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Justin Aptaker Aug 2019
renaissance
San Francisco, a whisper in the wind tonight
tells of rebirth
not Beat
or beaten down
not beatific simply being

it is whispered that soon
we will all see our visions and dream our dreams
amidst the microchip mindbending screams
can you really, really believe?

The true dawn begins tonight
at which I woke, and was alight
and the wind rushed through me like
the rustle of dead leaves

San Francisco, I never knew
you but I hear of your deeds of renunciation and renown
they have echoed across time and space like starlight
that is evergreen

I have seen, I see, I will continue to see
me in you
you in me
I was born
not anachronistically
but just in time
just in time
Written ca. 2012
Arkapravo Aug 2019
I can burn you down,
or scare you with a howl,
I am the wonder of the ages,
say the witches, the wizards and the mages,
Many warrior have had to fight my might,
a valiant attempt to set the scores right,
.
.
.
I love gold, and lust for treasures,
I am invincible, and there is nothing left for a measure,
How dare you compare me to a pterodactyl?
a feeble, birdbrained projectile,
My birth was kindled in a volcano fire,
and once I dance, you will soon be on a burning pyre
.
.
.
Alas! That is all a fad,
My reality is not really too glad,
I am confined to the tales which grandfather told on a rainy day,
and the farmer sang as he cut the fresh dewy hay,
You can also find me in books, movies and computer games,
as an emptiome of 'hard to tame'
.
.
.
I wish there was more to myself,
than just stories of gnomes, goblins, and elves,
I will never spit fire and smoke,
nor will I scare the townsfolk,
Enjoy reading about my feat
be it with popcorn, or from under the bed-sheet
.
.
.
As I wag my tail
only to find my place in another telltale.
Written sometimes in Autumn 2018, last revision in Summer 2019.
Arkapravo Aug 2019
I read his books, to cry at night,
If God is dead then show me the light,
Where is the man on the cross,  where is the shining knight ?
... that veiled specter and the streak of light ?
Is nihilism a noose too tight ?
Are we living though our final rites ?
Is this the truth or a noise just too white.

Help me God, but alas he is dead,
We killed him and bathed him blood red,
New century, and many still go unfed,
We still wage wars, are we lacking in staid ?
Amor fati ! but I remain afraid,
Has our senses met with a touch of fade ?
A distant thunder... a storm, a hale, a glade !

Gold, Oil and Drugs - GOD to spell,
... rich to richer, poor to poorer - does it ring a bell ?
Widows cry and mums wail,
Father dies and sons follow in a war to fail,
Cruise and thomahawk don't even tell half the tale,
Our inner selves are shriveled and pale,
Where is our aura ? conscience smells stale.

Markets tumble and the poor man whines,
Leaders make speech, claim things are ''just fine'',
Elephants or donkeys, red or blue - jaded bottle, old wine,
Job dwindle, banks swindle - be it wall street or the south of Tyne,
Or cities on the banks of Rhein,
Long queues, angry mob and a shout of "you swine"
... are we cowards lacking in spine ?

If recurrence is the universes' game,
Are we zombies, or just too lame,
So much we do, in an effort to maim,
What we seek is money, power and fame,
Stare into the mirror, isn't our soul the same ?
... and we all have is an ego to tame,
Love and compassion, that is all to our name.

Good and bad, with evil on right hand,
... overflowing adrenal glands,
Our moral landscape seems bland,
Driven by media which is slave to the rich brand,
It is time we take a stand,
Be the Zarathustra, not make castles in the sand,
... else our children will not find a planet too grande!

