The Monuments To False Gods

Idolatry is a common feature in works of antiquity
To give credit to the created, rather than the creator
View all the statues left behind, in any ancient place
To be remembered and praised, rather than infamy
It isn't false to say, that isn't the same as being a god
Statues left behind of those aren't close to divinity
But desiring worship, praise, adoration are hubris
So view with awe the engineering, and artist's craft
They are the truly marvelous accomplishments
As they beckon your mind to remember the past

The Cursed Earth

We stare upwards, questioning the stars
There are no answers, to all the questions
With so many throats choked with words
No words of hope can escape the lips
The walls around us were built to stand
Humans efforts were beyond brilliant
But that didn't make them impenetrable
Our disasters are all self invited,
Every human grieves this plague
This flesh has been cursed
We're unwilling to surrender
As disasters strike this Earth
A third of water made toxic
A third of the populace dies
We've entered Armageddon
There's no escape for our species
Despite our efforts, we're done

Tales of a Cat Person

My greatest joy in life has been my son
My world changed as he became a man
My wife had taught me love, just in time
So I might be ready to be my boy's dad
But over time, my life has seen little joy
Grave pain, from many different places
And that pain never goes away, it lingers
All the while I've had one true pain relief
Her name is Katya, and loves completely
She comforts me, gives me back sanity
She allows me to know, always, somehow
That someone is there, who will love me
Regardless of my idiocy, insanity, pain
I don't want to live on planet without her
I don't want to breathe air inside of me
That she as well has never breathed
No human knows the depths of my love
None know how impossibly deep it runs
But somehow she does
And she always has
I live for time with her
To be slept upon
To be purred towards
To feel the whack of her tail
Upon my face
She is the one in Heaven
I long most for the embrace
Because she allowed me true peace
When the rest of my life was crazed

Miserable Confessional

To some, life is a curse
To others, it's a blessing 
I have found little of any
Despite a life long search
On my knees confessing
Victim of feeding frenzy
As I've opened my heart
Instead it is ripped out
When I confess my sins
I am accused of doubt
Why should I bother
There is so little left
My beloveds gone
I am made bereft
I am bleeding inside
And broken in pain
Stripped of my dignity
Again called a stain

Looking Back

The face looking back through that mirror
Was way the hell happier than I remember
I never felt that way, so I blame the cracks
Because there was never a time I could be
Anything more than barely existing
All I ever wanted was be yours, at my core
Just to get there I had to still fully surrender
And now I'm mocked, constantly attacked
For being honest, telling the truth and more
Leave me alone, my inner truth is calling
Telling me I'd fucked it all up, I'm falling
With only my dreams to break the fall
But somehow, I've stopped caring

“Every man carries with him through life a mirror, as unique and
impossible to get rid of as his shadow.”                     W.H. Auden

Stare at the Sun

If we stare at the sun, strangely we will be blinded
Staring at the darkness, are we blessed with light?
In ironies of existence, scattered about experience
Do we have the wisdom to just perceive, or believe
We are more than flesh mounds, but thinking beings
How long must we pursue truth, live for the fight
I was blinded before birth, by my horrible origins
It took life to show me light, through the darkness
And now, with less life remaining, than I've lived
I've had to learn to give up those grudges, forgive
If not you turn the waters of life bitter, give it back
Or things that exalt your being, are lost regardless

Friedrich Nietzsche: I say unto you: one must still have chaos in oneself to be able
to give birth to a dancing star. I say unto you: you still have chaos in  yourselves.

Celebrate existence

Wonder is a joy, to explore the deepest fathoms and know
We are organic beings, with no limit to our imagination
Sands of earth beaches are fewer than planets with life
We have a universe that begs to be known, investigated
Always limit your caution, there's too much to do
And so little time and life to do it all

That Day

And there will come a day
When the suffering is done
When the hunger will end
When the hate will fade
Into darkness and die
That day will be our time
To celebrate our freedom
To dance for our liberation
To hope in our expectation
There will come that day
When we find the wisdom
When we realize our fate
Not to always kill each other
But to end the foolish debate
And simply love one another
In a way that forgives the pain
We experienced and caused
And embrace all others
Whatever their name
Whatever their race
Whatever their face
And love them
Without shame

