Fire me

Fire me.

Fire me.

Light the rocket.

Aim at the wall.

Fire me.

Fire me.

My apologies can

wait while I stall.

Fire me.

Fire me.

Pack my bags.

Send me on a plane.

Fire me.

Fire me.

Tie me to the tracks.

I'll wait for the train.

Which Direction?

No matter which way
you phrase it: I stumbled.
With only one foot in
to begin with.

White car, black stocking.
A million of those
and only one of you.

A city scan
finds no results.
A return to the scene.

My heart jumps
up and down.
Unparalleled.
Hopeful.

...No

For every million drops,
there is one catch.
And we clutch it tight,
just like the first time.

The leaves fall intermittently
as the wind brushes by.
And we are reminded
of the greater nature.

I've come here to tell you
of this place I found,
hidden behind the bookcase door,
but you don't read much.

Why would I tell?
Why should you know?
The answer to the questions
you'll never ask will simply be...

Mounting

Any moment can be
Taken.Thrown.Torn.
Frowning brows
must be lifted.

False reality written
on the other side
of the big hill.
Reality is dug deep on the other.

The city speeds
and oncoming lights
rarely get a second look
on the blacked out road.

Angered brake lights
resemble the dirt.
Where is everyone headed tonight,
so fast and careless?

Melody

Waste me,
so I can waste you,
and pretend that
the piano keys are never wrong.

I've been waiting here,
with a lack of moxie,
as the notes
drip out of my ears.

Stay here,
so I can stay too,
and sing you some words
to lift you up and over.

The wall is taller,
when you think about it,
but the film score
will soften the fall.

Play

This time
you can ask.
This time
you can say

Hello there.
How are you?
I'm doing good,
also.

There's a missing link
between
the good and great.
Come to my side.

Slightly dire, I'm sure.
Tilt back, swallow it all.
Flicker the light switch
on and off.

And Quiet

This must be
the living description
of the detachment you've become used to
breathing.

And I only wish it stopped.
Or hadn't started.
I only wish it was cut in half.
Or hadn't started.

Macy

Nine years later.
An empty nation to return to.
Propaganda Christmas
holds hopes of the future.

Digital camouflage
only fools the fearful.
They've no concept of
time or reality.

God, this can't be.
This is what He wanted?
Their prayers for peace
conflict the start of conflict.

Wouldn't He want your child safe?
Teach your son to hold his tongue
on the playground,
but fire your gun on the war ground.

Here in this room

Wandering nights
and walls for balance beams.
Spinning tops
and flash light dreams.

Wasted moves for improvidence.
The impasse awaits.
A questioned materiality
is often forgiven by falling leaves.

Reds and yellows.
Orange and green
Grass blanketed by the
prettiest month you ever did see.

Vows of desires
hindered by a self-indulgent
exploit. All that you ever wanted.
Undeveloped days spent under the sheets.                                                                                                                            

Down the wishing well

Turtle's pace while I plummet.
On to the bed I land
into slumber.
Good night.

For I am not who
I will be when I awake.
And you'll still be the magazine
with one page.

Your substance is questionable.
Your reasoning is flawed.
I only get to feel good
to make you feel better.

But no longer shall I wait,
as this pause that I take
will linger,
so carry on.

Shiva

Small words.
Strange window.
Lovely laughs.
Headlights.
Smile, it's pretty today.

Hello,
goodnight.
Twirling fingers.
Pretty eyes.
Promising.

Devoir.
Rushed.
Unrealized.
Suitcases unpacked.
Danger.

Lustrous.
Need time.
Strength
in an unusual form.
Against rushed certainty.

But thoughts follow
the film score playlist.
Don't beg for more.
Not now. Not ready.
Just wondrous.

Cheers

An elevator of sorts
lifts and drops the spirits
on a soggy day.

The up and down motion
repeated throughout the
minutes is tiring.

But I can almost see
the lights ahead, colorful
and streaming from trees.

