The sun can beat down like a hammer
On the malnourished shoulders of the abandoned
To whom shade isn't an escape
But a hard won trophy

Angry winds stirred up ghosts of sand
As his thickly gilt coffin was paraded
In front of his well wishing plunderer

Dark bellied clouds loom over the spectacle
They hide secrets from people, ancient and ominous
Whispers like sharp bristles sting those dead ears

The untimely clap of thunder is heard
Rushing from the distance
Like a Banshee's scream

Whenever I drew near
You disappeared into the vast plains
Leaving a whiff of strawberry shampoo
For me to try and grasp

The piano in my brain
Plays melodies like an amateur
So confident in it's ability
To impress

Eat my heart out
But let alone my eyes
I still want to see her
If she comes back
Someday...

Met a horde of people
All of whom knew my name
Surrounded by a sea of well wishers
We want you happy...they claim

They kicked me out into the open
Severed the shackles which called me home
And now for their happiness I've been here for a while
In the midst of the unknown I roam

On the wall of the hallway
Of my suburban home
Stands a lovely lady
Clad completely in white

Her eyes stare off into the distance
Her wet, brown hair
Encircles the soft lines
Of her bare neck

Her lips curve slightly upwards
Anticipating the smile
Of the one she looks at
One who cannot be seen

This is a woman from all of history
I look at her when I pass her by
And wonder who she's looking at
With her half closed, smiling eyes.

Singing in the spotlight
Shut in a crazy, stupid cage
Oh I'm a stupid fool
Such a crazy fool

In the highs and lows
Taking life as it goes
Stuck in a moment gone by
In an invisible high

The night is drowsy
But she is still awake
Her hair tucked behind her years
A spectre awaiting death.

Blood red and paper white
My queen is the ghost of the night

Hard feelings die hard
What a bad coincidence

Making up life as it goes
You gotta think of tomorrow
Not a child anymore

The camera pans once
I sigh at my desk
The room swirls into ribbons of ash

We rush out onto the sidewalk
Pushing a wheelchair
I don't sit on

Together in the shade
In the hushed fragrance of rose petals
Crushed in your mahogany hands.

The sun gets high on this wine
Of our hidden romance
Under the last lonely tree.

The lost corner
That's where it all started from
Those abandoned toys
Rose up in a white sandstorm.

An absolute tornado
Of long forgotten moments
Churned into black hours
A list of lost adornments.

Here a dried rose
There a rusted, copper dine
Now up to the sky they rise in circles
All mushed up in forgotten time.

On a yellow, sunny morning
A grey cloud strays into the blue
The early monsoon

I stare at my grandma
As she forces a comb
Through the unruly strands of silver
Falling over her wrinkled forehead.

She has lived long
Eighty years now
She has seen men and women
Die for an ideal

I fervently hope
That she will tell these stories
Even when I lie in my
Deathbed.

The gardenias bloom
All at once
Circling the silent pond
That sits still
Like fluid glass
Rimmed with silver

A restless interval
Of obligatory time
We sit and stare
At the cold, tiled floor.

Lights flicker
In the depths of our eyes
Whenever we stop staring
And glance at the door.

Distraught
My senses seem to be everywhere

The early morning rain hasn't stopped
But the sun's golden arrows
Pierce through the wet curtain of raindrops
The leaves are gilded with golden dust
Washed away by the lazy rain
Replenished by sunlight

Someone calls me to the dining hall
The crunch of gravel
Rings in my morning ear
The slapping pelts of water
Against the fabric of the umbrella
Such a wholesome breakfast
Of nature's loveliness
All gone
Unregistered
In this confusion
Of a morning

Suddenly something passes by
In the mirror of her glassy eyes
And I see myself, bare of any disguise
I see the world, it's fire and ice.

Shaken to the very core
I rush for the exit door
But find that I
Have never been let inside.

Your very own
Outcast.

Matted hair
Sticking to their cheeks
Closed eyes
Looking at
The darkness within

A broken smile
So warm on my senses
Gunshots heard
From the unknown distance

The tears have long dried
Now
They only smile.

Days come
And days go
But the narrow gravel path
In front of my house
Remains empty

With her head on the pillow
She could still see
A small patch of silver woven in twilight
And shadowy pale forms
Dancing in the empty room
Whenever
She turned her head

Yes
There will be change
Nothing you can do about it
Best it will be
If you start swimming
Or else
You shall drown soon in apathy

I wonder if it matters...
The way words look on a page

Like the spider I waited
In the lonely Crack
For Isolation

Paranoia
Creeping up my thighs
Right into this ******, thumping heart

All of my baser senses
Numbed into action
The eyes wake with an unusual start

The hours pass by
Cotton rags on the navy sky
And little by little I drown into fear

Make music
With my hands and feet
Strum my senses
Like a lovelorn guitar

I guarantee
The melody will be
Unforgettable

Captive
Behind the darkness
Of your bright smile
Behind
Your back
I cry

Silver glistens on a bare rooftop
Night stoops onto the cement sidewalks
We plan our lives, our joys, our sorrows
And stare at the unusually bright moon tonight.

It seems like a golden orb
Peeking from beneath a muddy sea
It's glow diffusing into the clouds and the air
We stand and stare
And then close our eyes
As we grasp for the invisible warmth
That surrounds us
Tonight.

Like the last flake of dawn
We glimmer, and then subside
Into the steady afternoon
Alight with hazy feelings.

We wrap ourselves within our world
And imagine it to be
The best of all possible worlds
For some unknown, shallow reason.

Then we forget the chair, the table
The grey room we are sitting in
And immerse ourselves
Into the harsh light of today.