Farewell my beloved

I hear the echoes of her paw's prints
Taste the air that she breathed inside
I see the emptiness where she laid
And I know, I'm empty now as well
She is gone and I'm broken within
She has passed, it cripples my mind
She was my love, she called my name
And without her, my being is in hell
I could lose my arms or my eyes
I could break all my bones or heart
And I couldn't feel worse than I do
Knowing she's not with me, any more
I wear a mask that doesn't disguise
When I smile with a heart of scars
Missing you, missing you
The rest of my life spent
Missing you

Dedicated to every pet who blessed me by sharing their life with me

ROME's DICHOTOMY

I walked with my unit through uncut wheat fields
The summer sun blazed with a cool wind blowing
The lost men over time, sacred shadows reminding
That life is precious, our time must produce a yield
As we left the scene of battle, the sun was blinding
Yet we know, those who died did not do so in vain
For an Empire was secure, all our sacrifices sincere
My father was a farmer, his was as well, they served
Upon the horizon black clouds rose, soon with rain
Warriors alive, no lightning or enemies bring fear
But a day done, our reward far less than deserved
Fought with honor, died in service, for an Empire
With slavery, violence, and gluttony unconcealed
We were tools for a machine, and we might break
For the human body is only so able, and not steel

Fallen Kingdom

Brothers we grew up in the home of the king
Granted equal rights to the throne and crown
We both trained as warriors with our consent
As knights of the kingdom, as leaders of men
We refused our own lives, to fulfill the legacy
In one violent act, we were ruthlessly attacked
 We were each called upon, to sacrifice lives
To stem invaders from pouring over the walls
We now linger as ghosts upon the battlefield
For the terrible day a king and princes fell
Each banner was torn down, and burned
Kicking up fires, mindful of Hell

Relentless sorrow

A cold rain fell, the freeze severed my soul
I couldn't breathe, as the pain was immense
Wishing you were with me, in better days
But as I walk the streets, in the winter cold
I've turned pale, gray even, lost my senses
Losing you, I'm emptied, becoming a ghost
Broken by death, my tears are relentless
The sorrow of loss has left me empty
Farewell my love, in eternity

Trapped

Trapped by the offerings of the flesh
Heading to a place worse than death
My being a wonder to have survived
All I've faced, fallen and risen, alive
You called my name, I was changed
There is no shame, no condemnation
No anger, no bitterness, lost my rage
So now where do I go, but the end
To answer the message I was sent
And I am grateful

Cycles

In different ways, phases of renewal and loss
The story of the history of human civilization
Our world has changed, many different times
With new phases of technological development
Only for it then to be destroyed, and rise again
Will we ever know how to prevent the disaster
Will we be the victim every 15000 year decline
Works about the past address it, with eloquence
Is there a way to stop any of the coming events
Earth is a target for a meteor, comet or solar flare
Will we survive, do we face more than a scare?
Or will we embrace the danger, with absolute hubris?

Savior

I had cried with every loss
Every tear came with cost
You had paid for me to live
And called for me to forgive
Staring emptily, a soul cold
My entire being was broken
So I 'd nothing I could lose
You gave me life and truth
And there is nothing else

When we think about it all, why do we do it?

So many lost in the wars, the tribal hatred thoroughly waged
As innocent lives destroyed, by bombs dropped anonymously
Drones deliver death, indistinguishable, civilian from soldier
Nuclear weapons await the turn, to destroy all left in the cage
Corporate greed, distinctly evil leadership, warring profitably
Futures are unknown, all born will die, but hope to die older
Than merchants of death wish to calculate, how to profit by

“It is forbidden to kill; therefore all murderers are punished
unless they kill in large numbers and to the sound of trumpets.”
                                                                                   Voltaire

AI created, Thank God that's all we have so far

Tell me, because I don't know

Just what is the reason for anything at all, why are we here
Is chaos our father, circumstance our mother, hope too late
Can we be beings of intellect, but without purpose or reason
Did chance create a future destiny, are we the victims of fate
Life has mysteries, false hopes, and a constant fear of wrath
I don't know, whatever IQ, I wonder constantly these origins
Children of the atom, generations born from logic and a path
Children of the Gods while Heaven, Asgard or Elysium wait
I don't know, all I can do is hope

