In the middle of the night
With sleep still in my eyes
I stepped into my kitchen
And received quite a surprise

As I reached out my hand
And flicked the light on
There were balloons, confetti, party hats
With a banner that read -WELCOME HOME-

I'd caught thousands of roaches
In the middle of song
They all turned and looked at me strange
As if I'd done something wrong

I heard a scream from the crowd
A foreign language to me
The next thing I know
I'm knocked down to my knees

As I'm being dragged
Across the linoleum floor
I see a little red button
That opens up a trap door

I started getting real nervous
The deeper we went
If I was a cat with nine lives
I think eight I just spent

They took me before the king
King Ralph Roach was his name
I only knew that
Cause that's what his name tag displayed

I was assigned a public defender
But that did me no good
He spoke Roach, I spoke Human
Each other we never quite understood

"GUILTY!"  Came the verdict
I hollered what was my crime!
"Interrupting a roach in the middle of having a good time"
Came the judges reply

Squishing to be my death
The day after tomorrows last night
I said that doesn't make any sense?!
Hey, we're roaches....we're not known for our timely insight

So here I sit in my cell
Wishing I could take it all back
If I had just not gotten up
For that late midnight snack

Wait....is that a tap, tap, tap
(You didn't think this was the end did you?)
As my hours getting late
A roach we'll call Chester
For anonymity sake

Told me to stop all that blubbering
I've come to break you out of here
I stood and we hugged
Which would be strange if it wasn't so weird

We slipped past room after room
With all kinds of parties inside
One thing you can say about roaches
They know how to have a good time

When we reached the surface
All I saw was blessed heavenly light
I went straight in and packed my bags
And gave the house to my Ex-Wife
(Okay, now it's the end!)

The turkey's on
Old man Johnson's farm
All wised up this year

Logging on
To Amazon
About mid November

With Halloween out of the way
They were bound to save
On the items they would need

Which worked out great
Cause all they could afford to pay
Was in scratched up chicken feed

The pigs helped in
The ordering
As it's a well known fact

That being turkey's
They're always in a hurry
And ain't nobody got time for that

They saved up extra seed
For quick delivery
When you're on the cliffs edge dancing

Coming down to it
This being life or death
There's no need to take chances

In the nick of time
The package arrived
On the day before

The fateful day
Known to our hero's as shake and bake
November 24th

On that morning when
Old man Johnson then
With ax in hand stepped outside

Where he tried to think
Had he ever seen
So many cows in his life

In between the moo's
He heard a gobble or two
Which in itself is very strange

Plus the Amazon bill
For umpteenth costume cows
He just can't quite explain

have you ever heard
the sound
of a body bag
being zipped up
from the inside

have you ever seen
the shadows fall
that makes
the spine tingle
that makes
the skin crawl

have you ever felt
you would
suffocate
from the canvas weight
flat on your face

can anyone
of you relate
to the smell
of the fear
with its
bitter taste

If you look close enough
There's nothing up my sleeve
As I pull out this poem
For all of you to read

Appearing here in front of you
Your eyes do not decieve
This magic poem of wonder
If you only will believe

It's here for your entertainment
To wow and to amaze
A poem containing magic
Who's secret I'll take to the grave

You may not see but my writing hand
Is quicker than the eye
As it pulls ideas from out the air
And sets them down in rhyme

It's in the grandest of illusions
If the truth be known
If you blink then you'll miss it in
The magic of the poem

I think that I've found
Where I have gone wrong
Replacing my needs
With all of my wants

Letting all that I see
Outweigh all that I've got
Thinking I need
That which I have not

Not being satisfied
With all that I have
Wanting what I think should be mine
Until there's nothing left

Not thinking that less
Is  really what's best
When it comes to the wants
Verses needs that I have

The night feels so cold and lonely
As darkness closes in
You've held my heart all these many years
Now please just hold my hand

To feel the gentleness in your touch
To see the love that's in your eyes
Gives me the comfort that I need
In my journey to the other side

Let the children know I love them
And that I'll miss them more than life
Tell them to take good care of their mother
And that we'll meet again in time

As I close my weary eyes
To rest from all they've seen
Memory recalls the journey taken
And the wondrous life it's been

With your sweet lips upon my forehead
Deep down inside I smile
For that was all the push I needed
To start this, my final ride

... and when you see that starry night
and it reminds you of the time
that I was yours and you were mine
wish upon a star that night

...and I myself will do the same
and I will say out loud your name
as sweet memories flood in again
on the night of you and I when...