And an escape back into wonderland
is reachable.
But an unpacked journey is seemingly dangerous.

Slow Drive

The rain falling calmly on the leaves
resembles a nighttime drive with you.
Like the peace that surrounds our words,
loud laughs. Not a worry.

A couch conversation
in a crowded room.
A few more laughs
and I can only hear you.

See you

Call it a protection of a possible disaster.
Yeah, that's what we'll call it.
Averting some bad future, bad history,
all at once.

Because I need the smoke to fill the room,
before I can realize where I am,
and maybe where I should be.
It only looks like home.

It's hard to recall what the words meant
or describe the picture again.
I'll never let what's right for me
walk through that door.

Call it a flaw of the grain
found on silver screens;
false beliefs of the world
painted behind sunglasses.

Of Myra

It's important to find the beauty
hidden in the ugliest times.
To find the lake hiding behind the castle
is a good place to begin.

Snow-capped hills fill the void
between the towers and the sky.
And fog wraps the fortress walls
inviting only the curious.

The shadows from the spires
paint the lake in blue and gray.
A motion reminder of the luck
we have surrounded ourselves with.

What I would give to wake up here,
walk into town, breathe Christmas air.
But the lights don't match up right now,
and one day the snow will fall.

Should Say

Should you remind me
that we are all the same,
that true wants are always pulled out?

The walking bridges need to fall
down below the water and rocks they hover
above. The truth is you're not
willing to give up anything.

And though you hate the robe,
you love to swing your gavel
down below the water and rocks you cover.

You're just no surprise anymore.
And you've taken the friend out of friendship.
Clean the time out with soap and water.

J. J. Newberry Co.

Among the laughter
filling up the air with smiles,
this beautiful woman sits smirking
at the end of the table.

Aged and tired,
she recalls the times of 20 years prior,
looking to see if I could remember.
Grandma, how could I forget?

61 and 4,
our trips to the store were magical.
Spoiled I was, always wanting a toy to play with.
Little has changed.

And her eyes gleamed
as I took over the storytelling.
She could not believe how appreciated
she's been in my eyes all these years.

She's my earliest memories,
my first adventures.
And as the sun sets,
I can only remember.

I love you forever,
for all that you have taught me,
And the smiles you gave me,
and this one that I gave to you.

The Realization

To taste you
I must waste all
that we tried to accomplish
for so long.

And to waste you,
I must continue
to bury every emotion
deep beneath the sand.

And as the sand blows away,
so does every remembrance
of a time once wondrous,
beloved.

And chronology is unsettling,
yet lasting.
And once it brings peace back to me,
I will forever yield before her.

The Lack

Three times not enough
to remind me
of candy-filled rooms
and flying whistles.

Of how warm the notes look
during Christmas time
in the park. I don't see you
past the yellow leaves.

I once surrendered to
dazzling lights and
carousel music.
Looking to see it once again.

A pat on the back
is all I ever wanted
but never asked for.
Don't feel I had to.

The Prior

I tie the bow back
on the gift you were to me.
I can't open it.

I hand it back to you
as I stand up and turn away.
My head held high.

I sprint through the front door
and into my car
to drive as far as I possibly can.

The sun is shining,
normally annoying,
but today it's charming.

Window down; need the air.
One second of breath
is all I had left from the despair.

Blood rolled from my tongue
as I closed my eyes
to speak to you.

A blow to the head
from some unexpected text
can turn even the most sane mad.

You maintained your innocence,
as I shot you down. Truthfully,
you are not guilty of anything.

I simply spent one too many nights
wrapped in a blanket, too warm,
asleep to the beat that my drum was making.

The rearview mirror now faces me;
eyes locked on myself. As I drive
to finish the song that's blaring in my head.

The Search

I placed the curse on my search

with expectations set disastrously high.

Remember the playground days

of cute smiles and sandy eyes.

Perhaps I own the fault

for looking for one

who understands the electricity

in the chord and twilight sky.

My eyes must stay open to all.

