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DOWN by the salley gardens my love and I did meet;
She passed the salley gardens with little snow-white
feet.
She bid me take love easy, as the leaves grow on the
tree;
But I, being young and foolish, with her would not
agree.
In a field by the river my love and I did stand,
And on my leaning shoulder she laid her snow-white
hand.
She bid me take life easy, as the grass grows on the weirs;
But I was young and foolish, and now am full of tears.
He could've made two—
Another just like you.
But, then, He took
A second thought,
And said, 'Just one would do.'

And so, for your loveliness—
Your uniqueness too—
There is no other
Quite like you.
There's just no other quite like you.

-Walterrean Salley
Violin sitting
‘Neath my window.
Wonder does it sound
As it did before?

It looks all right.
The strings—intact.
Wonder do I
Still have the knack?

Violin sitting
‘Neath my window.
Can I still play
As I did before?

Oh, how soothing
Too the ears.
I still can play
After all these years.

And the violin sitting
‘Neath my window
Sounds as good
As it did before.

-Walterrean Salley
Charles Schulz brought us Charlie Brown,
Who rarely smiled, joked, or sang.
A troubled soul—always down,
He hung out with the Peanuts Gang.
Lucy, Patty, Sally, Linus,
Snoopy—the whole nerdy clan
Tried to cheer ole Charlie up;
But sadly it was all in vain.

Life has many a Charlie Brown,
We see them come as well as go.
For, as in Schulz's masterpiece,
We tend, somehow, to love them so.
Too, we try our hand at luck,
Tryin' to cheer ole Charlie up.

-Walterrean Salley
Somehow, it seems that Christmas
Brings out the best in us.
Its aura and mystic has long
Been the main ******.

The mystery of Santa.
The angels and the elves.
The little Child of Bethlehem.
The presents on the shelves.

The story of the wise men.
The carols, hymns and songs.
The Christmas cards and greetings.
And the peace that comes along.

For, Christmas is so practical—
And yet it is so magical.

-Walterrean Salley
In August 1997,
At a Parisian site,
Fate ****** the world to mourn—
Just past the stroke of midnight.

A beautiful princess
At soaring height
Suddenly lost
Her earthly light.

Sunday ended
Her mortal plight—
She breathe her last
And then took flight.

A kindly woman—
Full of life.
A doting mother,
And longing wife.

Her adorable sons,
Two young lads,
Were left, solely,
In care of their Dad.

The world noted
The touch of her hand—
The generous heart
She shared with man.

Heads of state—
Moved with tears—
Honored the Princess'
Fruitful years.

America, France,
Africa too—
Reflected upon
The Diana they knew.

She touched lepers,
Which royals forbade,
Embraced the homeless
And victims of AIDS.

An image of beauty.
A charming dove.
A woman of courage.
A token—beloved.

In the eyes of children,
Diana stood tall.
She won their hearts,
And loved them all.

With plenty to offer,
She traveled a lot—
‘Twas everywhere.
Then, she was not.

A pilgrimage came
Day and night,
With oceans of gifts
For tribute sites.

They stood for hours
In sorted lines,
To leave expressions
In books signed.

On September 6,
Fans of Di
Flooded the UK
For a final goodbye.

The jammed cortege
Was over three miles:
Kensington to Abby.
At Saint James she lie.

Many knew her
And many did not,
But all mourned
The fate of her lot.

Cher'shed impressions
Upon the world.
A legacy of hope
By a British girl.

A precious jewel,
A towering steeple.
Forever the 'Princess…
Of the People.'

-Walterrean Salley
Miracles happen
Every day
To many a folk
In many a way.
They’re not hidden
Beneath a tree,
But manifested
For all to see.

A mother giving
Sacred birth.
A flower shoots up
From the earth.
A wanderer
Who finds his way.
A survivor
Sees another day.

A beggar gets
His next meal.
A patient that’s
Completely healed.
The ocean with
Its shades of blue.
The sky with
A many hue.

Everywhere
And every day,
Miracles happen
In every way.
You don’t have
To travel far—
Just look around
And there they are.

2012 Walterrean Salley
Meeeow. Meeeow. Meeeow.
Hungry. *****. Emaciated.
One could count its ribs.

Its meeeow’s were faint.
As the longing, green eyes
Stared pleading.
Begging for just a morsel.

There, now—a bowl of milk
And some bread.
And a portion of meat.

Slowly and cautiously,
It approached the spoil
With a few soft meeeows—
As if to say, 'Thank you."
“Thank you very much.”

-Walterrean Salley
(1/2015 rev)
Singlehandedly, he changed the world
With his giftedness.
And carved his way into our lives
With his geniusness.