Standing tall and standing true
That was the child that was in you
Now all that you seem to do

Given half the chance

Is join on in the latest scream
Not even sure of what it means
Just so it your way leans

You're more than happy to protest

With the loss of innocence
That sang along with common sense
No idea of where it went

Nor could you even guess

You feel the pain you feel the hurt
But does the mud you sling really work
If truth be known in what you've heard

Would you find it of interest

Or do you just go with the flow
Blindly follow because they said so
And who are they to even known

Though you're no less passionate

I think sometime's we take the facts
Set them aside let them relax
Only use them when they fit us best

Be it Right or be it Left

All I see is wound up hate
The spring has sprung, are we too late
The end is here as our last blind date

As it's now just one big mess

Arghhh!!!

Why does poetry have such a hold on me
I'm so rhyme blind, that's all I can see
I spend most days down on my knees
Hoping against hope for some relief

Arghhh!!!

My sanity is quickly moving deep South
This taxi of poetry won't let me out
As the meter is turning like a crazed spinning wheel
I'm not sure anymore how I should feel

Arghhh!!!

Is there a doctor in the house
Or at least someone who could help me out
Put me to pasture where I can be free
Instead of inside shackled to this poetry

Where is the bright tomorrow

In the wake of this aftermath

With so many tears of sorrow

On the ground where peace once sat

What we hold in our hearts and hands

Is the daily struggle to understand

The reasoning of the wicked mind

With such disregard for all mankind

If it's peace we want we must spread the seed

The center growth to all our needs

In these times it's hard to understand

But love should be the aftermath

They say it's in the little things
The little changes that come along
Like an afternoon shower and the rain it brings
One minute here, the next it's gone

You might have tossed out more than one hint
And me a mess, I missed the catch
A far off look, a hidden glance
And if you did it never took

Novacanish in its numbing
Loneliness cries out alone
I should have seen it coming
But I barely saw it go

With backs turned in the bed at night
Puzzled looks like a Rubik's cube
I twist and turn in my effort to find
Where I went wrong with you

But with no genie in the bottle
Poured out on the linoleum floor
A relationship that's gone hostile
Wishing for one drop of you more

Novacanish in its numbing
Loneliness cries out alone
I should have seen it coming
But I barely saw it go

Have you seen me...

the blind man at the gate
the ******* beside the pool
as the angel stirs the wake
the wife and mother who's
lost everything she had
who now relies on others
for the blessings that are left

Have you heard of me...

the woman at the well
who is in search of love
far beyond herself
the lost and lonely beggar
still here to this day
with his last hand out
before it is too late

Do you know me...

the one caught in another's bed
go and throw your stones
if there are any left
the ***** at a distance
shunned by society
aren't we all the same here
when it come's to needs

Relying on...

the God who loves all of me
just as I am
knowing he's my greatest need
the one that I turn to
my shelter when I'm weak
knowing full well in all of this
that he loves all of me

In spite of all this
We would all love to be blessed
Some are more while others less
Sets to wonder, what the reason is

Things we see don't always seem
To always go our way
Still some in life take it in stride
Every hour of every day

It must be in the attitude with
If we take life as a gift
Yet not what we are given
But in how that gift we give

Like it's said it's more blessed
To give than receive
That is why in this life
Focus not so much on me

If you would like to give it a try
Please by any means
You'll find out there is no doubt
You too will feel blessings