Maybe I need to close them

for a while. I need to

understand how silt is taken from water.

Come with me, you I haven't met

yet. Appreciate the lights on the hill.

They look like candles burning.

Milita for the search beginning. 

You know, I don't remember

13 points down,
we are defeated.
One year spawns interest
for everyone's sake.

Difficulty in living for others.
Try to walk the rocks that
separate the ocean waters
from where we've landed.

Walls of arrowheads and flint
target only the best intentions.
But blood and water soak the walls
and remind us of the hardship.

We are all the same,
as we climb the flights of stairs
to sit in an empty hotel room
in a city home to millions.

Searching for someone's eyes
among billions of lights
that flicker down below
from our lonely leisure home.

What do you find?
That only you can find lights
to turn on when you push.
This is true.

Cold blankets never hold.
Search for one and not the other.
It can be hard
to let them come to you.

My hands are too slow,
I swear yours are faster,
like your ability to grasp me.
I will now grasp you.

Mirrors Justified

Superficial.
You don't deserve the attention.
A former constant struggle
should never have met my struggling lips.

You once craved it.
Now you have plenty,
but you'll never get full
of glancing eyes and lustful winks.

You're nothing but aware.
You don't deserve the attention.
My honesty taken advantage
of something bigger than you, I hope.

My ego branded;
my statue still stands.
Yet you still throw coins in the my fountain,
a simple piece of the plan.

Ninja

Like a book that's been drowned,
I rip the pages to pieces as I pull them apart.
I'm just trying to read the words,
but damage has closed the message.

Some ink drips out on the table,
from beneath the small cracks that are left,
but it's unrecognizable.

A bayonet sits right above your lips
and it hurts me every time we meet to kiss.

Broadus

I am no doctor.
No magic pill here.
I know I came to fix you,
but I don't know how to heal.

So, I'm on way to walk these plains
until I fall asleep under the trees
that help shade the mountains,
where I can drink from the river.

Until I awake once more,
and pull the grass from the hill
that I climb.
I will reach the top.

Take your tourniquet;
tie it tight.
I walk down my winding road
and may never cease my journey.

Paper Mate

Sometimes I look both ways at green lights,
as if I expect for the cars
to come flying
through the intersection.

Or I feel bad for emptying
the world that I took down
myself, with two hands,
but with good intentions.

But no one could ever touch me.
I up here alone looking down on you,
wishing you had wings to fly
away from all that kills inside.

To a new location

It hangs by a needle
on the blackboard.
The image captured
so well in four frames.

Look at the smile
I used to get by.
Our lips,
bang bang.

A year later
I couldn't have told you
that I wouldn't be able
to return to this place with you.

In your corner

There was this door that hid
behind the vines that hugged
the brick wall
at the back of the yard.

It kept the words locked
like a safe. You're hiding
from me. You are
far away.

January 10, 2017

As I look down upon the valley floor,
I can't help but ask why
you got the short end of the stick.

I could see
before you,
But I didn't experience
before you.

I wish I could trade spots baby
because you deserve more
than was ever given to you.
That bed has my name written all over it.

Lucky is all I was
and am today.
I haven't earned anything
that I love to claim.

Your star doesn't match the constellation in the sky

"Keep letting him do the talkin'.
See where that gets ya.
Back to where ya started:
where everyone believes ya."

But they shouldn't.
Nah, they should be careful.
They can't predict
the next move I'll make.

Sieze

It started with the seam,
before it moved to the collar,
and before I knew it,
my shirt was on fire.

Sometimes it takes a perspective
from the bottom of the mountain
to realize how tall you were
when you stood at the top.

I can almost feel the passport
in my hand,
clutched tightly.
Oh, this is humbling.

I'm not ready for it,
But my head is looking north,
and once I reach the top again
I'm never coming back down.

This program was brought to you by Alcoa.

Light me up bartender.
They don't seem to understand
the importance of a good story.

Turn the jazz up a bit, would ya?
I'm trying to find a balance here.