And how should we compare
Such fascinating mind?
Indeed he was a genius.
He was one of a kind.

Despite his human flaws,
He made it to the top.
The incredible inventions—
Ambition couldn't be stopped.

Even in his last days,
He pushed, and pushed still,
Until his final work was done.
‘Twas such an incredible will.

And so, thanks to Steve Jobs—
A great mind of the day—
For his contributions
In a prolific way.

-Walterrean Salley
O'er fields and fountains,
Resounding in mountains
Is the nightingale's song.
Daffodils glisten,
As butterflies listen—
Enchanted all day long.

The echoing brine,
A conduit—refine—
Channels such tune along.
O'er rocks and rills
Go the trills
Of a melody that's strong.

On majestic scale
Is the nightingale;
For, it is among
The smallest creatures
With grandest features.
And that's where it belongs.

-Walterrean Salley
Common Nightingales sing in the daytime as well as at night. The difference is—they sing more during the night, and thus they are called “nightingale.”
Oh, how sweet the rose.
On and on its fragrance goes,
With a heavenly scent.
And when the heart is sore
(Pain, sorrow and more) ,
Causing one to lament—

Like a magic wand,
The rose lends a hand;
For it is such a mint.
Its beauty inspires,
(Of which one ne'er tires)
Leaving the heart content.

Its petals are gorgeous.
They subtly forge us
With their bold accent,
To embrace such presence
With a sense of reverence
And that, in any event.

The rose is for ages,
And yet engages—
Like a perfect gent.
It brightens the day
In such a way—
As if an 'agent' sent.

-Walterrean Salley
Christmas is but once a year
And what a magical time.
Hymns and kind wishes
As bells begin to chime.

A warm and cozy fire.
Pine scent in the air.
Billowing-chimney smoke,
Sending friendly flares.

Family and friends
Exchanging gifts and cards.
Cooking and Caroling.
Embellished house and yard.

Like the bulbs on Christmas trees,
Spirits are so bright.
‘Tis a time of miracles
As hearts change overnight.

Ballerinas dancing
And twirling all around.
Folk so amused
By the festive sights and sounds.

Then the snowman melts.
And '****! ' All is gone.
Ornaments rest on shelves
As life reverts to norm.

But the hymns and carols
Continue to chime on
With a message that's yet powerful
When the season is long gone.

Walterrean Salley
saw a diamond
In the sky.
There to sparkle
Way up high.
I pulled it down
Into my heart,
Perhaps some wisdom
To impart.

© 2009 WW. Salley
Intoxicated by the inspiration
Of his trade—
With mental powers at work,
A true poet rarely sleeps.
His mind ever churning
With powerful imagery
That produces thought,
Sound, rhythm and gesture.
He molds with metaphor,
Shapes with simile,
And paints with irony—
To produce a beautiful symphony
(Like some great maestro) ,
For himself and all who would enjoy.
Little wonder he rarely sleeps.

© 2009  W. Salley
Shadows
Stretched across the
Field—cast by the evening
Sun’s glowing backdropp against the
Clear skies.

-W. Salley
A flock of birds
Feeding  at a bath.
Just one faint sound
And they all fly away.
Natural instinct.

-W. Salley
I cast my gaze ‘pon the moon at night,
The heavenly stars are like birds in flight.
Ordained to shine in its orbit there—
It lends its light to the atmosphere
And brightens the skies in a fervent way
As the stars twinkle in fair display.
There are no clouds to hide the stars.
I can see Jupiter, and I can see Mars.
But Venus is the fairest of all;
Her brightness shines without a squall.
Poor Pluto is somewhere in the dark.
It bears no light—not even a spark.

Oh the tales the heavens could tell.
And that, the heart knows quite well.

© 2009 W. Salley
An opened door is before you
You have only to walk in
And discover your potentials—
All success to win.

An opened door is before you,
Which no one else can close.
Only you can shut it—
Despite the hindrance posed.

An opened door is before you,
So pick up your stride.
Arise and go forward,
Don’t stop till you’re inside.

-2012 Walterrean Salley
Where has the time gone?
The years have slipped away.
Every time you look around,
There is a brand “new” day.

The old passes on—
Making way for the new.
The new becomes many,
And the old becomes few.

Where has the time gone?
For, longing are the years,
Which brought joy and laughter
And sometimes even tears.

