we are human
we cannot be perfect
but we can always be better

we explore the world
but what good is that knowledge
without creation
we create works of art
but how limited are our creations
without exploration

happiness is easy
it's easier to drink soda
than juice celery
it's easier to scroll facebook
than read a book
it's easier to watch internet ****
than romance your lover
it's easier to freeze the fat
than exercise and eat well

yes, happiness is easy
but when did it become
another addiction?

desire is quicksand
a trap to suffering
the liberating tree branch
is knowing your desires
are imaginary and fleeting
you can let them go

on one ordinary night,
i sank into death’s realm
in all its bitterness and defeat
powerless in its consuming grip
my mind buried alive
in an everlasting nightmare
deeply personal and exposed
but that dark moment
steered me on a truer path
decorated with love and creation
leading to a dawn of knowledge

maybe, we should all
have a taste of death  
the world might be
a better place

when we think
we are separate from
the world around us
pain finds its way in

do not force things
better to flow like water
moving around resistance
changing form
as the terrain changes

cool spring water
fresh ground flour
with love and time
growing a bit sour
a spectacle divine

mankind is but a speck of sand
yet we are blind
to our insignificance
for we are only
what we know

all that we know or imagine is
bound by limitations of
language, body, and mind

language limits us
for how can we communicate all
with only words?

body limits us
for how can we sense all
with only our body?

mind limits us
for how can we let go
when fear imprisons us?

love is the saving grace
love breaks the shackles
of our earthly limitations

language cannot fully express love
body cannot fully hold onto love
mind cannot fully understand love

yet we know love
when we experience it
that makes love the most real of all

our body is the hardware
our food is the software
how are you programming
your health?

to rule by fear
may yield a large crop
but only for a season

i laughed with demons
drank scotch in hell
conversed with the devil
danced in the firey flames
that is why I now see
the beauty of heaven

the less we desire
the richer we are
but what is a life
lacking in desire?
must we become robots
to be enlightened?
or is there a place between
obsession and indifference
where happiness flourishes?

what is the meaning of life?
whatever you want it to be
it is your life after all

how dismal it would be
if the meaning of life
was one size fits all

fear is anti-fragile
the more we resist it
the stronger it becomes
let fear pass through you
feel it then let it go

we have big plans and grandiose dreams
we want it all and we want it now
but no matter how high we aim
life is just a series of tiny steps
small decisions and everyday routine
do not fool yourself in thinking
your life will be different
when the next big thing arrives
for you will still wake up each day
brush your teeth, eat your breakfast
sit on a toilet and drive to work
all while dreaming about that
next juicy carrot at the end of your stick  
it is all the same really, life
a collection of moments that make up a day
so you best be enjoying
those everyday small things
they add up to your life

caution to those who
marry for physical beauty
for flesh fades with time

just as autumn leaves
become dry and brittle
our bodies wither and die

but our soul, our mind, our heart
they bloom with age
growing brighter and wiser

we must love the soul
for the soul lasts
while the body fades

the more importance
we place on something
the more resistance
we feel regarding it
to overcome resistance
better to know the truth
nothing is that important
do not take life too seriously
and you will sail through life
with winds on your back
and little resistance

our purpose can be
one thing and many things
it draws us in while
pushing us away
it remains static while
evolving as we evolve
purpose is the light
that brings joy
defining who we are
in that moment

we try to plan and calculate
all the twists and turns of life
as if we had a choice
on how our lives transpire
the arrogance
the foolishness

the humble dandelion
a **** to some
but a wondrous gift to me
clusters of yellow flowers
decorating fields of grass
like tiny smiling faces
signaling the birth of spring
delicious bittersweet leaves
nourishing earthly roots
cleansing to liver and body
abundant and free
nature’s most overlooked plant

the billionaire man
felt more joyous excitement
driving his first used beat up Corolla
than his new shiny red Ferrari
happiness is a matter
of perspective and familiarity

your thoughts and values
are they really yours
or were they inherited
from your mother or father
or your friends or teachers
perhaps your thoughts and values
developed from your past pain
what if you let go of your
inherited thought patterns
what if you let yourself have
a blank slate of thoughts and values
to invent a new you
the real you

the heart gripped and squeezed
by an oppressive mind while its
creative blood dripped down

the mind whipped into submission
by a master ego leaving
scars of fear and insecurity

the soul mourns for heart and mind
to simply let go and open up
dissolving their chains of suffering

if you look back in time
whether near or far
you will see
we are all immigrants
it is a human need
to search for a better home
and be the change it needs