I'm conniving the best way to bring him down.
I don't see the other side here.
Editorializing it is,
while I feign his intelligence.

Don sure would've been proud,
as I was of him.
But I'm not one to say it.

Pour me another bartender.
I'm waiting on tomorrow's paper.

The intimacy of black and white
fills your home every night
at 6 o'clock,
and I'm the one you're watching.

Scribble

I swear it smells like autumn,
with warm days that turn
into chilled nights.
Earth make up your mind.

But I'm loving the potential,
for a calm November evening,
and the peaces of December,
which fall like snowflakes in my palms.

As I Go Along

Everyone seems to be waiting
for the moment
in which I miss the step
and fall by the wayside.

But they don't seem to understand
that I never fall,
I never crumble,
and I make the rules.

That was a cold walk home,
At least it didn't last very long.
Time is just waiting
for me to give in.

Probably never speak of this.
Probably for the better.
The lack of emotion gets harder to read
with every letter.

Sour Child

I keep the light on to
brighten my eyes
to what's clearly standing
right in front of me.

I want to remember the night stars
falling into our hands.
I'll only remember the attitude of the angry sun
peeking out from behind the Earth.

I must flex.
Like a drug for my ears to replace,
the notes enter my blood vessels.
If you have nothing nice to say...

Stars and Stripes

Her skin moves like a snake against my own,
as the night watches over us like a blanket.
And until the sun begins to smile,
she radiates to make up the spark.

Of these loud noises,
you are the quietest.

Rest In Patience

So I've got this melody, you see.
And I've been meaning to share it.
But you closed your hands as I went to give.
And now I've gone and spent it.

Years paint different pictures.
Gold only lasts so long.
Pick me up off the ground
to write a new song.

Dead as my patience.
Where did the car ride go?
Is that really all you wanted?
The box stays empty.

Canvas

I kick the sand forward
as the sun opens its eyes.
I must hurry while
we're still suspended in time.

You bring a beauty that all can admire,
It's getting close to the smell of spices,
blended in with cold noses, family.
I want it wrapped up.

Your laugh rings warmer than the blanket.
The fog settles in, I see it every morning.
We are crazy to be out here in December.
But it's crazier to believe we wouldn't.

If I act a little strange

Did you read my mind?
I sweat out the thoughts that night.
But our smiles overshadowed
what was really going on.

More than expected.
Reality from thoughts.
Sort of shocked and shy.
I hope you didn't mind.

Fiery when it counts.
Sweet like an Otter Pop on a hot day.
Careful and without a care.
I hope you didn't mind.

Light the candles.
They flicker from here until
they meet the horizon.
Ride up and down the streets in awe.

Construction to Excellence

Never linked,
Always leading.
Your words were more fake
than a Cold War building.

Past tense motives,
to laugh back in years.
How I believed anything more
could be found in something much less.

More sure than the last one,
I aspire to be great.
Reminders of what needs to be done,
something you can't take.

Timing and Associations

I'm the glow in the dark watch
that you can read
only every now and then.

They say they're unimpressionable,
But they're already impressed.
So, why the effort?

A piece of pizza and a smile
would have done wonders.
But she hid there, eyes open.

Timing was never my thing,
and she'll never open her eyes again.
She knew too much.

Anatomy of a Crash

I'll remember where the last ornament was placed.
What sweater you wore at the table.
The smile you chose that day.

Where you stood in that picture.
When you first grabbed my hand.
The look in your eyes when you first saw light.

And sometimes it's nice to think
that some birds fly north for the winter,
and that one day you'll find your way home,
but you won't.

And for now I have to tiptoe the lane,
veer into oncoming traffic,
just to wait until the sun goes down,
and that sun may never set.

Newborn

They don't know much better,
but honey, ignorance ain't bliss.
Your poison words
spew spawn off your lips.

People listen,
absorb your thoughts,
and spread them
like cancer.

Cowardly apologetic.
I don't want to hear it.
It was just meant to be funny,
I am told.

