Phoenix

Phoenix

Burning embers

The last remains of a mighty tree

Branches that reached for the sky

Leafs that shaded the ground below

They burn with a heat that man cannot understand

Slowly dying they spark and crackle

Flames still live within

Hidden from view they thrive

Fighting to get out

To be released into the heavens

The flames form the shape of a bird

Feathers stretching into infinity

Strong and yet fragile

It refuses to die

It struggles to stay alive

Wings reach toward the sky

Its body sways back and forth in the wind

Smoke rises from every breath it takes

Telling the spirits that it is returning

One last effort and the bird breaks free

The flames shoot into the sky

Burning everything it touches

It rises above the sight of mortal man

To a land where only the gods can survive

Beautiful beyond anything imagination could create

The phoenix has returned

The Desert Church

The Desert Church

The church down in the canyon

Always in the shadows

It is a place that even God has forgotten

Sand fills the aisle where brides used to walk

Rocks cover the alter where prayers were offered

Bats hang in the decaying rafters

The sacramental wine has long since turned to dust

And the holy water was drank by thirsty animals

So many people prayed and hoped in the pews

Just as many sins were forgiven

The desert winds reclaimed a place built by God

The prayers are lost in the blowing dust

Yet the bell rings throughout the day

Swung by the wings of an angel

Telling no one that the church is there

Letting no one know that God is still alive

And He is waiting for someone to notice

For someone to come to this church

For someone to pray

He is waiting for anyone

Starving America

Starving America

A crushing viper created by the rich

Its poison spreads through the country

Strangling the working class

Taking their jobs and shipping them away

Their children left to starve

Homes left empty as their shells rot away

Squatters scramble to find anywhere dry

Hungry people wander the streets looking for anything

Garbage cans become fancy restaurants

Spoiled and rotting food become gourmet meals

Anything to keep the body and soul alive

No one is safe from the viper's grasp

Doctors and businessmen move to tent cities

Babies are left in suitcases or killed

Better they die fast than face a living hell

Robberies and murders are common place

Violent fighting over a crust of bread

Hope died as the money faded away

Soup kitchens fill with hungry families

Everyone getting their one meal a day

The viper has struck

Grabbing America by the throat

Squeezing it to cut off its life

America will survive

The one percent will thrive

The rest of us...who knows?

Praise To The Gods

Praise To The Gods

Praise to thee Anubus

Praise to thee Ra

Praise to thee the gods of Egypt

Allow me to pass on my way

Allow me to enter the afterlife

I have lived a good life

I have suffered for your greatness

My heart is heavy with sadness

It will not pass your tests

The Field of Reeds is so close

I can smell the sweetness of the flowers

Please Anubus

Please Ra

My gods please forgive my sins

No one was hurt by me

I killed no one during my life

I stole not one crumb of bread

I pray to you immortal gods

Please allow me to pass

Allow me to rest

Allow my soul to live for all time

If you can find mercy in your hearts

I will praise you forever

My soul will be your temple

Praise to thee Anubus

Praise to thee Ra

Praise to thee the gods of Egypt

Fairy

Fairy

The tiniest of creatures

Born of dreams

They life in fantasies

Born with lacy wings

As sheer as a spring breeze

They make no sound

The creatures die as we grow

Logic takes over for fantasy

Fairies no longer have a place

Our lives have changed

Remember for one brief moment

Think back to when you were a child

Look at that flower growing in your yard

Look carefully through the eyes of innocence

A fairy will be there laughing and dancing

Leaping between the petals

All you have to do is shed reality

And see another world

A world that you forgot

All you have to do is look

The Woman On The Moon

The Woman On The Moon

Standing on the moon

She looks at the Earth

Her black hair rests on her shoulders

Her eyes are black as night

She stares at the horizon

Watching the Earth above

Circling the star in an endless orbit

So many people on that sphere

She sits alone

Do the people know what they do?

