iteration

breathe in
breathe out
beat
beat beat

sleep
breathe in
breathe out
beat
beat beat

sleep
breathe in
breathe out
beat
beat beat

sleep
breathe in
breathe out
beat
beat beat

wake
breathe in
breathe out
beat
beat beat

wash
breathe in
breathe out
beat
beat beat

coffee
breathe in
breathe out
beat
beat beat

cigarette
breathe in
breathe out
beat
beat beat

dress
breathe in
breathe out
beat
beat beat

work
breathe in
breathe out
beat
beat beat

work
breathe in
breathe out
beat
beat beat

relax
breathe in
breathe out
beat
beat beat

eat
breathe in
breathe out
beat
beat beat

relax
breathe in
breathe out
beat
beat beat

sleep
breathe in
breathe out
beat
beat beat

sleep
breathe in
breathe out
beat
beat beat

Continue iterations until cycle complete .....

sleep
sleep
sleep ...

.
                                 beat it
                           beat it, beat it
                      beat it, beat it, beat
                       beat it,beat it beat
                           beat it, beat it
                           beat it, beat it
                           beat it, beat it
                           beat it, beat it
                           beat it, beat it
                           beat it, beat it
                           beat it, beat it
                           beat it, beat it
                           beat it, beat it
                    just beat i     t,  beat it,
               beat it,  beat     i t,  beat  it,
                beat it, beat     i t,    beat  it
                    beat  it ,           beat  it.

A weekend hymn is playing,
this is what I hear it saying,

Sounds of music, people swaying,
people coming, people staying,

Get a drink cuz' I'm buying,
have a ball, I ain't lying,
don't be alone at home & crying,
instead of feeling like you're dying,
people at the door are vying,
for a little spot I'm spying,

Grab a coat
& clear a throat,
  baby let's go hit a note,
wouldn't wanna miss the boat,
I tell you in special quote,
...this is what I wrote,

I hear it play,
a fiddle say,

Find,
that beat,

That beat,

That beat, that beat, that beat,

Just like a heart

it beats, & beats & beats

it beats, & beats

A pounding in my chest

repeats, repeats,

That beat,

repeats,

that beat,

that beat,

that beat, that beat, that beat,

that beat,

it beats,

& beats & beats & beats

repeats, repeats,

so come in off the streets,

repeats,  
  re-beats,

beat, beat, beat, beat, beat,

& beat again,
repeat,

I play it in a song ,
as  you hit repeat,
& you move along,
as music it re- beats,

Move across the floor,
& quickly move your feet,
come along my darlin',
get up off a seat,

So clap along with me
in one-two
harmony,

Tap along with me
be happy as can be,

Clap a little
tap a little
rap a little
see,

Then tap your feet,

Then you find a  beat,

repeat, repeat,

I'm tellin' you a treat
  it's feelin' really neat,

I feel again a beat,
re-beat, re-beat
re-beat,

Come with me my sweet,

Rap a knuckle on a tree,
pick a banjo, slap a knee,
count it now, one two, three,

Swing your darlin'
'round the room,
dip her back
just like a groom,
put in her hair,
a lovely bloom
it reeks of fun,
a strong perfume,

Prominade & dosey doe
tip her back & dip her low,
walk the floor now,
to & fro,
keep your lady right in toe,

Twirl your baby 'round & round
then bring her back,

Right back around her,
then bring her back
to where you found her,

Twist & shout let's move about,
time for you to let it out,
lifting up a silly pout
we'll do again, again,
no doubt,

Weekend's here so have some fun,
relief from feet been on the run,
work for most well it is done,

This is really quite a sight
we dance around a drunken fight,
it gave us just a tiny fright,

So,
just dance a dance with me tonight ,
baby hope you're feelin' right
I have right here just one invite,

Glad you came with me in spite,
'cuz tomorrow we will write.



Cherie Nolan © 2016

On a bed in which I lay
A life I see
A century old path leading
To this moment
No matter the path I took
It all lead to this
At least in this I feel no pain
No sorrow
No regret
Soon I am to meet
All that brought others and me
Heart beat eighty

I can see the glows of the tears
Slowly falling down their cheeks
People I have brought together
By my own hand and the grace of fate
Mothers, daughters, brothers, sisters
People of my past of torn from the battles
United under the pressure of loss
People for the future
Are brought another lesson of life
People of present
Given another relief from inner waterfalls
Heart Beat Seventy

My wive is closest
My daughter is next
Whispering please don't go
The warmth I feel
Is from their breaking hearts
I sing the songs from which we first met
Trying my best not to sound goofy
Managing to ease the pain for only a moment
Lights start dancing around me
Family from what seemed each generation
Come to help me across the line.
Heart Beat Sixty

Her hair lays on my chest, feels like it did when we first met
On that summer day down by the river
The water rushing through our toes as we danced the song of the winds
Laughter filled the air
Fish even decided to join the chorus
The splash of their jumps changes the beat
Our hearts sync to it
The air is filled with love
Even the angel of death paused in admiration.
Chuckling "I guess it will be a while"
Heart Beat Fifty

