They’re all around us, affecting our lives in unseen ways, causing worry, hesitation, confusion, anxiety, avoidance.

They bring us to our knees.

Fears control us in ways we never realize, unacknowledged and more powerful because of their unknown workings.

Fears stop us from following our dreams, from taking risks, from pursuing love, from seeking adventure, from speaking in public, from going into the unknown, from starting a new venture, from reveling in discomfort. We procrastinate, overeat, find distractions, because of fear. We are seized with constant worry, from fear.

And yet, these fears are just clouds.

They float into our field of vision, unbidden and unwanted, like a dark stormy cloud. We get caught in the rainshower and thunder, and feel that this is our entire world. We immerse ourselves in this cloud, as if there’s nothing outside of it and it will never go away.

But the cloud will pass.

The cloud floats away, like anything else. It’s nothing to run from. It’s just a passing cloud.

So watch the cloud of fear arise, acknowledge it, and watch it float away, like any other thought. Enjoy the chill of the shadow and the wind as it passes over you.

Then step into the sunshine of the present moment, beautiful and joyous now that the cloud has passed.

In each moment, we are OK. Even when fear arises, we are OK. Learn to trust in this OK-ness, the goodness of the present moment, the enough-ness of you, right now.

See the fear pass, and see that you’re still OK.

Once you develop this skill of watching the fear pass, and trusting in your OK-ness and enough-ness, you are equipped to deal with life, and get up off your knees.

You never see the world the way it is,
You've never felt cold, hard truth;
Your heart isn't whole, or close to it,
Though it's never been torn in two.

I don't need you to save my life,
I just want something beautiful
To make me feel alive.

But if you were to be at my side
To help me through the days,
You know I wouldn't mind.

I used to think of you leaving me with desperate gasps of air and tear soaked cheeks
I swore I wouldn't make it through the lonely days and night
I swore that I would die of an aching heart.
Yet here I sit, still breathing, still surviving. All that is left is a scar of your memorie and the clothes and gifts in my closet.

"Don't hide your eyes"
She said
Smiling at me.
Though I couldn't barely tell.
That smile was elusive.
The pursed lips were more common.
Not necessarily purposely done
Just a side affect
Of my brokenness.
She looked through the shards
And found the pieces to put
My life back together.

"Smile you handsome man"
Every day she said it.
Not as a way to cheer me up,
No, simply as a heartfelt way
To say "I love you"
In different terms
And it meant more.

"You know I love you"
She whispered it
When she thought I was sleeping.
But I was in that in between
The limbo
Of sleep and waking.
And I heard it.

And I knew

She meant every word
Because I loved her too

I love her still.
Isn't it wonderful?
To be in love?
Not as a way to show it off
But as a way to know
That you've found the right one.
That picks up the shards and makes
You're shattered heart whole again.

She's done that
And I have for her.
And we whisper those words.
And the dark gives them true life.
It hides our surface flaws.
It leaves only the words
And the love behind them

I was empty… abysmal.

There was nothing left of me.

I couldn’t hurt;

I couldn’t feel.



I knew the days were passing by,

but I didn’t know how many.

Everything seemed to just blur together,

into one enormous mess.



Am I even alive anymore?

It sure doesn’t feel like it.

After all, I’m not living.

I’m just surviving.



l.r.

The loyal support we address as a ‘friend’.
There for you when you feel like breaking,
When the tears are overwhelming,
And the sadness unforgiving.
They will stand by your side through sun, sleet and snow.
And when you need them most they will be your pillow.
Cushioning your fall when you drop from great heights.
Comforting and faithful,
Never failing to make you smile.
Cause at every wrong turn,
There will always be a friend.
Someone unlike any other,
That stands alone above all the others.
Be thankful for their friendship,
Be thankful for their love.
Be thankful that even though you may be weak they remain strong,
To pull you to safety when life feels just, wrong.

I do not care about fame
I do not care about wealth

All these materialistic needs are just making me sick

What I do care about is making it

Surviving, to tell a tale
And being able to be proud of it.