And here am I,

So terrified by the scale of it all,

That I must escape into banality.

These days, I feel I've lost my spark
That flicker of creativity.
Well yes, I lit the candle;
I knew it was time for it to burn,
That eventually it'd burn out:
The dulling light emanating faint warmth.

But I think there's something poetic, too
About blunt truths
And being so honest it feels bland—
Bland enough to make you feel.

I want To Turn Feelings Into Words.

I enjoy the struggle
To make a sentence beautiful.
Use the right adjective,
Or the precise adverb
Which is suitable.

I strive to turn emotion
Into something
We can read.
Something other people
Will believe,
Open up and
Let themselves bleed .
For,

There is nothing more sad
Than an unhappy person
Deprived of honesty and worse.
Believe in nothing,
Except the lies
They nurture
In the safety
Of their own
Universe.

(Gerry Aldridge © 2017)

Eyes fixed on the sun.
Shoulders back.
Back straight.
Chest out.
Solid breath.
Eyes fixed on the sun.
Eyes fixed on the sun.

Control is an illusion created by fear
Consumed by the restless, caught begging for sleep
Reflection is ruthless, a bottomless pit
A strange kind of way of breaking a kid

Paychecks, and billboards, and coffee mugs say:
"We're building and building and building away"

A body that wanders sets foot on new ground
So a mind that wanders is a mind that expands
A mind that expands is a mind that creates
Textures and shapes and colors and sounds

Paychecks, and billboards, and coffee mugs say:
"We're building and building and building away"

A mind that reflects is trapped in itself
Constantly spinning in a conical shape
A circular fashion, more narrow each day
Until it's caught, and sealed, and safely stored away

Meal plans, and caffeine, and bucket lists say
Treadmills, and timesheets, and calendars say
Paychecks, and billboards, and coffee mugs say:
"We're building, we're building. Keep building away"

Whilst I sit and read
I fly on a unicorn
Lighting up the sky