes
Or live life for today

Would they dream about tomorrow
As today's dreams fly away
If they had it all to do again
Would they relive yesterday

Life can be confusing
I hope that you will find
After yesterday, today, and tomorrow have had their say
You'll live one day at a time

Just when I think I've conquered anger
It rears it's ugly head
Just when I'm in most need of patience
There isn't any left

Just when I feel I'm moving forward
I fall two steps behind
Just when I'm sure I've made it
Somebody moves the line

Just when things are running smooth
I hit a bumpy road
Just when I've got it all figured out
There's something new I'm shown

Just when I'm about to make my point
I can't remember what's been said
Just when I'm about to sharpen it
I run out of lead

Just when I feel I can take no more
Just when I've had enough
Just then is when I see the need
For the power of God's love

I lose my way so easily
If I'm not focused on the Cross
From the moment that I wake up
To the end of daylight lost

With life's many distractions
Bidding for my time
With its attitudes and worries
Always on my mind

If I don't keep my eyes and heart
From straying side to side
Instead of on the glory of
The Cross of Jesus Christ

Which he bids me carry daily
I need only pick it up
And proclaim in Jesus name
The power of its Love

So I pray that in my daily walk
I'll not drift from side to side
But stay focused on in front of me
The Cross of Jesus Christ

I once had this old time clock
The clock and I, we always fought
Did it keep time, well I think not
As I watched it waste away

The second hand would spin and spin
As the clocks face would sit and grin
Knowing full well the state I was in
With every growing day

The minute hand from left to right
Quickly swept past my life
Who granted this, who gave it right
Who signed off the okay

Hour by hour time kept taunting me
With no time left for sympathy
Where you reach the cost, times no longer free
And you find it hard to save

Time at hand will not stand still
Never has and never will
Time works best with time to ****
As I watched it waste away

I bought a book, took some notes
On everything that they wrote
Of what a poet needs to know it
If they want to be a poet

I learned a rhyme can be just fine
But not all the time it needs to rhyme
So in my journey I did set
Where I was out to do just that

I started slow, took baby steps
Not overly confident of myself
But as they say I turned the page
And haven't looked back since that day

Now what I find that's in my mind
Entertains from time to time
I may not know how poetry grows
Or the direction the wind of inspiration blows

I'll just follow along the winding path
And end up where it ends up at
Because I bought a book, and took some notes
On everything that they wrote

Never has it been about love
Certainly not about lust
That attracted the both of us
To the both of us

It's just a mutual agreement
That we both understand
Me, I was in need of a woman
Her, in need of a man

I just needed someone
To cook and clean and such
The way she needed me
To fix a few things up

And when it is that I can't find
That item that I laid down
I always have her standing by
Right there to help me out

Cause a woman seems to know
Where everything in life is
From the television remote
To the chocolate that I've hid

And if there's ever a need
She has to set the blame
You can always find me
Because I am that man

It's convenient when I need an opinion
On most anything
She's right there more than eager
To give that opinion to me

Then there's that need to have someone to listen
About what went on in her day
I'm there to yawn as I nod, say yes dear a lot
And pretend that I'm awake

It's just something that we learned
A long, long time ago
A man he needs a woman
And a woman well, you know...

She has a will of steel
Does just what she wants
If you ever tell her do
Guaranteed she don't
Hard-headed as a raging bull
In a china shop
With a will of hardened steel
That's exactly what she's got

She has a will of steel
And it ain't here to help
Only listens to herself
And nobody else
If you're looking for advice
In the cards you're dealt
Guaranteed a will of steel
Only helps itself

She has a will of steel
So often clamps down tight
If there's something that you do
That she doesn't like
If you're arguing with her
You'd be hard pressed to find
That this will of steel
Will ever change her mind

I hope it is you know
That you are beautiful
There's an air about you
That sets off a certain glow
Like a painting hanging on display
A wonderful piece of art
I hope it is you know
How beautiful you are

I wanted you to know
So I jotted down this note
Out of all the wonders in this world
It's you that's beautiful
There is only one of you
After that God broke the mold
Because your so beautiful
I thought you should be told

You are beautiful
But you are not alone
All the women of the world
Share beauty as their home
Age is not a factor
From the young to the old
You are woman and you shine
For you are beautiful