She cannot talk

She cannot scream to let them know

Their planet is dying

Maybe they don't know

Maybe they don't care

She cries without a sound

Her tears freeze on the barren ground

She watches that blue sphere

Traveling across her sky

And she is the only one who cares

Daddy's Little Girl

Daddy's Little Girl

Yelling at a little girl

Her face should be smiles instead of tears

Her daddy screams at her without mercy

Kicks and hits follow

Pain and bruises

Broken bones and a broken spirit

Her love remains unbroken

She tries to be daddy's little sweetheart

Even as her skin hurts

Such a sweet little girl

Hope has been torn from her heart

Her eyes stare into space

Unseeing and uncaring

She waits for days, weeks and years

Just to hear her daddy;s voice

Not yelling as he usually does

She just wants to hear an I love you

But in her soul she knows it will never come

Just more pain and hurt

Such is the life of daddy's little girl

They Will Survive

They Will Survive

A small tent village

Deep in a forest at the edge of town

Men, women and children

Scrounging for food

Eating stuff that other people threw away

The people were important at one time

They cured the sick and fed the hungry

They owned homes and fancy cars

They were rich, poor and middle class

They did nothing to cause this

All they did was live their lives

Scratching an existence for the families

The world changed in an instant

One after another jobs left to Mexico

The money dried up and the stores closed

No food, water or power

Their homes were taken by the bank

Left empty because all of the credit was gone

People migrated in ever growing herds

Looking for a miracle place

With food, water and power

Instead they found a tent and a forest

Tents hidden away from a condemning world

They will survive

Even with no help they will survive

They will survive

One Ounce Of Water

One Ounce Of Water

One ounce of clean water

Lost in an endless ocean

The last of a million million gallons

Where are the fish who swam there?

Where are the plants that grew there?

Where is the blue waves?

What happened to them all?

Man emerged from and ancient slime

Grew to be an intelligent being

Rulers of the land and sea

They were so smart

They knew more than nature

They used their planet and wasted all

Now man is dead

The animals of the forest are dead

The life in the ocean all washed up on the shore

Trees last their leafs and died naked

All the life that made Earth a paradise

Gone because of man's ignorance

All that is left of the world man ruined

One ounce of clean water

Lost in an endless ocean

So Many Cars Pass Below

So Many Cars Pass Below

Standing on an overpass

Looking down on the highway down below

A million miles of asphalt

White lines mark its edges

So many cars pass below

Men women and children

All far from their homes

Where are they all going?

Where did they all come from?

They travel a mile every minute

Through the same scenery

Bridges, lampposts and signs

Break the boredom

So many cars pass below

Each going everywhere and nowhere

Traveling the ribbon of asphalt

With white lines on the edges

Looking for somewhere to stop

So many cars pass below

Why

Why

Why do people tell me what to do?

You have to do this

You're not allowed to do that

Censor what you say

You may offend someone somewhere

Personally, I don't care if I do

Act the same as the norm

Normal is a boring state to be in

I pride myself in being different

Saying yes when everyone says no

Turning right instead of left

Looking up when I am supposed to look down

Who makes the rules people live by?

One time I would like to meet “they”

Even education tried to ruin me

Imagination was wrong

They said that Snow White wasn't real

I think that she was real in her time

We are part of her fairy tales

I will never change my feelings

I will never accept whatever they say

I will take their reality

Discard it

Replace it with my own

I will make my own choices

I will have my own own thoughts

If that upsets them I have just one thing to say

You can just shove it!

Glass Heart

Glass Heart

Such a fragile organ

A heart made of glass

Born pure and flawless

Filled with undying love

It ages with cracks and flaws

Some visible to the naked eye

Some so small they cannot be seen

Every heart of glass breaks

Shatters deep within the soul

Shards can never be replaced

The broken heart can never be fixed

it simply dies a painful death

At least it can feel no pain

Sara

Sara

One minute

One more shot in front of me

The bar is nearly empty

The girl behind the bar has shouted “last call”

