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2h · 18
Sand Castles
This is what it looks like to
have entirely too much -
Shell-shocked from battle with
ghosts we can't see or touch
Bathing in lavish luxury
steeped to our necks in waste -
defending sinking sand castles and
casting stones through cyberspace
Tragedy
2d · 65
Elk Ridge
Crickets cry on time
hidden by dense undergrowth
littered with plastic
--------
A calm pushed away
the damp darkness much like that
old rigged-up porchlight
For what it's worth
Mar 3 · 33
Wedding Day
JA Perkins Mar 3
Nobody grits their teeth in heaven
No sly looks or harsh words
No kids cover their ears
Till every harsh word is slurred
It's all friendly conversation
Every noun and every verb
No drinking, wrecking trucks
on slick roads with sharp curves
Nobody overdoses
Nobody gets bad dope
Nobody commits suicide
when memories steal their hope
There's no broken promises
No counterfeits or shady deals
No eviction notice because
you couldn't pay the bills
There's no dreaded phone calls
No **** or fake pills
Just a mansion with many rooms
And cattle on a thousand hills
The darkness never comes
Neither by sky nor in the eyes
of a childish heart turned sour
After one too many goodbyes
No souls that are crushed
beneath the weight of fear and shame
Just grateful bums and addicts
who found salvation in Jesus name.
Tell the dope man you can't make it
You have to attend a weddin'
Christ is coming for His bride and
Nobody grits their teeth in heaven.
A poem about addiction
Feb 21 · 60
Baby Blue
JA Perkins Feb 21
We put our problems in a bottle,
sank it, and said a prayer,
then hammered down the throttle
with our hands to the open air..
The evening sky especially beautiful -
Sun rays bursting through cotton skies
And still, it was barely suitable
to reflect from the bluest eyes..
Pontoon bouncing on choppy water
Blonde hair dancing in the wind -
just a worn out dad and daughter
who might not come this way again.
But today, the water welcomes us..
And we make for a crazy crew..
Captain Grateful at the wheel
with his first mate - Baby Blue

One thing that
I'll remember
And I trust that
you'll never lose:
Warmth that
late December
can't take from
those baby-blues
My Baby Goose
Feb 21 · 29
Jack In The Box
JA Perkins Feb 21
Horrible things have plagued me
Things I never wanted to know
So I stuffed 'em all in places
I thought I'd never have to go.  
No matter the distance traveled
Coffey Mountain or Carter's docks
Every goodbye was like a crank
on that old Jack In The Box.
One day the music slowed
The dread ushered gripping fear
And Jack came jumping out
about the coldest time of year.

Who would know the struggle?
The apocalyptic rubble.  
So sick I'm seeing double
and I haven't had a drink.

Jarred by nightly terror.
Scarred by trial and error
Acting on impulse because
I'm too afraid to think.
If you know, you know.
I hope you don't.
Feb 18 · 210
The Messenger
JA Perkins Feb 18
Never bite the messenger.  
He loves you in the end.  
Sometimes blows that hurt the most
are those from a loving friend.
Hard times for the home team
Jan 26 · 116
Prodigal
JA Perkins Jan 26
If I could only
grasp the wind,
perhaps I'd know
how freedom feels
And to find it
once again might
take the blisters
off my heels

For now, I'm lonely -
scratchin' skin
beneath the rags of
where I've been
Tiptoeing around
a broken mind -
afraid of falling in..
Here again
Jan 23 · 41
Poetry
JA Perkins Jan 23
Life's been hard,
to say the least.
Come and dine
on tears and wine.
I've seen hard times.
Let's have a feast!
Ah, yes, poetry!
That most fluid
form of self pity
Jan 22 · 62
Down Below
JA Perkins Jan 22
Burning lights scattered
across a cold, clear night
A beautiful contrast
of black and white
Such a dazzling show
for those down below
who watch their phones
to rest their bones
Times are changing
Jan 17 · 171
Dry Bones' Eulogy
JA Perkins Jan 17
The boy could run
but he couldn't walk
Had no time to think
No room to talk
Passed by more people
than he ever helped
Never knew anything
except for what he felt
But one thing good
we can say about the man
is that he's long gone now
and, here, we all stand
Meaningless
Jan 14 · 70
Kettle and the Pot
JA Perkins Jan 14
"Just keep your love about you."
said the kettle to the ***.
"What you have, you have to give
and charity is all you've got."
"And keep yourself together."
said the kettle to the cup.
"Some day soon you'll find a spoon
that stirs your spirit up."
Pleasant
Jan 13 · 657
Predestined
JA Perkins Jan 13
I could describe
everything about you
having never met you -
recite your words
like a Silverstein poem,
sketch every
imperfection, and
feel every embrace.