This is the part
At the start
Where you set rhythm to the rhyme

Just enough
Of the stuff
As cadence moves in time

Taking a subject
In hopes that they love it
And find it rather deep

As you keep them guessing
Show your not messing
With originality

Your now in the middle
Where you start to fiddle
With all the words at play

Hide a few meanings
As you'll soon be leaving
Before it is too late

Then comes the ending
The tail end of the beginning
Drawing it to a close

Wonder where it came from
You hate to play dumb
But only the good lord knows

She knows one or two things about love
One is she hasn't been there enough
And when it comes to number two
She is saddened by that truth
That she knows one or two thing about love

She knows the bitterness in the pain
And how tears hide well in the rain
Just a few more things she knows
Although she knows a lot more than those
She still knows one or two things about love

She knows how the sun feels when it sets
And how it is to live with more than one past regret
One that she didn't see
A heart needs room to breath
Yes she knows how the sun feels when it sets

She knows one or two things about one or two things
The waves of joy but also the sadness it brings
The heights that love can be found
Followed by the lowering back of the down
She's learned to accept all that it means

These are just a few things that she knows...

Dear Kathy Griffin,
I love you I do
But you're the only one
That did this to you

You can hem and you can haw
Place blame on them all
But your foot in your mouth
Is the cause of your fall

That flaming red hair
Along with the face of blue
And those crocodile tears
That you keep letting loose

Are turning us off
More than you ever thought
You might want to try and sell
This farm you have bought

You say womanhood is your victim
Of that I have doubts
And do you really kiss your mother
With that filthy mouth

A word of advice
To the not so glamorous wise
And that ain't no lie
Quit blaming the old white guy

One day this may blow over
And you'll count your lucky stars
But not before this galaxy
Does its best to forget who you are

Sincerely, Mike

how many want to forgo the middle
and take it straight to the end
passing the lessons learned
between the joy and the hurt
you'll never know what you have

how many of us lose our patience
if things don't go according to plan
or the way that we think
our lives should be
with the bird we have in hand

the past is past let go the grasp
focus on what's ahead
do not fret the could have been's
or wonder at the why's and when's
with that being said

let the water flow under the bridge
count the second to the minute left
stay steady in the middle
and the end will take care of itself

There's a road, goes by the name of Freedom
All men desire to take
If you need directions, they're here for the asking
Today could be the day

Though it's a road not easily traveled
For it is filled with sticks and stones
Well worth the life adventure
In the direction that you're going

If you've been on the path forgotten
Fueled along by your mistakes
In how you've made your living
In how you've spent your days

To whatever you've been shackled
To whatever holds you back
Leave it all behind you now
No need to pack your bags

Step onto what's in front of you
Just reach out and grab ahold
Once you've set your feet you'll not want to leave
Your days on Freedom road

His mind is know to roam
But he's not one to rat
With very little known
About Salvador Dali's cat
Whips his tail back and forth
Fourth dimensional for all it's worth
All this time sitting in
Salvador Dali's lap

His thoughts are known to wander
But he's not known to talk
Purring like a cosmic generator
On Salvador's melting couch
Electric fur stands on end
Grooms himself surreal, immaculant  
Whispers in Salvador Dali's ear
Never hear the doubt

You catch them hanging out
Pretty much on the edge
Of the cranium
Where they like to lay their eggs

They keep you remembering
All that you should know
If you need to have a name
They go by the mindful

Once the eggs have hatched
You'll be mindful of this and that
Keeping you on your guard
Of what should be done and said

Into your brain they will burn
All in life we need to learn
Keeping an eye on those around
Is mostly the mindful's concern

They take it to task amongst themselves
To be mindful of everyone else
For after all isn't that
What a mindful life is all about

So don't be scared, don't be afraid
When you feel an itching of the brain
It's just the mindful laying ground
Soon enough to be paved

Making sure the road ahead's
Not too bumpy or too rough
As you're on your way to what
You should be mindful of

If you're not careful of your sin
It can kindly creep on in
Burrow deep within your soul
Where you can't climb from its hole

You must always be on guard
Doesn't matter who you are
Sins cares little where it goes
Or who's life it destroys

So keep a watchful eye round you
Always clinging to God's truth
Never fall for Satan's lies
Holding tight to Jesus Christ

Where the victory has been won
Through Father, Spirit, faithful Son
Still it's your job best to try
To keep sin out of your life

I found this diary
On the side of the road
Missing some of life's pages
Wouldn't you know

Perhaps tossed from a car
As away it drove
This part of their life
Where the tall grass grows