My sisters all gather in tears while my brothers to stay strong
I whisper to them I was sorry
For not being there in a time of need
I told them what our time apart has caused
I told them in fear I would never see them again
They became ghosts to fill the gaping hole that held in my heart for times too long
Only to dig its depth
The middle and second of youngest sisters granted the forgiveness
The older that is closer to my number still eggs the stubborn head
My brothers never held a grudge
The youngest of eight, never held a love quite like the rest
But still understood the pain
Despite having been born during the aftershocks
Heart Beat thirty

The Lights grew brighter
No sound could move
When this began I could hear the cries of women
Bringing out the next of the world
I hear the shouts of children in pain
I could feel everything
But now there was nothing, but a pressure on my chest
Dogs have gathered on my body, next to my wife and daughter
Smiling at a sight long seen not
My wife's hears their breaths and cries even louder
But no sound could be heard
My daughter knew what was coming, and joined the tears too
I felt the tears like the waters of holy river
Cleansing the filth still clinging to my soul
Heart Beat Fifteen

The voices from the past start to enter
Encouraging words that all will be alright
Everyone around me has changed
From the old that they once were, to youth in which we first met
My grandparents who died in pain appeared by my side
Looked better then I could remember
My wife was once again 16, the year that we met
My children were babies, crawled by the animals that lay on my body
Grandpa tells me that "This is the last look, might as well enjoy,
"The fruits of my labor have grown, but for now I will see the seeds,
"Each breath I take unlocks the cage that my soul was trapped,
"So I may live,
"If there is anything you want to say, say it now"
Heart Beat ten

I lifted my hand to touch my wife, as I would when surprising her with a present
I asked for a pen and paper to write one last message
My time is running out
Heart Beat Nine

The Lights raise their hands to grant me a slice of strength
Enough to help with what was needed
"To my family, to my friends"
Heart Beat Eight
"If you need me and I am gone. Look to the Stars"
Heart Beat Seven
"My mind has always been there, it was only a matter of time..."
Heart Beat Six
"Before my body decided to follow. Remember the words I have said..."
Heart Beat Five
"For each was meant to guide you. Do not allow yourselves to fall apart because of petty..."
Heart Beat Four
"Wars. I taught you all to patch wounds as soon as they are made so that you will never lose touch..."
Heart Beat Three
"of who you are an where you came from. The devil himself tried to take me over, but I fought it by accepting who I was. Do not argue over difference, do not blame any new lives that enter in the place of the lost..."
Heart Beat Two
"And do not stop being a family. Take my words and grow. I love you all with all my heart and I want you all to remember that no matter the trouble. I want you to remember that I will be still be here at your side protecting you every step you take. As will our ancestors. Use your gifts well and use them to help others. Please."
Heart Beat One
"With Love, Dakota. Blessed Be"






Heart



Beat



Zero

One beat
One drum beat
One heart beat
Since the beginning of time the beat always was
Beating in continuous form within the storage of the human soul

The heart skips a beat
The drum beat changes
The beat gets faster and more intense
The throbbing heart feels it will explode with the pressure
There is no warning to be had that excels within the intents passion
That spills from this thing called the human being

The heart skips another beat
The drum beat pulsates with the driving of the heart
Faster and faster the heat begins to grow between us
The heart beat
The drum beat
The two beats join forever as one
The one beat beats out of control
The emotional high is more than the human soul can contain

As the beat intensifies in speed and scope
The passion overflows from our hearts
The passion, the flavor, the very essence of our soul
Is exemplified within this one beat

As long as our hearts beat true nothing else matters
The passion, we have gone to far to turn back now

The heat calms down
The deed is done
The excitement wares off
We sleep

One beat
The heart beat
The drum beat
From the beginning of time the beat always was
The beat always will be

Beat at it
and
Beat at it
and
Beat at it
Beat
Beat
Beat
Beat

Beat at it
till it hurts
Beat
Beat

Beat
till you're numb
Beat at it

Beat at it

Beat at it
till you're done

Beat
Beat
Beat

then wait
and wait and
Beat at it
some more.

drums beat! beat! beat!
i hear them vibrate
from my head to my feet
  
you make them loud
my love
for in my heart
your echoes repeat
with beat! beat! beat!
  
for it is you my love who keeps my heart beating
beating like the drums from the start
  
so beat! beat! beat!
heart and drums alike!
beat for her
beat for him
beat until you feel it limb-to-limb
  
for you my lover i knew it true
that our hearts beat together
two-by-two
  
so please!
BEAT! BEAT! BEAT!
at home or on the street!
to the heart of drum!
to the heart of the soul!
find love in life
and make it whole
beat. beat. beat.

Terrified... no... not terrified
Mad?  Of course I am mad!
Stircken with madness!