The Vacant Heart versus the Vacant Stare

She promised yes, he said he'd never break her heart
But time moves faster than our hearts can reconsider
She said yes and took the ring, on heart full of scars
He came back from war, she'd taken it off her finger
He'd known, she'd found another, or something other
But by now he'd seen so much, heart so cold didn't feel
She didn't want to be his lover, he didn't want a mother
And in the end they were friends, easier to just be real
But still hurts, breaking promises, hearts, and souls

The Spirit of Defeat, or Surprise Victory

Victory is not a moment, it is a result
Victory in the memory of history
After the battles have been fought
Whether one has won or has lost
Is when a side perceives itself defeated
Even in falsehood, perhaps an accident
Just as there have been the opposite
Where an army thinks it is about to win
And is crushed by the momentum
Loss of hope by the reality of the day
Great generals would craft battles
So that that momentum and timing
Would collide and create false hope
Dashing it, causing panic and despair
Hannibal Barca and Julius Caesar
Most especially Alexander the great
I promise that when you feel defeated
Refuse to give up, it might be a ruse
Where an enemy of your being is plotting
Only to lose, a misstep of confidence
You might instead be about to find victory
Where only defeat lingered before

Example: Cannae, Alesia, Granicus River

Hannibal, Caesar, Alexander

The Madness

When it ends, my flesh stops screaming
Words stop dropping, ink stops bleeding
I'm lost in life, breathing for no purpose
I have a destination, to escape this circus
Because the world has gone fully insane
And we're mainlining madness at the vein
So take me from this place, I will survive
Because no matter what is done, I'm alive
In spirit, always, in flesh terminus reached

(photo from Getty images)

When Earth Rises Again

To some, the thought of the world we've wrought
Brings them no guilt, no shame, it is just what it is
But others, they try sincerely, to reduce our impact
If we are biological organisms, we are part of earth
Humans have impact, as do animals, but ours is greater
Earth offers a bounty, it is glorious green and blue
But to think our selves separated from it, is false
We are not a curse, We are not the masters
We've created a system that wounds earth
What if our world might one day reject us
It might create means of our own extinction
Would we see it as being our punishment
Would we see it as being justice for our acts
Or would we pass from view, with silence
The shame of our own ignorance imposing quiet
I don't know the answer, life on earth will endure
In one form or another, we will be gone
Other kinds of life will flourish, with joy
I do know if our species passes from view
The Earth will rise again

Perfectionism is a disease

As they gladly rip your legs from your body, then
Complain that you can't run fast enough for them
They'll poke your eyes from your skull, screaming
And demand you describe images of your dreams
But they can't demand the perfection of your heart
They can't see inside, due to their own caused scars
So keep your dignity, you deserve that, and more
If you love, if you hope, it resides inside your core
Don't let people neither morally nor factually perfect
Keep you from reaching heights you are meant for

LOSER

I cannot breathe, can't think, can't endure
I can't see, I can't survive, I have no future
The bleeding can't end, dying each second
Life spilling out of me, my sins reckoned
And now I've nothing, but fear inside me
All those things I've done that deride me
I'm condemned, I've finally been damned
Despite every chance to just understand
But I refuse, choosing my path
And cold death's final wrath

One Day it will end

Countless people died on March 28
In war, after living a long life, in joy
In peace, after so little life, in horror
Many born, with a mystery of life to live
We think all those born a miracle, and great
We think those lost a tragedy, to be replaced
But the Machine of existence seems endless
 Time is a construct, it one day will shatter
If we are so arrogant, if we have such hubris
As to believe we are of epic importance
Why do many think our numbers don't matter
Assuming the species is forever but not
The eternal machine has kept count
When it reaches a certain number
Its gears then will grind to full stop
Then every organic machine will end
Our human species will no longer exist
Without sound nor obituary notice
The days will end, run out of tomorrows
Yes, it will come when we no longer exist
But will it be a great day or one of great sorrow
Our actions will speak to the answer
Were we the cure
Or were we the cancer?

The Truth of Beauty

Is beauty a runway model, statuesque and blonde?
Is beauty a child with charm and giggles, so cute?
Or a message burning inside the soul, resonating?
Do we even get close to the reality, the truth of it
Or is it staring in our face, and has never changed
A call from child to mother, a movement of grace
Where the answer is clear, it is in seeing the hand
A hand of a creator, an artist, one who is an expert
And we ignore the creator for the created, idolatry
Lose our path, for shiny baubles of the world?