be our authentic self
but what does that mean
in a world of bombarded stimuli
constant choices and distraction
follow the road of curiosity
that will lead to our authentic self

it is always the lovers
the mothers and fathers
the friends and teachers
those closest to you
who plant seeds of doubt
in your mind
who push you away
from your dreams
only the strong (and stubborn)
may follow their heart
while those dearest to them
cast stones at their passion

we love our parents
but we must not be our parents
we honor our parents
by having our own identity
better to be the apple
that falls far from the tree
better to live your life
your way

with his heart broken
the artist sank inside himself
drowning in fear and self-doubt
once hopeful now defeated
inspiration abandoned him
unable to paint masterpieces
with the poisoned blood
gushing from his fragile heart
that now runs dry

those who embrace
the fast life
find their way
to an early grave

too many times 
we live to please others 
tailoring our vision
to meet expectations of the crowd 
but we feel a twinge of heaviness 
knowing something is amiss 
that we are prisoners in our life
 
defy the crowd
ignore everyone else
live for yourself and be selfish
let your light shine

we would happily
walk into a prison
and lock the door
if it improves our security

when will you
open the cage
and soar?

we all need a little chaos
a little crazy in our life
we follow that straight line
we know where it leads
same day in same day out
it is insanity
raise a little mischief
be a little crazy
if only to feel more alive
like spice brings food alive
chaos brings life alive

oh lonely doe
outside my blurry bedroom window
on this rainy day in may
drops pouring down a sky gray
over this single solitary soul

yet still as a statue she lies
except for those black glassy eyes
that blink and stare
without expression or care
sat the lonely doe hypnotized

sadness and solitude filled my heart
as i watched the lonely doe apart
i wonder if her friends or family were near
perhaps a squirrel, bird, or deer
will the lonely doe stay or depart

i left the window to fetch a cup of tea
only to find the lonely doe had flee
she left me all alone on this dreary day
no one to see and nothing to say
in perfect solitude by myself and free

and my world
began to bloom
the way rain clouds
slowly part ways
revealing a pale blue hue
while rays of light
smile down

worry not on
reaching your destination
you will not be satisfied
when you arrive there
a new destination is
always on the horizon
be happy with the journey
that is all there is

seek what makes you hungry
if you are not compelled
to act with obsessive vigor
if your curiosity does not
taunt you with madness
then keep on searching
for that elusive hunger
it is what rips open our chest
so our soul may shine

there was a little boy
with a broken heart
his silent wound refusing to heal
that little boy became a man
now he massacres innocent hearts
extinguishing lovers like spent cigarettes
all to mend his still broken heart
and the cycle continues . . .

love, the primal energy
not a mere emotion 
we were born out of 
the eternal grace of love 
love cannot be found 
for it is already inside you 
you only have to remember 
where you came
what you are
pure love 
pure energy

chi cammina la notte
combatte la morte

Translation:

whoever walks in the night
fights with death

These were wise words shared by my father and his father before him. May God rest their souls.

the pain we choose
yields the reward we desire

the process we embrace
yields the lives we dream

the journey we walk
yields the destination we seek

what are you willing
to struggle for?

our scars
badges of character 
proof of risks 
signs of failures 
tattoos of pain 
symbols of how we embraced life 
our scars are who we are

if there is an "after-life"
there may be a "before-life"
to die and depart this world
implies to be born and arrive
maybe to learn or to love
or to learn to love
and maybe, just maybe
we have died before
and this is an “after-life”

a tiny seed germinates
in the recesses of your mind
slowly infecting your innocence
wrapping its black tentacles
around your creative heart
bludgeoning the happiness
that once resided there
once perfection takes root
we are blind to freedom
we become a slave

goddess
nurturer of all things 
mother of creation 
we are born from the mother 
she nourishes with her breast 
bestows love and creative mystery 
oh simple mortal man, 
a competitive brute 
he is nothing without a goddess 
the gods spoil us with the feminine
the beautiful women of this earth 
man is lost without them

it's all about you
you loving you 
you hating you
you creating you 
you destroying you 
it was always you
no one else

it is pleasurable
to dine in heaven
to dine in hell
where we spend our time
determines where we end up
in this life
and maybe the afterlife

a tiny seed germinates
in the recesses of your mind
slowly infecting your innocence
wrapping it’s black tentacles
around your creative heart
bludgeoning the happiness
that once resided there
once perfection takes root
we are blind to freedom
we become a slave

a spark transforms
into a raging fire
crackling and bursting  
voraciously consuming all
with time the fire subsides
into dark glowing embers
radiating soft warm heat
that burns just as deeply
as the flame that gave it life
this is the progression of love