Imagine if everyone of us
Had the attitude
To immerse ourselves in others first
And just what that would do

Giving to the needs of those we see
Without any strings
If I bless you in all I do
And in turn you bless me

It's Winter here
In Florida
How do I know
The calendar says so

There's the slightest dip
In humidity
If you ask me
The bugs are relieved

As far as all  
Our winter clothes
Bermuda shorts
Are pulled down low

Out come the socks
Between the toes
Pull back the yarn
Where the sandal goes

And with the sweat
On my forehead
I'm pretty sure
There's one or two drops less

People bring
Their families down
I can always tell
There's a bigger crowd

All the birds
Just sit and stare
With a knowing nod
They're going nowhere

Yes it's winter here
In Florida
How do I know
The calendar says so

We're all born into exploring
Some take a lifetime to find what they're looking for
Some find it fast, but it never lasts
When no one I know keeps perfect score

Hiking through a mountain of problems
Deep in the jungle of their minds
Some hit the valley, rock bottom
Then never dare to try and climb

Some claim an ocean of adventure
Setting sail the day they are born
Never once showing an ounce of fear
As they venture out on their own

Not knowing what lays ahead of us
From one day to the next
Take the time that you have, adding to it
We never are promised the time we have left

We're all born into exploring
Each and every day a quest
With no earthly way of knowing
When or where we'll be lead next

I've sat down to write so many times
This poem in hand with blacked out lines

Not quite knowing what to say
I change my mind and then erase

I desire to tell you how I feel
Not knowing how it is you'll deal

With what's welling deep inside of me
And how rhyming it out I feel the need

As I sit alone and contemplate
What I don't black out and can't erase

I pour my heart without a care
This poem you hold that's soaked in tears

Perhaps this poem you'll never read
If I do not post for you to see

But if I do please believe
All in all it's you I need

with a little luck
and a few good props
maybe i can squeeze out
one more drop

pull one more line
from my set of rhymes
give it the ole collage try
one last time

from my bag of shtick
swing the poet stick
see if it is
a hit or a miss

without even knowing
where it is going
that's how i'm sowing
most every poem

The crutch of love is seldom easy
A lesson I'm constantly struggling to learn
With paper heart in hand before me
Set it on fire and watch it burn

Tattered and torn what's left remaining
As it's ashes float off on the wind
Again the lonely thought stands before me

Never going to fall in love again

I continually strive to keep up composure
With what little that I'm left with
My desire is to fall headlong into loves stream
Only coming up long enough for a sweet breath of happiness

My belief is it will never happen
This broken heart will never set to mend
That is why I've reached the only conclusion

Never going to fall in love again

I could either let this make or break me
Brokenness is what I'm accustomed to
Which only seems to beg the lonely question
What can you lose what you've never had to lose

This one idea should solve the problem
No need to write out a to do list
It's all riding on this grave solution

**Never going to fall in love again

You're betting me
and I'm betting you
I say we're done
you say we're through
It's a good bet
that we both will lose
Cause you're in love with me
and I'm in love with you

We go through this
every now and then
You say that's it
and I say Amen
You've had enough
I say we're done
But then remember that
we're both in love

When throwing stuff
we duck and run
As our holding glue
daily comes undone
But thank you very much
we patch it up
All because
we're both in love

So place your bet
and I'll place mine too
That we're not done
no, we're not through
Being a good bet
that we two won't lose
Cause you're in love with me
and I'm in love with you

I know a man
Who could sell cheese to the moon
A book of riddles to a monkey
A lonely sound to a loon

This same man
Could sell colored flames to a fire
Broken wings to an angel
Salty tears to a Town Crier

I know a man
Who could sell green to a leaf
Bark to a dog
If it's up the wrong tree

This same man
Could sell a shadow to the night
Sassafras honey to a bee
Maybe to a might

I know a man
Who could sell gravity to the earth
To help hold it down
For all that it's worth

This same man
Took all that he could
From what little he had
And left it for good