Looking into the bottom of the glass

The world looks so beautiful

There is no pain to endure

Memories are gone in a fog

The world is so beautiful

Sara will be at home waiting for me

As she has so many nights before

Two o'clock the bar closes

I walk home through lonely streets

Other drunks wander aimlessly

I have a woman to go to

I get home and wander straight to the bed

Reaching over Sara is gone

Through the fog of alcohol I remember

I laid Sara to rest in the morning sun

Memories return and I cry the night through

Waiting for the bar to once again open

So I can see the world through the bottom of the glass

And Sara will be waiting for me once again

An American Soldier

An American Soldier

A 20 year old veteran sits on the sidewalk

His legs blown off in the Iraqi sand

He obeyed Washington when they told him to fight

He killed when he was told to

He served his country the best he could

Now he has no job and no home

Most people walk by him without a glance

He collects pennies just to buy a hamburger

Money given him by people driving fancy cars

He spends his nights in a shelter

Sharing a room with drug addicts and lunatics

The government doesn't care about him

He lost that when he lost his legs

He will continue to fight

He will fight for food or a bed

He will fight to keep his dignity

What little dignity he has left

He will live and he will be remembered by someone

Maybe by the person who gave him 25 cents one morning

Then again maybe no one will remember him

After all he was just a beggar on the street

And who remembers them

Don't Forget To Dance

Don't Forget To Dance

Dancing to a 4/4 beat

The rhythm takes over our souls

There are no enemies

Just friends sharing the moment

The music affects everyone

Regardless of sex. color or creed

Everyone is having fun

It doesn't matter what the song is

Listen to the music

Feel the rhythm rush through your body

Don't take the time to hate

Take the time to listen, dance and enjoy

Live your life to the rhythms you hear

The days will be brighter

The nights will be more exciting

Just live the beat

and don't forget to dance

Moon

Moon

Grey and dead she floats above us

Marked by a million battles

Her craters and plains add to her beauty

She still smiles down on us

What kind of power does she have

Lighting the Earth through the blackest night

Her face drives some people to complete madness

She lowers inhibitions

The young look on her to fall in love

Even animals howl to sing her praises

Many babies have been created under her light

Even so, very few share her name

She is a goddess everyone worships

Coming and going as she travels

She looks down on the Earth admiring her sister

Loving those who gaze upon her

She asks for nothing in return

Just take the time to look at her

Admire her beauty

And she will keep smiling down on us

The Young Klingon Warrior

The Young Klingon Warrior

A young Klingon warrior

Raised with the taste of blood in his mouth

Trained to never back down

To always fight the good fight

Never to be allowed to quit

His blood runs cold as the battle begins

He will kill a thousand with one blade

Not bothering to look back at the dead

He doesn't care what shows in their eyes

He has just one mission

His soul is to live or die for the Empire

He will never run

As his blood flows onto the ground

He will breathe his last breath

He will die an honorable death

With his death he will be remembered

All will know that he was a true warrior

And he lived his life the way he wanted\

He died the way he wanted

Defending the empire he loved

Mary Jane

Mary Jane

A bad night to be alone

I don't feel like doing anything

No writing

No painting

Nothing at all

I can hear life outside my door

Mary Jane is an honored guest

I have been with her so many times

Sharing my life with her

She was the girl I could not live without

My mind feels better when she is around

I have never worried about being with her

She shared my life through high school and college

Helped me getting so many things done

I could always depend on Mary Jame to help

She is just outside my door

Smelling so sweet she is beyond imagination

Coming in my mind wanders

My senses rise to taste her

My thoughts travel to her sensuous touch

I take one small taste and the universe changes

Becomes more real and peaceful

How can anyone live with her

I will never know

I never want to know

Mary Jane is my one and only love

She will never know it

But she keeps coming around to my house

My door will always be open for her

She is always welcome

She is my muse.

Without her I am nothing

Nothing

Evolution

Evolution

Green slime

Alien creatures on an alien world

Did they know?

How could they know that they would mutate?