So believe me
when I say you're
the one I've always
wanted and that
I loved you before
I knew you.
An amazing thing
Jan 11 · 82
Reminiscence
JA Perkins Jan 11
I think about you
from time to time,
admittedly more
often than not -
Making frail attempts
to sweep my thoughts
passed the place where
you carved a spot
Wish you well
Jan 9 · 49
De Colores
JA Perkins Jan 9
If I have to be psychotic,
Let it bring no harm to anyone
Fill my mind with hues of colors;
not the pressure of passing time
If I'm convinced of any lies,
let it be "this world is just fine"
I'll bid farewell to sanity and
let the colors fill my mind
Please
Jan 8 · 171
A Midnight Walk
JA Perkins Jan 8
A sheet of ice from
the winter freeze
Candle-lit windows
haunting trees
Branches dancing
in the subtle breeze
as a quiet earth rolls
beneath my feet.

Off in the distance,
a radio tower blinks
on time in the
late night hour
A star scattered sky
so still and sweet
as a quiet earth rolls
beneath my feet.

Red lights ahead
Road ending abrupt
I'm kicking rocks
to keep from looking up
Just making my way
down the familiar street
as a quiet earth rolls
beneath my feet

Down by the oak trees
and old ball park
The hillside hidden
by the dense dark
I hear the rushing sound
of Town Hill Creek
as a quiet earth rolls
beneath my feet.
A crippled mind at ease
Jan 2 · 371
Ah she's beautiful
JA Perkins Jan 2
Genuine like a child
Candid like an open book
Exotic like The Wild
Reassuring like a second look
My baby
Jan 1 · 66
Winter
JA Perkins Jan 1
Snow accumulates
on foggy fire-lit windows
just before midnight
---
A tired fire dances
across the old wooden walls
while the children sleep
A pleasant thought
Dec 2024 · 206
Nightmares
JA Perkins Dec 2024
Who would know the struggle?
The apocalyptic rubble
So sick I'm seeing double
and I haven't had a drink.

Jarred by nightly terror
Scarred by trial and error
Acting on impulse because
I'm too afraid to think.
I'm asking
Dec 2024 · 112
Be small and pray
JA Perkins Dec 2024
Let my mind be
small and sure
as opposed to
large and weak.
And my intentions
right and pure
before I ever begin
to speak..
Lust of power
makes for a busy head
and hunger that
is never fed.  
Be still and trust
Be small and pray
And put those
childish things away
Remember
Dec 2024 · 133
Winter Walk
JA Perkins Dec 2024
A sheet of ice from the winter freeze,
Candle-lit windows, haunting trees,
Branches dancing in the subtle breeze
as a quiet earth rolls beneath my feet.

A distant light from the radio tower
Blinks on time in the late-night hour.
A star-scattered sky so still and sweet
as a quiet earth rolls beneath my feet.

Redlights ahead, road ending abrupt
Kicking rocks to keep from looking up.
Avoiding cracks in the cold concrete
as a quiet earth rolls beneath my feet

A man staggers in the streetlight glow.
He smiles because he knows that I know.
I nod and gaze down the familiar street
as a quiet earth rolls beneath my feet.

Down by the oak trees and old ball park,
The hillside hidden by the dense dark,
I hear the rushing sound of Town Hill Creek
as a quiet earth rolls beneath my feet.
Winter time
Dec 2024 · 268
Winter Wanderer
JA Perkins Dec 2024
My sail to the
winter winds, I roam,
till I find what feels
like coming home
A quiet earth rolls
beneath my feet
Dec 2024 · 122
Winter Wander
JA Perkins Dec 2024
The warmth is worn  
from my memories
Just as it were from
my restless feet

And I'm afraid
to think of anything
but the cracks
in the cold concrete..

Still, I chase the
winter breeze on passed
the candlelit windows
and snow-capped trees.

And, my sail to the
winter winds, I roam,
till I find what feels
like coming home.
Seek and you will find
Nov 2024 · 161
Dancing in a 10% Chance
JA Perkins Nov 2024
You can tell me
it'll never rain,  
but it won't keep
the rain from pouring..
or doubt the wings
while a mocking bird
sings, but it won't keep
the bird from soaring..