Is it the last leg for our kind,
... and smart machines are our next find,
Cometh the superman with wires fitted to his mind,
Man was an error, he is not just deaf, but also blind,
As he lacks in sight be it the fore or the hind,
There is not much to remind,
... his death is dated and signed.
Written in the autumn of 2017. The poem expresses my awe and admiration of Fredrich Nietzsche and his philosophy.
Justin Aptaker Aug 2019
couple on a motor
cycle with a death wish
drum drops
still pond
early morning
coolness broken

pull that poison, pull it deeply
deeply, deeply
pull it deeply
keep that breath, like memory bitter
sweetly taste that lungs can know

a good will, strong, and a one hundred
these are made alone
for breaking
benjamin Wishing, Well behind
our time,
our pennies
are made
for throwing
Arkapravo Aug 2019
On a blue planet, beneath a glowing sun,
We are bound to life, no place to run,
A soul to be, what can be done?
If there is more to us then forgive the pun.
This was part of a larger poem I wrote in October 2017. I did not like the rest of it.
Chris Jul 2019
Time for a break from solitude. A venture into the face of cyclic duality once more. Dark to passion to light til dark.. Again and again there, here, and when.. A world of hope, holy and harrow. As if.. Existence itself breathes.. Til matter leaves.. Left in the Void of Ends.. Found then lost.. Lost then found by the end of the beginning.. The beginning of the end.. Void of End to Well of Existence.. Life itself in all shapes and forms again and again.. Eons of Eternity.. Eternities of Eons.. I reach to touch my creator.. But I cannot find them.. Deemed dominant this broken-heart human exists within himself with a heart of love confined inside his mind one who contemplates yet stands apart eyes warm and cold young but old.. Back to shelter.. Safe again to leave it behind.. In my solitary shell.. My void of solitude.. My home of mind..
Ha.. I think too much
Derrick Jones Jul 2019
Oh philosophy
Throw me into despair, then
Rescue me again
For more poetry and essays, follow my blog on Medium at https://medium.com/words-ideas-thoughts
Thanks for reading!
Enigma GD Jul 2019
Just give me one more broken heart
So that the numbness can start to spread
Throughout my nerves and in my veins
To forget any feelings, any pains
I'll have new senses and give them new names
Senses that wont make me feel deranged

My hands and heart will become my own
Tools for sinning and a beating stone
They'll forget they served anothers throne
They'll forget what it means to feel at home

My feet and eyes will be selfish for me
Carry us to places only I want to see
No longer shall they dance on flames
Or search for truths where none remain

My lips and tongue will still be kind
To each new friendly face I find
And lovers even more so

My liver and lungs will both be mine
For indulging pleasures smoke and wine
I'll give away my torso

My mind's not mine, It's never been
Its shown me things I've never seen
Makes me speak words I've never heard

Whether thoughts are who we are? The lines get blurred

As long as, like the rest of them, it keeps me from being hurt again

It's doing it right now..
While it was meant to be expressionism, I wrote this at a time when I suspected this was going to happen, it did happen. It's only fair to say it does not make one numb. Quite the contrary. So perhaps it's a wish, for how I wanted my emotions to handle another heartbreak, but it never does get easier.
The sky is blue, and water wet;
So the ocean must be too.
Once I sunk beneath the waves
To gain a better view:

Pink and spongy; black and scaly;
Yellow jelly, cold and clammy;
Beady eyestalks glaring
From an urchin crusted cave.
Clustered tubercles protruding,
Searching tentacles recoiling,
Pulsing mandibles awaiting;
Ever lurking in the shade.

The universe exploding with
One billion burning suns,
Is empty, void and meaningless
When all is said and done.  
So for those inclined to measure
What hue the ocean be:
Ignore her gaudy creatures
For the darkness in between.

The sky is blue, and water wet,
But the ocean – it is black
And I fear the vile abyss that is
Endless, dark, and black.
Justin Aptaker Jun 2019
every line bears this weight
clumsy truth, crucifix-like
and in bearing alone, they are born

up and sing
on the wings of those demons we've seemingly seen
to be
descending
one ladder inverted
where once Jacob had torn
down his alter
in anger, in the dry place where we left the vision
Written by Justin Aptaker, 2006
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