My every emotion heightened
I can hear and feel every sound from heaven, earth, and hell

Impossible to describe when or  how she started to haunt me so.
All day and night in dreams she walked with me.  
Something in her voice... something dancing there in her words
And those eyes, eyes more endless than the oceans
Yes, her eyes!

Yes, her eyes drove me into this insanity.
Her eyes, heavy in dark storms, dancing with demons,
Hiding beauty not meant for mortals to gaze upon
And in their darkness hides something more
Something covered by such black grace
Guarded and tormented by devil and beast

Her   HEART

I dare say this
In no napping nor no dreaming
Will you find
No treasure, no paradise, no living creature
Could be as lovely
As her heart
And her poor heart trapped there
In this private hell


What was I to do?
She hardly knew my name but already
I found myself desperate for her affection...


I awoke in the middle of the night
My soul on fire
My body drenched in longings warmth
My chest ready to burst with madness
The devil sitting at the end of my bed
Politely sipping tea
"Bad dream?" He said with a snicker in his teeth
"No...no... I know..."
He inhaled deeply,
"I can smell it on you."
His teeth growing wider with his smile.
"Love...that's it, isn't it?"
I answered not...
Nothing good would come of it...
He had murdered my heart and soul before
More than once or twice
"Come, come now, son... you know I mean no harm."
The devil continued
"What a beautiful sight, this dream of yours.  Oh... those eyes... You poor boy, you never had a chance"
He laughed and sipped and sipped and laughed.

"Love sweet love... Is there nothing more sickly heavenly than love.  You fools will do everything and anything for it...
Lie, cheat, steal, ******...
Anything that is, accept,... treat it well"

And ****
He was gone

He was right though
My own heart
Dead and buried beneath the floor boards of my soul
Hidden in the darkness
Safe from the ills and pains and beauty of  

LOVE

And it was my own hands
And sinister villainous laughter
That had murdered and buried it there
So long ago
Never never
Wanting to feel its beat again
Its foolish beating

Beat beat
Beating

Too high and too quick
Had it flown
Loving and then breaking
Leaving me alone to
Its heartache and woe
Too many times
Too many times to bare
So I hid in the dark from it
Standing still for many days
So still for many nights
Until it knew not where I was
It trembled to think itself alone
It cried there and I nearly laughed
Frozen I remained
Listening to it beat and cry and cry and beat
Then quickly I leapt upon it
And grasped it with both hands
Suffocating the life from it
Holding it down waiting
For its beating

Its beat beat
Beating to stop

And it slowed
And slowed and slowed
Until at last
It stopped
And I knew, oh I smiled to know
I knew I was forever more
Safe from the ills and pain and beauty of

LOVE


I wept, oh how I wept
Why is a heart so magnificent
So lost and troubled in despair
Her heart, so weary
So dreary
Such painful beating

Beat, beat
Beating

Right outside
My dreaming

Dream, dream
Dreaming

What could I do
Other than sit and watch
The horror of this show
My hands no more than ghosts
My voice ached to silent screams
If I could only help
If I could only love

LOVE
Her  HEART


And then I heard it...
Softly
Slowly
My dead heart

My dead
Dead heart

Pounding gently beneath the floor boards
Lost in the darkness of my soul
It grew louder
It grows louder still
I must be hearing its ghost
It cannot be

My dead
Dead heart

But louder and louder
It rang in my ears
My soul trembled from the sound of its beating

Its beat beat
Beating

For the ills and pains
Of love
This could not be
I paced the darkness
In nervous strides
My heart
Was to forever
Remain lifeless and lost
Beneath forgotten floorboards
Deep deep down
In the bowels
Of my lonely soul
I felt its death
Felt it give its last breath and beat
In mine own murderous hands

The ills and pains of love
Macking ridicule of my past deed
No! No... it mustn't be...
Louder... louder... it rang
Sound reverberating from
The hollow of

My dead
Dead heart

Faster and harder and louder
It pounded relentlessly
Pounding like the wings of a mad black bird
Echoing laughter from its beak made of devils horn
I heard... I knew...

That beat
Beat beating

Death had released my heart
Unable to hold and hide and keep it safe from
The ills and pains...
And most of all...
The beauty of

LOVE

No slower than lightning
My heart burst forth
Shattering the hidden floorboards
Splintering the depths
Of my soul
With new ills and pains and beauty of

LOVE

Off it flew
Such foolish flight
Drunk with courage
Oh that stupid stupid heart

Beat beat
Beating

A fools quest
A knights death
Off it went
Beating its black wings
Off toward devil and beast and despair
Guided by the sound
Of her heart
The painful

Beat beat
Beating

That beautiful sound
Right outside my

Dream, dream
Dreaming

Beat,beat,beat goes the drum
The heart quietly lerking in the shadows
Time paces and the day will come
Siting waiting listening to the echos
Beat, beat,beat goes the drum
How does it feel the drummer boy says
Soundly and coldly you feel  destroyed
Listening as the drum plays
Left feeling empty and broken hearted
Beat, beat, beat goes the drum