You can doubt the
sun on a cloudy day
And, from the sea,
maybe doubt the dunes
Or tell me there's
no God in heaven
Who heals my
internal wounds.

You can doubt the fate
of an injured deer
right up till you
see him prancing
And you can tell me
that I'll never walk
but you'll never keep
my feet from dancing
Smile in the storm
Dance in the rain
Oct 2024 · 71
Autumn Mist
JA Perkins Oct 2024
The sky grey and gloomy
contrasted with subtle ease
the trembling damp branches
of fire-colored maple leaves
As if the mountain were ablaze -
contained by the gentle mist
It was all held securely
Still the stillness, I resist

What is it that
I'm afraid of?
And what reason
do I have to doubt?
As if the One who
tames the fires
would ever leave me
here without
Can't the fires of
of a failing mind
be tamed by
the Autumn mist?
So why do I burn with
such remorse
clinching worn
memories in my fist?

Go to sleep, dear child
It all fades away in the end
There's no way to tame the wild
or grasp for the Autumn wind
Find rest in what is true
when there's nowhere else to go
There's nothing for you to do
and nothing else for you to know
A pleasant thought
Aug 2024 · 191
Ah.. the irony
JA Perkins Aug 2024
"It's a scam!" I said
before I fled,
as I sacked up all
the lady's bread.
And the *** made out
with all her stuff
having pointed out
the Kettle's bluff..
The Obvious Kettle
and The Self-righteous ***
Jul 2024 · 217
Born to Dance
JA Perkins Jul 2024
"Just half a step
too slow", she said
"You don't have to
chase the beat..
Let rhythm oil those
bones", she laughed,
"and flow to
your two left feet.
It's nothing you have
to try to do..
We're all born to dance.
But some of us are
self aware and won't
give ourselves a chance.."

She smiled and put
her hand in mine and
it calmed my busy brain
And the whole night
we spent cheek to cheek  
Dancing in the pouring rain.
Ah the thought of it
Jun 2024 · 194
Queen of the Night
JA Perkins Jun 2024
.. likes tearing people down
with loose talk and harsh words -
Empathy tossed aside
by the misuse of nouns and verbs.
.. a twisted view of society
just bound to be seen and heard -
Everyone, sit tight
till every harsh word is slurred.
The Queen of the Night Life;
her brokenness - a crown.
Out-spokenness - a sword
that she just loves to swing around.
As for me, I'm just a jester;
my struggle - a comedic scene,
but she’s justified by anger
only entitled to the royal queen
Jun 2024 · 185
Simple kind of love
JA Perkins Jun 2024
I don't have to know all
the places you've been
Or some love that fizzled
out way back when..
Just hold my hand
in the moonlight glow,
pull me close,
and kiss me slow..
Simple as that
May 2024 · 130
Peace in Poor Living
JA Perkins May 2024
Outside my window,
I hear a lonely dog wail
his tired nightly woes

His echoed alarms
interrupt an otherwise
quiet summer night
Haiku
May 2024 · 392
The Penman's Fall
JA Perkins May 2024
He cradled pieces
of poetry that
no longer
made much sense

He'd add a word,
here and there
or change some
misused tense

But from metaphors
forgotten to a flow
that slowed to still

the penman died
a lonely death
from all that
moved his quill

Beautiful words
from a dying man -
had he lived and
loved at all

but who will know or
care enough to brace
the penman's fall?
You write so beautifully -
your mind must be a
terrible place
Mar 2024 · 247
Dry Bones
JA Perkins Mar 2024
Day after day, I rivel.
Who knows for how long?
Reduced to mere survival
screaming it’s selfish undertone.
Aspiration is long forgotten
If I live, to what avail?
Despair darkens my demeanor
Time and time again, I fail.
Compassion is now contended;
Making less sense than it did before
And those who are offended
break the hinges off my door.
Disappointment - my adornment
as if I’m capable of more..
If only they knew the torment
that is relentless at my core.  
Wisdom only mocks me.
She dances around my doom
singing, “Here lies a foolish boy
who followed freedom to his tomb.”
Now I’m cast to raging seas;
A boat beaten by an angry wave;
unanswered cries like pleas
from crows that cry above my grave.

Tell me, Lord.. can these dry bones live?

Ah, Lord, You know.
But I am left to wonder why
every attempt to be the hero
turns to ashes when I die.
All this foolishness will follow
as I lay down and return to dust
and time is sure to swallow
all these fallacies I trust.
A far cry by Dry Bones
Feb 2024 · 188
10% Chance of Rain
JA Perkins Feb 2024
I danced in a ten
percent chance of rain;
not just because it
beat the odds,
but because
it never even
considered them.
It reminded me that
systems and
statistics are
man-made and fallible -
boasting with a
sure tone,
yet still confined
to near fraudulence..