I know a man
Who knows a man
If I said anymore
You would know that I am

This same man
Who could do all of this
Would gladly give it away
If it was sealed with a kiss

Texting is the modern day wonder
Never having to place the call
You can laugh you can joke, anger evoke
While showing no emotion at all

Although I confess sometimes you must guess
What the other person is trying to say
Maybe where they are heading on the phone they're sitting
And their left cheek is typing crazy away

You can scream you can cuss throw your hands up in discust
Then calmly type out your answers
As fast as your fingers can fly you can quickly replay
Like a 70's leisure suit disco dancer

Or you can sit there and wait, take umpteen number of days
Before you get back with that
But the best part is the lesson of no personal interaction
After all why get that involved

Yes texting is the modern day wonder
From mine to your finger tips
I hope all this you can see without the help of emoji's
And the fact that I forgot to spell check

There's a man I once knew who sang the blues
Though I'm sure it wasn't in his plans
Kept a small stone in the toe of his shoe
To help him remember the things he'd forget

He would never back down nor throw in the towel
Though the blues is the blues is the blues
Never once slowed down in walking it out
Or so says the stone in the toe of his shoe

The look in his eyes weren't set on compromise
In all that life had put him through
He might have said to you if you haven't a clue
Try a stone in the toe of your shoe

Works wonders he said with memory kept
If you're deeply in debt to the blues
If only you can remember this my friend
Put a stone in the toe of your shoe

Then you won't go wrong with singing a long
To whatever song you're singing to
Being hard to ignore as the day runs its course
The stone in the toe of your shoe

I just bought a turkey
In dire need of tenderize
Also a quick summer thaw
As this chick's as cold as ice

Must have froze it in the tundra as
I dive deep into the internet
Where it's got me wondering
Why I myself didn't think of this

It says to tie up both it's legs
With a nylon stringy thingy
Hey! Get that out your head!
This ain't nothing *****!

Hook the turkey to the bumper
And take it for a ride
I watched it from my rear view
And mirror on the side

I watched it twirl and tumble
I watched it twist and shout
I watched it as it changed its shape
From inside into out

I thought I heard it gobble
As it bounced itself along
Checking progress at every red light
Tenderized...yes, but not yet thawed

The roads must be colder this year
Than at first I thought
I hop back into my jalopy
For a few more jaunts around the block

I make it back to my place
Thinking all is perfect all is well
Untie the turkey, if that's what it is
It's a little hard to tell

Now with that part of the preparation done
With the turkey and I safe back home
I plop it into the waiting oven
And gently turn it on

Here we are a few hours later
As the conversations and good times begin
Sitting around the dinner table
My guests all marvel at my hen

There's only one slight question
And they asked me if I knew
I reply...why yes that is white meat
It's just a tad bit bruised

I sat down to write you
A letter of my love
Because when I think of you
I can never get enough

I love you dear like the morning clearly
Loves the coming sun
I love you more than x 2
You are my #1

I love you like the mocking bird
Loves to hear birds sing
Because when they do their song rings true
You mean that much to me

I love you like a passenger train
Loves the humming of the tracks
I love you all the way there then
I love you coming back

I love you from the beginning
I love you to the end
I love you through the thick of it
I love you through the thin

I love you like Tupelo
Blossoms in the Spring
I love your laugh like its flower that
Is tickled by honey bees

I'll make it clear I love you dear
Just the way you are
I love you more than ever
More than the beating of my heart

I love you like there's no tomorrow
Where there only is today
Where you and me are the only thing
I love you more than I can say

I'm afraid to tell myself you left me
Afraid what will happen when I do
That I'll fall apart starting with my heart
When I finally tell myself the truth

That I never treated you the way I should
And through all this I'm the one to blame
Holding off as long as I can knowing I'm bound to break down
When what I fear I hear me say

We both know I've not been the strong one
Me always the one in need
Not sure what I will do when I finally blurt out the truth
Afraid to tell myself that you've left me