I move on to take your thoughts,
burn down your houses,
to start over once again.
We don't need your kind.

Spray

Surround me

with the sea breeze.

Sun sets quietly

beneath my feet.

Spin and spin!

I see glimpses of 

beauty hiding behind

the grains of sand in the air.

While sea birds dance,
their silhouettes fly.
The sun is so beautiful
when it's shy.

Slight of Hand

Turn off the house lights.
Sip the wine.
Dark club sounds brush her by.
This is life.

In slow motion
I walk in.
In the handshake,
a hint of sin.

Maybe she has an idea.
No, she doesn't have a clue
of what I love to do
with a flick of the wrist.

The magic is working.
My capabilities are endless.
But you're becoming careless.
Turn the lights up.

This is me screaming.
You're motionless.
Emergency room please,
this one can't handle it.

I followed her stretcher.
The door shuts behind me.
I waited until she opened her eyes.
Paradise.

I told her, "you really don't know me."
"But I want to," she said.
"I'm everything you've ever wanted," I explained.
She closed her eyes.

Memory Medley

The water drips down my bottle and back into the ocean.
It's almost 2006 all over again.
The electricity surrounds me with the lights off.
Cue the gloom?

Let me get a Rob Roy.
Are you a regular here?
This is Manhattan.
And you're no married type.

But you are.
Remember Pasadena.
Roses grow here, there, and here.
But you already knew that.

Knew how I crumbled with an "I'm proud."
But I never heard it.
I was lost in the Long Beach cloud.
It never stopped raining.

I was playing with fire.
You brought the ice
after I danced with her.
We all laughed for hours.

Locked notes in origami.
Clokey characters defined.
A future 17-mile drive.
All based on a lie.

A night of Smashing Pumpkins.
You all thought you were so funny.
"Can I kiss you?"
Such a sweetheart.

A piano player and a guitarist
make the most beautiful music together.
But no one hears
it.

A heartbreak at "fucking Yucca."
Do you remember that?
They really do that.
That's why you're a favorite.

I read those lines better than you,
but there's only room for one lead.
You handled it like a champ.
I stood up there to feed.

You were so mad.
Best show ever.
She was really hot.
Quiet for two hours home.

They all heard it.
All of them.
She would never eat at a place like this.
That's her favorite seat.

Polaris

Like a lost hiker in the night,
I go north.
The exit?
Olive.

Like a bird flying in the spring,
I go north.
The exit?
Olive.

Doesn't realize the effect
when I go north.
The exit?
Olive.

Right now it's not looking good
as I try go north.
The exit?
Olive.

But I will conquer this road.
I'm heading north.
The exit?
Olive.

Locator

As the snow falls on my windshield,
the world is blinded of us.
The slow motion parade of the city streets
filled with people running toward us.

Let's make them jealous.

The Ladder in Corvallis

My hands are full
and scarlet.
They won't open the gate for me.
I don't belong in there, I'm told.

I asked them why.
He told me.
I conceded.
"We're all guilty."

They haven't made it there yet.
Not sure if they will.
How can I get in
if I've never met the king?

I turned around.
I don't belong there.
There has to be another place
hiding between the stars.

Found Me

Different tomorrow than today.
I hold my tongue when I know what to say,
But trust me it's not worth it.

It's not worth it.

I know I said slow.
I know it's fast,
But this sidewalk looks as familiar
as the dark side of the moon.

Forgive my close embrace.
If I make you nervous,
I'm sorry.

But I'm not sorry.

My meaning is strong.
I don't step on cracks,
For my mother thinks of me better,
But God am I close.

Presence

I can taste the silver,
the slight reflection from the slight light.
Tears flow down the river.
I am home for the first time.

Link

Crossing the moat,
I get chills from the cold
water pouring into my vision,
fuzzy.

The drawbridge hangs.
Around me are flying swords,
bow and arrows.
Musical notes.

Chateau

Can I hide here
under the vacuum?
Constantly watching.
Constantly judged.