-Walterrean salley
Raw ******, these  beats,
Like im between sheets,
Copyprint,
Ghostface Yosef and Redhead,
Up in the place,
No need to place for a race,
Im taking over the case,
Clientel like Denzel,
Guaranteed youll be fallen well,
Lay the spell,
Cosmic gospels, unvip holy vessel,
Check my rap cathedral,
Unravel the evil,
To enemies playing as needles,
Folks saying, we need you,
Only when its beneficial,
Grand ralley,
Work out this joint like Salley,
Bump the host,
Lets take another champagne,
Bottles to toast,
And none come close,
Let the chickens come home to roost,
All dues paid, i rock a fade,
Never leave home without a burner or a blade,
Faster with the cut, now tell me, how many women wanna shake their ****,
I make classicals, old school bionic, plus the tapes is magical,
Federic gave me the brick,
Made it build well,
You can tell, by smell of my breath,
It's another fish scale,
This aint a fairytales,
We only hold knowledge,
To the Hidden gods, reveal
Hot the mic, tight, and rock the crowds with feel,
Stepped back like Harden,
Fools is finished, once they begin starting,
James Brown protege,
Miss the JBs, funky drummer,
Playing in the days of the hummer,
Hot summer,
Dime singles, looking good, ready  to crack the Pringle,
Catch the girlies in a tingle,
Gold on my wrist,
Watch get 'em to a mingle,
Spiritual dust, pixie wrapped these pale bunnies like dixie,
Chicks,
They love 'em wide and thick,
Tree trunk, heavy as metal punk,
Ill put scabs on ya donk,
As ya mind gets sunk,
Deeper than a ocean, got the potion, to rock the notion,
Three degrees, served haters, like mobs of Genovese,
As i release,
Street poetry, candy land wonder woman fantasy,
I make any beat look easy,
Please believe me,
Peacock feather hat, with the elephant suit to match,
Pour out another batch, space age, renaissance is where its at,
God bless over the lost souls gangsta rock n rolls
Swoles of bank scrolls scriptures told in bold roles
Of the black legacy running since 1st of the BC
**** JC he ain't never walked out treachery scenery
All painted red footprints misread from bloodshed
See the heads tapped from the feds nothing but led
Read to the back of the real threads of forgotten saids
Speeches spread messages fled over sleeping beds
Cemetery buried with wise guys who saw lies ties
To the occultic pulp fictions sculpt it counterfeit
Life tryna sway away from the strife she got many wives
Husband of agony jealously ****** and armed robbery
See society in three dimensional reality salley
A sweet strawberry still gettin' dicked in the alley
Call up a rally no time for slouching scampis Sampson
Watching out for Delilahs shadow beautiful fiery halos
That's just waiting to re'glow resurface the cold
Once the heat is out watch where ya route ya business
Just giving up the realness all I suggest is kids
Teach 'em real scholars burning collars creflo dollars
Ain't never keep it real pastors just out to steal ****
And destroy they mad at me cuz I found my joy
Huh I move like earth vibrating tectonics supersonic
Blowing super chronic playing Ojays to BarKays
Real music for ya soul to dance to funky instrumentals
Write how I feel **** how you feel if you ain't diggin'
My skills stop chasing the bills of a thrills real steels
Being felt for those being dealt with this mafia ****
Amsterdam don't give a **** all critics get slammed


Boombastic fantastic stretch it like elastic rhymes fanatic
Like MF Doom static cracked it heads I batted tatted
On the mental from the scope I'm dope don't do dope
Got ya eloped to the bars that rope around industry slopes
It's hard to cope all the sane and insanity picnic ants
Crawling like instincts suckas scared to blink sink
Deep into twlight zone battles of Rome dueling chrome
Against my own got **** the war is still on the horizon
Flow cosmic *** my chick til she flies by space corporate
Guardians of the gate relate ******* her state
Hypnosis ****** overdoses stays the closest Moses
Holdin' my rod along with the stips caught wisdoms drips
Reign upon me showered me with a beautiful legacy crazy
This ain't a conspiracy but conned from the reality actuality
Still battling from a locality where many don't wanna see
Brown braids Rasta crusades original predator
No Schwarzenegger to bust out of the flavors tapers
Of Hollywood marginalized the hood off falsehood
See us we been banging before banging **** sanging
Cut off the puppet strings that was dangling paining
All my adversaries I got a picture with ya cemetery
We gotta keep it raw above the law do you see what I see
Warren G? 90s flow vibe feel the thrive all the way live
Coolio cracking ya mental celebrate Nefertiti's embryo
Yo I'm speaking on a certain skin melanin within sins
Got us welded unsung heros hung over the bridging gongs
Master martial arts lyricist cop ears listening to this
Tripping circuits my words hit like a baby symphony
Oooos and ahhhhs gimme the leche out ya bras
Mami's from Miami Texas Virgina and DC see me
Twice on the third **** the birds I chattel the herds
Seven time felon priced rhymes my mind ain't sellin'

— The End —