When does a poem first become a poem
The moments it's read
or the second it's born?
When it takes its first breath
on the page it adorns?
When does a poem first become a poem

When does a poem first become a poem
When it finds the right rhyme
no longer feeling alone?
When it sits on the porch
of the old poets home?
When does a poem first become a poem

When does a poem first become a poem
When it takes out the blade
and carves its message in stone?
Or tears the fabric of time
on the lesser known?
When does a poem first become a poem

An argument ensued to a grand universal tune
Between more than a few planets or two
As they remarked why was the sun in charge
When it's a job anyone could do

Saturn implored although I'm not warm
My colorful rings are a beautiful addition
In all time and space in just the right place
They would certainly cause enough friction

Mercury said I should be next
As I'm the one who's taken more heat
I've seen how it's done being this close to the sun
So the logical choice would be me

That's when Venus said, hey who's had your back
All this time through thick and thin
It's me who deserves to warm us and planet Earth
She exclaimed with a wink and a grin

Just then Mars shouted out what's wrong with you clowns
Can't you see I'm the hottest of colors
I have stood by, listening to all you small fries
As you argue between one another

Jupiter stood up and said that's it I'm done
I'm the largest so it has to be me
All of you wimps ain't got no sense
I should be providing the heat

The sun just coming from lunch finally had enough
And belched out a solar flare
From that point on they all kept their mouths closed
Not a single peep would anyone dare

Who would have thunk
Who could have guessed
That we'd all end up
Dressed like this

Here on this stage
In cap and gown
With tassels tossed
Frowns upside down

We'll say hello
To new found life
When to old friends
We say goodbye

And also to
The ways of youth
As time moves on
Without a clue

We'll run the race
Beyond all this
In hope's and dreams
That life is blessed

Where some will lose
And some will win
While others make
The best of it

Who would have thunk
Who could have guessed
That on this day
We'd be graduates

Oh can you see
Do you believe
In love at first glance
Given the chance

Or do you think
That you might need
A second look
Before you’re hooked

One that would last
Forever at best
Do you need a sign
A reason why

Would you give it a try
Love at first sight
If given the chance
For love at first glance

Allow me to explain who she is
Before I get too far into this
She is the memory inside of the kiss
And so you don't have to guess the rest

She is the moment that you hold on
The thought when it's fully grown
The very center of the rumbling storm
Where the wind always sideways blows

She is both the disease and the cure
The basic need inside the order
The forest deep speaks kindly of her
For all that she is worth

She is the ride that comes with the thrill
The child in time that can not sit still
The meaningful climb to the top of the hill
She's dressed to ****

She's the direction that keeps coming up
The long due confession that unties the knot
The very essence of never enough
The smile that tells you it's love

And when that love is added up
She is the total to the whole sum
Starting off with number one
She is the song to be sung

I hope this helps you understand
All that she is and all that she can
Taking all this, in all that is left
As nothing else need be said

Some are born into this world
To either win or lose
It all depends on where you land
Inside that attitude

You can whine and cry, roll your eyes
But why not try something new
It may sound upside down or inside out
The happy-go-lucky blues

As a teen you try your best to angst
Cause that's just what teenagers do
Not sure what it is but you know that
You've got something to prove

Of course you hate your parents
And all they put you through
To you life bites so why not try
The happy-go-lucky blues

It's not like you ever change your mind
That's what we all expect from you
But this time try and keep it light
You'll be surprised what that can do

I can almost guarantee, believe you me
You're going to like this new you
It may sound odd but it's really not
The happy-go-lucky blues

There are times when
It might seem that
I am lost and forlorn

With no explaining
Of words conveying
What has me acting so withdrawn

It's hard to fake it
What's in the making
As sometimes life just gets to me

But I keep coming
Back to your loving
As I would not think to change a thing

The way you know me
The way that holds me
Brings comfort deep down in my soul

Although at times
I still might find
The world I'm in losing control

I might withdraw
Before a fall
A safety mechanism protecting me

But for the record
There is no better
And I would not think to change a thing

And on those days
Life's thrown hard my way
Knocking me out of place

My heartbeat
Again tells me
Of the promise that I made

I can take my bouts of mood
If you can too
And if you do, please forgive me

Which is a reflection
Of our loves acceptance
And on that I would not think to change a thing

This written word
Is getting way out of hand
With people believing
The things being said

How can we control
The downtrodden masses
If what they read they start to believe
They'll stop kissing our...