Fence is too high.
I may never get tall enough.
I'll wait for it to come down.
Waiting.

Tawny

The red sneaks through.
I am troubled.
Can't believe what you have done.
I read.

The world needs to hear,
but no one is listening here.
There are people listening,
on the other side.

You're almost there.
A few more steps.
You've been on this path before.
Begins to look familiar.

I lost it.
But it's not mine to lose.
Remember the end of July.
I lost it.

Zero/Five

A laugh that echoes in the heart,
from a joke too funny.
A smile that stretches around the world
and back into my eyes.

A memory of not what we did,
but what was said, and where.
A dancer in her own mind,
a happy girl in mine.

Down The Road

Find my imperfections.
Add up all my wrongs.
Put together every miserable moment.

It's long,
the time it takes to heal.
I was a battleship,
and I won the war.

Pick yourself up.
You're mighty,
you're strong.

Realize all the bad there was,
to make you forget the good.
Down the road you'll see.

Opal

In this time of scary ghosts and trick-or-treat,
the orange sky flirts with the rainfall.
I absorb it through the open glass.
You can touch the crisp cold.

Silhouettes of leaves on the branches
resemble dim lights on a Christmas tree.
If only we could light them,
then maybe others could spot the beauty.

Through the looking glass

Fall into the hole.
I can see it on your face.
It's broken.
But pick yourself back up.

Say what you think.
Say what you mean
Hold it in your court.
Ricochet off your heart.

And into the color!
And into my arms.
Follow the road into the stars.
The ones we saw through the looking glass.

Don't listen to the bird,
it's lying.
The roses don't speak
in the belt.

Never Easy

Hardest thing to do.
Tough to look in the eye.
Why can't this be easier,
even when you know it's right?

Bombarded with yells.
Arguments attacked.
Why didn't you love me,
the way I loved you?

You simply don't understand.
You just don't listen.
I just hope you know what you're losing.
I do.

Magellanic

To stand atop this star,
laying our eyes on the speed down below.
It was easy to breathe with time.
We are what make this shine.

We have to land eventually.
So, let us teach them of what we've seen.
Something of a tiny atom brain.
We are all the same.

Equal Sign

Remember the beauty?
I found it, hiding underneath the shade
from the trees that lie overhead.

Remember the snow?
It poured on our faces.
We tasted.

A Thanksgiving gift awaits you.
I couldn't be more happy for you.
Bring him in.

Show him all you know.
Teach him how to see,
how to love everyone.

Trickle

Silence.
Peace.
The darkness mirrors a quieter time.
A text from the future.
My head cluttered.

Rapidly changing.
The lights from a car.
Where did this all come from?
I never did have my own backyard.

I sit here to breathe.
To stare at the nebulae.
One flight up.
I wish I could be higher.

Your voice is calming.
My voice is tired.
I see the light slowly flashing above our city.
Let me change my pace.

Don't Say It

When is it ever easy,
when someone gets hurt?

All of a sudden you know me so well.
You don't know me.
I've been here.
Where have you been?

Sorry, I'm good at throwing strikes.
You don't even see the ball coming.
This mound is mine.
Don't walk across it.

The water is deep.
The park grass is dead.
When is it ever easy,
when someone gets hurt?

Yellow Balloon

As the sun sets beyond the Valley
walls,
I say goodbye to a love once cherished,
adored.
I have sinned Father, but who is left to forgive
me?
It's passion, it's not
love.

I am confused at best.
Sugar coats your fiery words.
Just speak your mind.
I'm listening.

Lamppost

Not a joke,
though many were made.
Lampposts illuminated
the night for days.

Brighter than the city lights,
smarter than any sirens.
Curious always, you
Amaze me.

Look at the old couple.
Every angle seen.
From the top of the city
to feet of the sea.

A peace not pretend.
A smile not faked.
Conversation: endless...
Ended only by the sleep in our eyes.