You can tell me
it’s unlikely to rain,  
but it won't
stop it from pouring.
You can tell me
there's no God,
but it won't stop
Him from healing
these festered wounds.
And you can tell me
I'll never walk,
but it won't keep
me from dancing..
beat the odds
Feb 2024 · 659
Trauma
JA Perkins Feb 2024
Who would know the struggle?
The apocalyptic rubble..
So sick I'm seeing double
and I haven't had a drink.

Jarred by nightly terror
Scarred by trial and error
Acting on impulse because
I'm too afraid to think.
I'm asking
Dec 2023 · 520
Liberty
JA Perkins Dec 2023
The evening sky
especially beautiful -
Sun rays bursting
through cloudy skies
And still, it was
barely suitable
to reflect from
the bluest eyes
My baby
Dec 2023 · 228
Tail End of the Wind
JA Perkins Dec 2023
Worn boots pound
the broken sidewalk.
The pavement rolls
beneath my feet
And I'm scared to
think of anything,
but the cracks in
the cold concrete.

Kicking rocks to
keep from looking up.
I'll never be the same.
You could take my clothes
and, before I froze,
I'd feel no less ashamed

Still I chase the winter breeze
on passed the candle lit
windows and tall Oak trees..
And at the tail end
of the wind, I roam
where nowhere
feels like home..
It's cold out here
Dec 2023 · 487
Queen of the Night
JA Perkins Dec 2023
.. likes tearing people down
with loose talk and harsh words -
Empathy tossed aside
by the misuse of nouns and verbs.
.. a twisted view of society
just bound to be seen and heard -
Everyone, listen quietly
till every harsh word is slurred.
The Queen of the Night Life;
her brokenness - a crown.
Out-spokenness - a sword
that she just loves to swing around.
And me, I'm just a jester;
my struggle - a comedic scene,
but she’s justified by anger
only entitled to the royal queen
The old Alaina
She's better than that now
Dec 2023 · 458
Falling Stars
JA Perkins Dec 2023
An Autumn moon
glowing in a purple sky
along with lesser lights
watching as
I lost my mind..

Stars gathered in
her tired eyes..
Every cosmic cluster
Glimmering, dimming
then falling into the night..

Constellations poured
across her pretty face
Recklessly they'd
c

r

a
s
h
s    l    s    i    g
     p   a   h   n    
on the ground

then were gone
without a trace..

Her tender hand consoled
the pieces left of me
And I just knew those
falling stars
would be the death of me
Farewell
Nov 2023 · 348
Winter Night
JA Perkins Nov 2023
Snow accumulates
on foggy fire-lit windows
just before midnight
---
A tired fire dances
across the old wooden walls
while the children sleep
A peaceful thought
Nov 2023 · 163
Sinner's Prayer
JA Perkins Nov 2023
A wayward sheep strayed from the fold;
A selfish man whose heart's been sold;
A shell of what I should've been;
Forgive me, Lord, for I have sinned.

A restless runner with a story untold;
A drifting dreamer out in the cold;
Lustful eyes that refuse to see;
Subdue me, Lord, that I may be free.

A desperate prayer from a fiery foxhole;
A foolish pursuit of pleasure and gold;
A broken man who dies and dies;
Reprove me, Lord, that I may be wise.