Ask me no questions
I'll tell you no lies
The written word
It needs to die

Perhaps if we put
An end to the pen
Then the written word
Could not be written

One way or another
It has to be done
Before the written word
Brings the end to us

she hesitates
which always makes her late
reads worn out books at night
with quizzical looks she finds

she writes poetry
all titled please help me
while humming foreign tunes  
she rhymes black inked in blue

she's good at giving gifts
to those less fortunate
to which she receives the most
because that's all she knows

again she hesitates
with things she'd like to say
because she knows it's best
when things are left unsaid

she breathes sighs of relief
it's how she was taught to breathe
while raising her left hand
a right she feels she has

that hand she wears a broken watch
which says more than enough
inside its slient tic
is where her time is kept

when she speaks of relationships
it's a smorgasbord of hit and miss
held out like an apology
a secret that she keeps

she'd like to be a star
in a galaxy far from ours
and maybe then one day
she won't hesitate

There comes a time in a life
Where you find you've reached a place
Where the willow bends in the wind
The birds sing out in protest

Where the hope that is to come
You've seen it before all come undone
As you harken back to the truth
There's nothing new under the sun

It brings the day into the light
The struggle of the just get by
So many weathered so many worn
The fabric tattered where life is torn

When time comes to take time out
For granted is the round about
The sun will keep on shining down
With nothing new still to be found

Where in the wind the willow bends
As the birds sing in protest
Life will wallow in this mess
Until death gives us rest

If my wife had known that
She was marrying a poet
And she'd be spending the rest of her life in rhyme

I think if she had known it
It would have sent her over the edge
Or at least pretty close to the line

Poets never show it
But we never seem to grow up
I'm sure that's some sort of sign

That what goes on in our heads
Is nothing but a big mess
As we're stuck in the warp of time

I'm not sure she would have done it
The marrying of a poet
Cause who but a poet wants a life marred in rhyme

No matter how far I venture
Or where it is I roam
I can always get there from here
To the place I can be found

I don't mean to stray off the beaten path
It's just something that I do
Thankfully there's a path I can choose
That leads me back to you

I'm always out seeking adventure
Losing sight of the prize
I need to use my heart much more
Than I ever do my eyes

It's the timely beating of my heart
That tells me what to do
That puts me back on the path
That leads me straight to you

Taken in the light of wonder
Standing in an open field
Life's lighting mixed with its thunder
Without you is how I feel

So I take back to the wanting path
Where I know all to be true
In all of life's aftermath
The path that leads me back to you

I can see from the front
That we can't take it back
All the years that we had
All the years that are left

All the tears that were spilt
All the laughter we spent
All the comings and goings
In the then's and the when's

As we move towards tomorrow
Where there's more yesterdays
The less that we save
In the giving away

From the time that was borrowed
Our pants pockets filled
With the lint of our sorrow
And the change that we feel

When we find there's a hole
That continues to tear
Losing it all
To the forgotten years

I started a wave

Right where I was at

Out in the open

I raised up my hands

Over my head

Then I let them fall

Someone down the street

Well they saw it all

So they in turn

Raised their hands up

As fast as they did

They let them both drop

A chain reaction

Took over from there

Spreading out quickly

Just like a wild fire

It went from city to city

Then state to state

Soon country to country

In one gigantic wave

It circled the globe

Then came back to me

I saw it approach

As it came down the street

Today with the wave

I made a world of new friends

So much so I raised my hands

And sent it again