Cadet

I can say without looking that I want it.
Look ma, no hands.
I'm not usually sure,
but of this I am.

We can sail on this spaceship,
I can take you away for a while.
And sometimes, just to keep mine up,
I memorize your smile.

A long time coming...

I'm somewhere in a cloud and it's raining.
That was the worst car ride we've ever taken.
I'm sorry it had to end that way.

Last night, my mother dreamed we were doomed.
Tonight, I sobbed in her arms like a baby.
She told me I needed to do the right thing.

Overthought and underappreciated.
You asked me to try. I tried.
Who could stay happy that way?

All projects need work, but two workers.
The rain is ending. The cloud has moved.
I look around the room and I am loved.

Box Office

Let's continue down the same path
effortlessly down the green grass hills.
Slow motion.
I look back to us,
and there's no way we won't
reach the water.

I Said I Feel Fine.

Can you see where my mind is?
Lost at sea and I'm wandering.
I'm looking for someone.

What was rock has shattered.
What was ice has melted.
This isn't cool.

Hallucinations hit.
I don't know what to believe
anymore.

Amerikan Values

Under this hot light,
it's my only view
to the notes I love to play.
I sweat for you.

But the sweat runs down faster on the fast food worker
cleaning the sidewalk.
His last duty of the day, as his young son watches,
because there's no one to watch him,
but he doesn't mind or know.

23:00.

I've got something up my sleeve for you,
just wait.
I'll get my way.
Things will change.

He's spending time with his father,
who he loves more than life.
He's working for something better,
something more for his son.

23:00 on a Saturday.

I've got something up my sleeve for you,
just wait.
I'll get my way.
Things will change.

Ketchup Soup

When will we match quality with logic?
What do they see when they wake up?
Where will they receive a meal tonight?
I wish they knew.

60 and a paperboy.
35 with three jobs.
20 and branded illegal.
15 and pregnant.
8 and starved.

When will we lower our weapons?

When we learn to love.

6th

I am here to move mountains,
not kick sand.

I am here to build cities
taller than the last.

I am here to erase our parents mistakes
by playing in the snow.

So bring a jacket,
it's going to rain.

Aspens in January

You wouldn't even want to listen to 

this. Is how you make me feel

Unbelievable how I wait.

Haitred

Why can't they be heard?

Why can't our heads turn in the direction 

to where they yell for our forgiveness 

of whatever they did that made us forget them?

Middle

I would love to think that it doesn't mean anything
that our dish soap is made by some company I've never heard of,
but it does.

I would love to think that it doesn't mean anything
that my mom has to fill the shampoo bottle with water,
but it does.

I would like to think my dad not working is just
a sign of the times,
but it's not.

Sports car in the garage,
but only cereal to eat.

Digital cable, flat screen TV,
but no milk to drink.

College tuitions, hundreds in text books,
no gas to get there.

Being a middle-class citizen with a grip on what once was,
a reality is shared.

Tunnel

Merely a wake up with water,
I am covered in perfection.
As the water weaves it's way along,
It's hard not to leave.

As I float by the street lamps,
I seek my journey through this pathway. Of water
I now am
all that it begs of me. Is this
How life can be?

Keep Her Alive

Come quick. I am calling you over from your walk that will guide you past me.
Speak now or forever hold your thoughts.
Blowing wind is a sharp reminder that lips should have moved. She should've been kept alive.

Addicted

So blind.
Didn't even know it was raining.
So deaf.
Didn't even know it was raining.

Burn It Down

No tonight!
We will not speak of overspilled curiosities.
Take what you love.
We'll leave quiet.

It snowed today

It came upon us as it fell from the sky above.
A snow day in Burbank: who would've thought?

We Come Thru

Remember what it was to just lie in your bed under the rain.

I wanted to believe in you. I wanted to believe in us.

But those dark lights of red and black, with soft kisses being traded for glances at the computer screen, were façades of hope.

Nothing comes without work. I know that. Nothing good comes to those who wouldn’t wait.