Marcus Aurelius 'Dwell on the beauty
of life. Watch the stars, and see yourself
                                  running with them.'

To live again

My heart has died many times
My spirit fled my flesh again
And then yet still again
But I see others suffering more
And I realize my privilege
To see another horizon
In my core I long to be truly alive
But my fears hold me down
Pinning me to the ground
I have to find a way to rise anew
With a spirit ready to flourish
But the pain and exhaustion
Make it my prison cell
A pathway to my hell
So I will stand and finally fight
To have a chance to find joy
I will work to make things right
And rescue from the deep
And return them to the shallow
All who wallow in the currents
The rising ocean tide
And the beating of our hearts
To the losing race against time
For we all die in the end, but how few live?

“The world is always dying and always coming back to life.
Tide and pulse, and with the turn of the tide a touch of mystery.”
                                                                            Henry Miller

A new plan, it is called hope

I believe we are a people that need to relearn to be one race
We need to embrace the bright and dull, genius and the less
Because the moment we separate into tiny clans and tribes
We forget our species hinged on 2000 or less breeding pairs
Look at others as family, learn and remember to embrace
Our past is ugly with hate, envy, and violence, just confess
There isn't a formula, we are new at finding reasons to vibe 
Because once we overcome our errors wounds can repair
Love one another, be kind, and think of others as family

Humanity's Evil Enemy

Some cancers are widowmakers, killing you in weeks after diagnosis
Other kinds linger, back time after time, like an unwelcome bully
But unlike bullies, cancer has no regrets, it has an anger ferocious
So that whatever good you do, whoever will miss your flesh's being
It celebrates, not knowing, surrounding family grow strength seeing
The fight encourages, strengthens the fight of others, now believing
All suffer, some more, some less, but cancer is a villain and cruel
To fight it, is an act of vigilance and heroic grace
If you suffer, or have fought cancer, you have my awe
Cancer has tried twice here, also took beloved friends
If you have fought or fight, you are a vet of a holy war
You are in my highest esteem, and I pray you mend
May you be blessed, and given hope

(AI created image)

We Hunger

I do not fear the future
I fear for those who must live in it
What is there for any future generation
Upon a planet of emotional starvation
We find a purpose within immorality
And celebrate all lost goals and dreams
Demanding the utter betrayal of hope
In the end, we will enter a cycle of despair
Where there are no reasons to strive
Only to hunger
For vengeance or even for food
To be bitter
With anger and even more envy
We live in a world that says one love
We don't even spell the word with compassion
In a world of starvation and poverty
There are people obese from greed
We can't find hope in a world of beauty
We feel alienated by the natural glory
We defile the planet of resources
From water to permanent chemicals
From clear cut forests, emptied of trees
Why do we insist upon destroying our home
We've nowhere else to flee to, or harvest
The universe is not at all like Earth
All roads do not lead to Rome
Those cosmic streets littered
With our spent wages of death
We cannot impose our will upon space
What is there for us to do
If we can't see the path ahead
In the murk of our littered past

Until that Day

I've always wondered why this world works as it does
Why do violence and lurid details outweigh pure love
Who'd desire to be defiled, or wish to not have enough
If it is perfect why do we suffer, on the day of the dove
Is it there are no answers, at least none that make sense
Are we meant to suffer, so life beyond will make sense
Or am I just stupid, a fool, enslaved to dreams so cruel
What is wrong with wanting hope, what is wanting joy
Is it that we're meant to fail, why must this fear prevail
Unless there's a reason, unless we need it to understand
I refuse to trust in darkness, here I'll hold my ground
And suffer until it arrives, the joyous day of the dove

Mom

I miss you so much, I cry at the sound of your name
I remember all I should have done, burning in shame
You were every moment my mind, spent in thought
You're always with me, rather than alone in silent rot
At the sound of your voice, the warmth of your laugh
I keep your memory alive, as the epitome of class
You made me experience life, whether I liked it or not
You showed me the way home, to the holy son of God
Now all alone, missing you like missing air to breathe
But you gave me life, and taught me to believe