Change from their humble lives

Innocents effected by time and space

Made to breathe air

Walk on the newly emerging land

Reign as giant creatures

Cold blooded they look to the sun for life

Changing again they look to the skies

Looking for a god to worship

They look at each other and see only differences

All their sameness had been bred out of them

They struggle for life

Killing others for land, food or for glory

Glass, metal and guns become commonplace

Dead bodies are buried in mass grave

There is no one to mourn the dead

They are busy hunting more of their kind

They make bombs that destroy cities

Making each one more powerful than the last

More death

More dying

More illness

Still they do not give up making more

One day, one bomb

A bright light

A strong wind brings winter to their planet

Making life hard yet is still survives

Surviving even for a moment

It is a glimmer of hope that is so needed

Another bomb aimed at a target no one sees

The planet melts into a burning furnace

Burning off the air and all life with it

Billions of years pass by

A new planet grows out of the dust

Live finds it way back to the new waters

Green slime who don't know what is coming

And the cycle start over again

If Only

If Only

Time passes so fast

It leads us to an unknown future

While the past is lost in a flash

There is no chance to fix mistakes

Say the words that should have been said

Retrieve a love that was lost

Memories fade to dust

New ones take their place

Why can't we go back even for an hour?

Why can't we know then what we know now?

We suffer with choices that shouldn't have been made

Just one moment could change your life

One word said in the spur of the moment

One kiss that should have been shared

One love that would have lasted forever

If you could go back would you make the changes

Would you let the past stay the same?

If only time was like crossing the street

What a difference a second could be

If only...

Freedom

Freedom

Watch what you say

Don't ever say the wrong thing

Ignore the rights violations

They are for the good of the people

New ideas are crimes to be punished

They will never say that they are wrong

They will never say they are repressive

Fears of death for a criticism of them

Arrests for carrying the wrong sign

Their troops quell dissension

They never tell you what you can say

You are to figure that out for yourself

Books are censored and burned

Based on the religion of the area

Even news from another country is banned

It might tell you a truth they do not want you to know

Freedoms are an idea lost to a distant past

They were taken away to protect the people from enemies

Taken away to protect the government from the people

One thought, one word or one idea can get people thinking

Questioning the government they put in place

When did our freedoms leave?

When were they taken away?

We have to start thinking

To start to voice our opinion

Never caring what they say

Then we will have our freedoms

The ones the fathers gave to us

And they will all live in fear

I Keep Driving

I Keep Driving

Driving down a county road

No lights for miles

The darkness surrounds me

There are no trees or fields

Even the flowers hide from the moon

Animals step into my headlights

Then they flee off into nothing

The radio stations died miles back

There is nothing but static

There are no headlights behind me

No tail lights in front of me

I have seen a few stop sign and mile markers

The only proof that there is anyone else

I don't know why this road keeps going on

Maybe I died and an endless road is Satan's gift

I will keep driving ahead

Listening to the stones fly from my wheels

This is my own private hell

No music and no one to talk to

The clouds glow ahead of me

Lighted by the glow of a distant city

It is a mere glimmer of hope

So close but still so far away

For now I drive through the darkness

Straining my eyes to see one familiar landmark

More than just a glowing cloud

There is nothing

Still I keep driving on into the darkness

I just hope that soon there will be some light

I just keep driving

Floating On A Raft

Floating On A Raft

Floating on a rickety old raft

The water flows around me

Silently it creates small eddies

The water reflects the trees on the shore

Such peace only miles from the city

Could this be the Eden God promised?

If it is I never want to leave

Let the city go on its hectic way

Please allow them to die at their own pace

I just want to float here on my raft

Looking at the sky and dreaming

I don't want to go back

Without Hope

Without Hope

Floating just below the clouds

Look and you can see the heavens

All the stars and beauty of the universe

Below the rich live their easy lives

Others live on cat food

Not knowing where they will rest their heads

Yet they look into the heavens I see

While the wrap themselves in torn blankets

Crawling into a cardboard box they call home

They pray to a god who doesn't care

And they die without an answer

Without a decent meal

Shivering in a cold December night

Frozen in time without hope