Scarecrow

Scarecrow 11/28/2014

We laughed while we could

But now we weep

Head in hands

Doubled over

And retching.

There are things

That defy explanation

And there are random tragedies

That sweep us away.

We are left with the aftermath

Dumb and open mouthed

Unable to grasp

Or utter a word.

The rug is pulled out

And we are left on the bare floor

Alone, desperate,

And cold. 

I was normal

And then I was not

As my fingernails could no longer

Keep me from falling.

What happens

When you do all you can

But still come up empty

Free falling through space. 

I didn’t want to see

And I didn’t want anyone to know

As I swallowed my life

One gulp at a time. 

Strong enough to crush

But weakened by loss

Pale, naked,

Impotent, and ghastly.

Ghosts do not care

And ghosts cannot love

Disembodied remnants

Of unfulfilled dreams. 

Wandering the halls

But unable to touch

Forever moaning

At the moment of death. 

Some envy the living

And some envy the dead

But for those in the middle

Either way is best. 

To live is to love

And who should live

Without that

As we become nothing but data

To use and delete. 

To be loved

Is to be understood

But who can be known

Without risk

And loss. 

Love again

If you can

Because if we don’t

We never will. 

Cold Turkey

Cold Turkey  11/28/2014

I woke up

To a familiar smell

The same as many other times

All mashed together. 

The same meal

On the same day

So much the same

But yet so very different.

People come

And people go

Some now sleep silently

In the ground.

But the days go on

And we keep the faith

Burning the candles down

And laughing when we can. 

The taste of red wine

And smoked meats

Sticks to my tongue

As I listen to stories

Of a half forgotten past.

I laid down

My stomach full

And my head spinning

Thinking happy thoughts

Slow and content. 

I pause inside myself

To make it last

Because tomorrow always comes

And we all slip away. 

I also must leave

But I take it all with me

The greatest treasure

Safe in my heart.  

Realism

Realism 11/26/2014

If you want to know

You have to search

And if you search

You must be ready. 

The truth is what matters

And reality is where we live

Nothing else comes close

When you care about survival. 

There is a feeling you get

When something is wrong

And how many have lost

Because they were afraid to offend.

Sometimes it pays

To be aware

Seeing the truth all around you

For what it really means. 

Others will lie

And others will twist

Anything and everything

Just to suit their hatred. 

But isn’t that familiar

As we would all rather hide

Than grow

Blaming anything and everyone

Instead of ourselves. 

Divide, distract, and destroy

That is what you see

As many chase themselves in circles

Unable to observe

And think. 

A long black train

Passed through the gate

And no one even noticed

Brining death, destruction,

Disease, and decay. 

Oh how foolish we are

To not examine ourselves

Swinging at the shadows

Dumb, useless, and dead.  

It is easy to fall

But hard to stand

In the end as in the beginning

We blow it all away. 

Stretch and see

Look and listen

The hard stuff of growing

Everywhere

And every day. 

Gatehouse

Gatehouse 11/24/2014

An animal in the corner

Will do what he does

Snarling and biting

Anyone and everyone. 

But desperate men

Are far worse than dogs

As they plot deceit

And murder. 

Yes, the clock is ticking

And we all should know, by now

What it is, we believe

And where it is,

We stand.

The hands

Click forward

Linear and dumb

Ticking away into nothing

Thoughtless and mechanical. 

We have always wondered

If this is, all there is

As we remain flesh

In a world of death

And cannibalism. 

But if we could live

Our lives over

What would we learn?

If we stayed in safety

And never lost at all. 

The shallow waters are safe

Warm and familiar

But the deep is cold, dark,

And mysterious

A deep chasm of nothingness.

I was plucked out

And dropped in

Unable to swim

And sinking fast. 

I tried to paddle

And I tried to thrash

Desperately trying

To swim up

And out. 

Lost in a deep dark cave

Underwater and all alone

At last I was found

And pulled out

Alive

Waking up in a strange land

Unfamiliar and foreign

I am the forgotten ghost

Alien and pale.

But now I am awakened

And now I have seen

That nothing is impossible

And nothing is certain. 

A single word

And a single person

Thrust forward

Can make all the difference

At just the right moment. 

This moment

Was made for you and me

Just because we are willing

And just because we know.

And we can change it all

And save many

But only if we find the courage

And do not back down. 

This is not the first time

That we have been isolated

And this is not the first time

We have been invaded. 

Before we became strong

And built towers

To protect ourselves

And our own. 

Then, as now

We have the past

As a  guide

To learn from

And be warned.

Keeping the faith  

Of those we loved and lost

The kind

That do not run.

They were not forgotten

And neither will we be

No matter how it looks

And what is done.    

Treachery happens

And yes the gate is left open

But he who stands in it now

Shall never be lost. 

Come with me

And defend all we have

And all we are

Completely unafraid

And Unashamed.  

Fish Filet

Fish Filet  11/21/2014

Time slows down to nothing

And I am stuck here in hell

Half way in

And half way out. 

In the middle of a cold afternoon

High above the street

With nothing ahead

And everything behind.

Outside the glass looks perfect

But inside nothing makes sense

Trapped inside a bubble

That’s more like a fishbowl. 

We bump up against the walls

And open and close our mouths

Puffing up

And swimming sideways. 

We tread water

But go nowhere fast

Until we go limp

And float to the top. 

There is nowhere to hide

And there is nowhere to run

Except to fling ourselves out

Dried out and dead. 

Spin around

And churn the water

Swimming with all your might

But in the end we all circle the drain

Flushed and out of sight. 

Some will get food

And some will not

But we might as well gorge

And eat each other. 

Let me out

So I can dive deep

Far away

Where no one can see.

Free to explore

Anything and everywhere.