parlaying quality action,
obedience to inner voice
in thought, speech, or sanction,
aware of Divine free choice

self-worth for obeisance to opinion
inflating a doomed balloon,
bowing to man, unworthy dominion,
weaving an iron cocoon

insides beats rhythm of hopes and dreams,
like jazz, pulsating nowhere,
screaming aloud it ain't what it seems,
a world that's doomed to failure

Step forward instead of backward
Lift up instead of put down
Help instead of hurt
Love instead of hate
Inspire instead of limit
Kindness instead of harshness
Integrity instead of corruption
Lightness instead of darkness
Hope instead of despair
Laughter instead of tears
Creativity instead of bland
Dancing instead of sitting
Tolerance instead of none
Positivity instead of negativity
Possible instead of impossible
Step forward

Between a rock and a hard place you can find
A blessing in disguise of the challenging kind,
As every cloud has a silver lining (so I'm told),
Go chase the rainbows and the pots o' gold.

At the end of the day, hit the ground running,
Think out of the box, be ever so stunning,
Touch base and break the glass-ceiling,
Push the envelope, leave others reeling.

But throwing 'em 'neath the bus is an ignoble act,
And actions speak louder than words (-that's a fact),
So by all means make lemonade when life gives you lemons,
But don't use folks as step-stones to embrace your demons.

Better late than never, they always say,
But it is what it is, come what may.
Now the ball's in your court: take it to the next level,
In this game of clichés, we're quite the devil.

In the storm,
The darkness of sorrow,
As petulant winds threaten
And the thunder takes hold,
All shadows loom close.

no light, no angel on my shoulder,
no, just the devil caressing.

Hope dwindles.
Cringes in the darkest corner,
Dreaming of a deus ex machina,
The dawn of a new journey.

My melody faltered long ago,
Lost in the discordance of false society.

each day is a fragment of soul
some lopped, some gained,
one day i'll be again whole,
free, like a bird uncontained.

through the grey i sense the smile
through the dark i hear his cry
waiting for me all the while,
aye, until the day i die.

through the blisters, through the pain,
through the losses, through false gain,
for to find the worth of living,
just for giving, just forgiving.

Frozen.
like the strings of my heart.
Hard.
Like my outward countenance.

But beneath, the fish swim freely,
feelings no-one sees,
beyond the touchy-feely,
beneath the sword of Damocles.