A marred jar in the Potter's mold;
I bit the hand that fed my soul;
I turned away and dug my grave;
Have mercy, Lord, that I may be saved.
Have mercy
Nov 2023 · 183
Whoever
JA Perkins Nov 2023
I think about you
from time to time,
admittedly more
often than not -
Making frail attempts
to sweep my thoughts
passed the place where
you carved a spot.
I hope you're happy now
and living well
I hope your mind
is quiet and free -
that your safe and warm
and your soul reborn
to be whoever
God calls you to be.
Love you dearly
Oct 2023 · 346
Break of Day
JA Perkins Oct 2023
Morning sentiment
Sunlight dancing on the stove
through wavy curtains
---
Freshly made coffee
thickens the homely kitchen
with pure pleasantry
The peace of poor living
Oct 2023 · 757
Eulogy for Dry Bones
JA Perkins Oct 2023
The boy could run
but he couldn't walk
Had no time to think
No room to talk
Passed by more people
than he ever helped
Never knew anything
except for what he felt
But one thing good
we can say about the man
is that he's long gone now
and, here, we all stand
Self pitiful
Oct 2023 · 211
Storm
JA Perkins Oct 2023
Distant thunder roars
Maple branches surrender
to the gusting wind
---
A busy boy turns
toward the darkening clouds
waiting for the rain
Oct 2023 · 627
Tombstone reads:
JA Perkins Oct 2023
He stumbled to
the edge of town
and fell into the
waters rough -
held all his breath
while going down
till there was none
to come back up
Tragic
Oct 2023 · 107
letters in my notebook
JA Perkins Oct 2023
I have letters in my notebook
that I've never read for you,
I wanted you to read them,
but you had better things to do..
I wrote some of them in red ink,
some of them in black,
and some of them are bitter
'cause you'll never take me back
I've got letters in my notebook
that you'll never want to read
but bitter tears that stained them
are all the love I'll ever need..
There's more to life than loneliness,
more to love than who you've lost,
more to hope than disappointment
because a blurry line's been crossed.
I wrote you one more letter -
one you'll never have to read
It reads, "The purest kind of love
is the love you give and don't receive."
Better to give
Oct 2023 · 149
Prodigal
JA Perkins Oct 2023
If I could only
grasp the wind,
perhaps I'd know
how freedom feels..
And to find it
once again
would take the blisters
off my heels..
For now, I'm lonely -
scratchin' skin
beneath the rags of
where I've been..
Tiptoeing around
a broken mind -
afraid of falling in..

If I could only catch
my breath, perhaps
I'd make my
way back home
And if I could find
you waiting there,
then I'd never
have to roam
For now, I'm tired,
but I keep walking
in search of what
I left behind -
hoping it didn't die
somewhere inside  
my broken mind
Lord help me
Oct 2023 · 209
Autumn Mist
JA Perkins Oct 2023
The sky grey and gloomy
contrasted with subtle ease
the trembling damp branches
of fire-colored maple leaves
As if the mountain were ablaze -
contained by the gentle mist
It was all held securely
Still the stillness, I resist

What is it that
I'm afraid of?
And what reason
do I have to doubt?
As if the One who
tames the fires
would ever leave me
here without
Can't the fires of
of a failing mind
be tamed by
the Autumn mist?
So why do I burn with
such remorse
clinching worn
memories in my fist?

Go to sleep, dear child
It all fades away in the end
There's no way to tame the wild
or grasp for the Autumn wind
Find rest in what is true
when there's nowhere else to go
There's nothing for you to do
and nothing else for you to know.
A poem for the tormented
Oct 2023 · 413
Sleepy Town
JA Perkins Oct 2023
Cold winds rustle through
the Sleepy Town oaks
The whirling whispers
louder than the
Sleepy Town blokes
Candles in the windows -
the Sleepy Town hoax
for the town is long deserted
by the Sleepy Town folks
The echo of former laughter
from the Sleepy Town jokes
The Autumn fog appears as if
The Sleepy Town smokes
Rain recalls the memory,
as the Sleepy Town soaks,
of livelihood long forgotten
by those Sleepy Town folks..
Autumn
Oct 2023 · 874
Where the Cold Wind Blows
JA Perkins Oct 2023
You might see him walking
where the cold wind blows,
a troubled ol' boy
that no one knows..
He'll stumble through
a small, quiet town
talking under his breath
and looking down
Where he comes from
and where he goes,
I guess, depends where
the cold wind blows.

He leaves no footprint,
No hellos or goodbyes
with nary a hint of life
inside his empty, pale eyes
No one calls his name
but the crickets and crows
and the whispering pines
where the cold wind blows.

I hear tell of a time
before the cold winds blew
when that troubled ol' boy
knew all that he knew
He had a light in his eyes
and purpose in his step
with words well spoken
and his place well kept.
But we reap what we reap
from the seeds that we sow
Perhaps he's bound to roam
where the cold winds blow.
A path he knows
but never quite chose
Sep 2023 · 705
Born to Dance
JA Perkins Sep 2023
"Just half a step
too slow", she said
"You don't have to
chase the beat..
Let rhythm oil those
bones", she laughed,
"and flow to
your two left feet.
It's nothing you have
to try to do..
We're all born to dance.
But some of us are
self aware and won't
give ourselves a chance.."

She smiled and put
her hand in mine and
it calmed my busy brain
And the whole night
we spent cheek to cheek  
Dancing in the pouring rain.
Don't think too much
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