I read a few pages
Before setting it down
Words for the ages
Tears with no sound

What side of the road
Was this diary found
Of course wouldn't you know
It was Southbound

I tried to read more
But it kept breaking my heart
Feel like I've been here before
As their world falls apart

Inside of this diary
With its life pages torn
After I set it down I too headed South
Wouldn't you know

11:45
make sure the straps are tight

11:46
all the time i've spent
wonder where it went

11:47
now
as the sweat beads on my brow

11:48
how did it get this late

11:49
what has happened to the time

11:50
here
how did it so soon appear

11:51
the count down is almost done

how could time be so cruel
11:52

to do this to me
11:53

feel the knocking at my door
11:54

11:55
i ponder life

all the wrong i did
11:56

11:57
now
next stop heaven or hell

for me it's much to late
11:58

11:59
again where went the time

as
12:00**
rolls around
can't help but think about
the horrid way that i lived
when they pull the switch

A to me your A okay

B mine forever and a day

C what all you mean to me

Delectable

Exceptionally

F forever once again

G the spin you put me in

H is how I handle it

I will never ever quit

J the joy in all of this

L is love are you

M

N with me

O

Please don't

Quit

Remember

This

Stuck with me

U will always be

Very soon

W too I will be

X pect nothing less from me

Yours now and forever more, from A to

Z naturally

We're rambling and we're ready
Everybody hop on the bus
Rolling along, rocking steady
Ready Freddy we're all standing up

But are we lost in the translation
Frenzy spilling from the cup
Drowning out a once great nation
"Where is all the tolerance"

Memories in the making
Hating where the day comes from
Blind disaster dating
What has happened to all of the love

Aren't we all brothers and sisters
Neighbors with a once peaceful cause
I just have one question mister
"Where is all the tolerance"

When the pain gets its name from the struggle
Haven't we all struggled long enough
The deeper the dig uncovers trouble
Forgiveness covered in dust

Screaming hate only leads to violence
Where is the trust we once had in love
What is right should never be silenced
"Where is all the tolerance"

I was in too much of a hurry
In my younger days
To pay that much attention
To what life had to say

I'd shrug it off then move along
To what next caught my eye
And in my ignorant bliss I continued this
Throughout most my life

Not knowing the consequences
Beyond a shadow of a doubt
I'm sure I was told but never listened
As the wheels kept spinning round

Anyone that is anyone
Knows that age does not play games
It is focused on its purpose
And that's to quickly end the race

You can take it all for granted
Like the tortoise to the hare
Lay out all your schematics
Showing the years you've gotten nowhere

And you just past your prime
Find it's too late to turn back now
So you keep on in the wasting time
As the wheels keep spinning round

There's no more of an empty lonely feeling
That comes from deep inside
Hoping for some type of healing
Seems impossible to find at the time

When love breaks
There's not a thing that you can do
When love breaks
It also tears a heart into

We think in terms of everlasting
When love shows up at the door
Inviting in yet seldom asking
Does this love come with a cure

When love breaks
It takes all you thought was true
When love breaks
It also takes the apart of you

There is no hope for something better
Willing to pay the beggars cost
Finding love is the one with its hand out
Taking everything from us

When love breaks
There's not a soul that doesn't lose
When love breaks
There is no amount of glue

I looked at my watch
It's a quarter till four
I'm not so sure
I want to be here anymore

They called me and your mother
We called up your friends
When the doctor informed us
This might be the end

You'd been in an accident
Out on the interstate
Which begs of the question
Why you, why this

Here with you broken
I think of your smile
The one I am hoping
To see again in time

With all the tears flowing
Among mournful cries
There's no way of knowing
If this is goodbye

That's when I open my eyes
Much to my surprise
I'm in my bedroom
Lit by the blinking clock light

Flashing the time
Of a quarter till four
My mind set on you
As my feet touch the floor

I head towards your room
In a daze from the dream
As my hand turns the ****
I hear the phone ring...

I'm making it my goal today
To get my act together
But before I can achieve this major feat
I'll have to check the weather

Cause if it is to cloudy
My act will not step foot outside
And if the sun is shiny
My act acts like it is blind

Raining? Forget it!
An act that's soaking wet
Takes much to long to dry itself
And shrinks till there's hardly anything left

With temperatures to hot or cold
You know that really matters
Guess when it comes to my act
Weather permitting, I'll do it later