DANCING

A woman who had taught me to survive, was stubborn and loving
She fought off two terminal diagnoses, when cancer had no cure
I had cancer, twice, and nearly died from a broken neck and more
But unlike her, I stared blankly, as death came, rushing, rushing
I had to learn to endure, to be willing to survive down to my core
And I found that in her example, so in memory and celebration
I will dance, without fear, with no shyness, in final exultation
For you found me my little lady, stubborn, determined mother

The Youth Suffer

From my youth I remember everything
The popping, guns sounds and screams
The bullets firing and hitting the ground
We recognized the violence around us
With every dead kid there is no justice
The modern world filled with a silence
As the innocent die there becomes quiet
Blood covers a playground and school
In years society forgets, but never repents
The world won't know what happened
Only something cold and deeply cruel

Too many things

I've so many things to do, so much to make right
So many breaths to take, before I fall to the night
The outside calls my name as I stop there and wait
As a world screams my name while filled with hate
I will become calm, wait for the dawn and breathe
Nothing more to do, nor more to say, but believe
I have nothing to offer, so I pray for grace

Desert Planet

There's a silence now here but at one time was sound
With the many voices of life, activities, and events
But this quiet isn't one of solitude or inward thoughts
The planet no longer supports life, none of any kind
It used to have intelligent life, witness the monuments
What is now exposed rock, was once a sacred ground
The bleak terrain holds secrets washed away by time
And the winds sweeping across the surface, relentless
Dust storms are ongoing, but barely make any sound
Lost are the millennia, civilizations that lived and died

The Way of Peace, The Way of War

Over years preparing for the rest of my life
Learning calligraphy, haiku, ink paintings
Practicing sword craft, focus of my blade
As days go by swiftly pass without strife
On my heart is branded, without pain
The branded lessons become engravings
Thus the mindful warrior controls rage
Our world offers chaos, I desire order
To exist I create conditions to thrive
I train my mind, practice for a reason
And whatever I face, I will be ready
My mind makes my sword sharper
And practice sharpens my mind
Training and calm, peace and war
I'm prepared for whatever beckons
To serve my Emperor, to be worthy
My sword, bone, flesh and blood
Will be given fully, for his service

Days of Darkness

The sky had turned black despite it being the day
Three days of darkness begun, start of our decay
We should have been aware, long before the time
But we lingered in pleasure, fantasies of the mind
The sun was missing and we'd forgotten the truth
Had we tried, we'd heard approaching horse hooves
War, Famine, Plague, and Death were on their way
We were more concerned with sex, bread, and circus

iam pridem, ex quo suffragia nulli /
vendimus, effudit curas; nam qui dabat olim /
imperium, fasces, legiones, omnia, nunc se /
continet atque duas tantum res anxius optat, /
panem et circenses.
                                                           Juvenal

Winter Raid

Into the darkness, into the frozen black
Our ships long ago been drawn ashore
We'd marched for days in deep Winter
Before we'd unleash our surprise attack
During a quiet dawn, unaware sleepers
Now the foes approached nevermore
Moved swiftly, blowing horns of victory
We then showed the enemy no mercy
For they had long practice acts of terror
As our people called for vengeance
Responded with axes, arrows, swords
With no thought to pillage and looting
Intentions were to prevent further acts

"If through storms I need to protect my boat at sea, I calm
the wind on the wave and put all the sea to sleep.” Hávamál

The Angel of Death?

This world has been in existence for billions of years
Arrival of a new species or noted appearance of one
Wasn't an unusual thing, specifically great or notable
But the human species, in many forms, changed that
By evolution or creation, mistake or miracle of time
These humans could speak, coordinate behavior, act
The rest of nature hadn't yet shown the same ability
But are humans a blessing or a curse to this planet?
Have we destroyed it, as we scoured it for resources
I've wondered why we exist, and yet, does it matter
Because if we are a curse, we should then wonder
Why were we the chosen as agents of destruction

The Promise of the Morning

a bleeding inside that no one saw
the screaming silent worst dream
my flesh decays, I'm made of flaw
I've no memory, for I never sleep
I'll will stand one day, stare in awe
for in the new morning, fear flees
And hope comes with every dawn
to stop bleeding, I need to believe
every single day begins with trust
the night will always fall to day
fulfillment of the promise
of forgiveness to receive