Achilles and Hector

Zeus looked down upon the scene

From high Olympus he watched

Upon the shores of Anatolia

There the Sea of Helle washed 

Along the coast a city called Troy

Surrounded by Greeks

Arrayed for war

Athena, Goddess of Wisdom

Inspired so many to fight with courage

But many more followed Ares

God of battle, Lover of war

Who had loosed his power
Bloodlust

In the hearts of the combatants
He found there many things to his liking

Who knows the ways of the Gods

So powerful, so distant

So perfect, so capricious

What lessons have they taught 

If they are so cruel

How can man know different

How can they create life so beautiful 

But be entertained by carnage 

Wars of men leave them fulfilled

Battle before the walls of Troy

Soon legends were wrought

Greeks opposed the Trojans

To rescue a stolen princess
Yet she stolen with her permission

After innumerable forays
Melees and slaughter ensued

Sent forth two champions 

The two finest warriors fought

Both were courageous

Both were born of perfection

Equal in strength

Equal in agility

Each had enormous skills

With the spear

With the shield

One moved by anger

The other by hope

The bloodlust in Achilles

Set his path to victory

But he was not generous

Taking his joy

In his kill

By desecrating the body

Dragging it behind the victor's chariot

The vessel for honorable battle

Corrupted

By a violent hero

Being infantile

Only the tears of a father

Could loose Achilles

From his hideous thrill

At defeating one

Who took a life

In fair battle

Of his friend

How cold it was

How unworthy

What an ignominious end

Killer

It competes for existence
With nothing else
It has no equal
There is no resistance
It is opportunistic
Waiting for our fall
It invades with precision
It is the model
Of persistence
Humanity will crumble
Our civilization will die
Appearing docile
And weak

Need to end it

Awash in torment
There is no chance
Of redemption
Only immense shame
And metaphoric castration
Never wanting to know
The desire of those
Who hate
I reject the message sent
But it is worse
My birth was a curse
Bitter regrets remain
Life is of no significance
I hate who I became
I had a heart that was wild
It was killed
Torn out
Rather than being tamed
I give in
I give up
There is nothing
Nothing left

Escape through the doorway

Foreseeing the end
The portal was built
The seers foretold
The stars would shake
Lighting would strike
The sun grew cold
Shattering reality
Cleaving the night
The seers created a way
For their followers to escape
The world was ending
With no other paths to take
This was the only hope
Apocalypse broke the sky
The seers gathered the tribe
Beneath the eternity door
While the rest of the world died
And passed into a new realm
Made for them
By their deity
And their power poured
From Heaven's core

the ancient races

In the earliest time
Before civilizations took hold
Time didn't exist
Lives were mythic
Events were epic
Gods lived among men
And then
The world was divided
Between the eternal
And the temporal
The angels and Gods
Took to heaven
And the dark lords
Entered their deep domains
The order was set
Until the fallen
Came to live
Among the humans
And took their daughters
For mates
These offspring
Were feared and revered
Always standing out
They were the Nephilum
The giants
The beasts
The heroes
Of the ancient world


"When people began to multiply on the face of the ground, and daughters were born to them, the sons of God saw that they were fair; and they took wives for themselves of all that they chose. Then the Lord said, 'My spirit shall not abide in mortals forever, for they are flesh; their days shall be one hundred twenty years.' The Nephilim were on the earth in those days—and also afterward—when the sons of God went in to the daughters of humans, who bore children to them. These were the heroes that were of old, warriors of renown." (Genesis 6:1-4, New Revised Standard Version)

Fallen Irony

From the heights of the cosmos

To the depths of the mire
There is no escape

I admire
The naivety
Of  the damned
Since they have entered
My hellish land
They scream in pain
They moan in fear
They do not realize
I am like them
Only worse
  My domain is fearsome

Filled with servants

These burning hells

Are now my home
 My servants hate me

They long to betray me

What awaits me is slavery

 Kneeling before the throne

 I cannot be redeemed

For I defied the creator's plan

I demanded to be seen as an equal

I am perverse
I burn with ire

For I know why I am here

 The traits I have 

My beauty and charisma
Should not give me pride
They are not my own
Rather

 They were given to me

By my creator

So now I am

A master of the lands
Many think me the ruler
Holding the damned

Under my thumb

My role is one I cherish

But despite this
To rule over the lake of fire

As the lord of the unsaved
I play a role

In the drama of the cosmos

I play a role in the epic play

Of one who serves
My pride was foolish
I lost everything
By capricious whim

I am not a master

But one who serves him

Upon a throne

Within a cage

In the end he has won

There is nothing now

I am alone and ashamed

I cannot escape my servitude

My own flesh weakens
My beauty fades
My spirit was tamed

And I am alone
Inside my own lake of fire
Engulfed in hate
I refuse to submit
So I suffer
I am consumed
By my rage

Pain love

He said "Your love is tears.
I am dying now
What did you do to make me change
I used to be alive
I used to care
And now I am dead
I exchanged hope for fear.
I will never survive
Knowing you
And what you do to me"

sinking into the morass

The field wet with blood
From the battle
Of men sent to war
Neither side knowing why
They are simply chattel
And now they are gone
No one gaining
From all of them dying
The bones sink down
The land groaning
They'll be lost
Becoming one
With the land, the mud
And never knowing
Why they died

I remain

I remain
Long after you left
I became
Insane
Your love left me bereft
Shame
I refuse to be obsessed
You are my sorrow
Alive still
Despite your choice
I am alone
Comes the rain
So cold
I've become
So old
And now I leave
You are free
But I
Am long gone

Pure Truth

So high above the masses
Looking down
Could become difficult
To do so without scorn
But there was one
Who never felt contempt
For those below
Never becoming cynical
His gentle smile
Was worn
With absolute grace
Only the true leaders know
That leaders serve
Those who follow
It is not for show
Or display
But poured from the soul
With the vigor of youth
Pure truth

Dynamism

Beneath the chaos and order
Between peace and war
Hot and cold, fast and slow
There is a power that moves us
As well as arrives at justice
When two opposite forces act
In continuous motion
Opposition becomes
Power

Beaten down

I saw him
He was disheveled
Looking pale
And gaunt
He had tears
Falling
And told me
What good is living
If there is only pain
He pulled in a tortured breath
What is the point of hope
If there's a cost you pay
There is no escape
Nor forgiveness
I can't do it
I cannot bear this shame
I have only to leave
With no one realizing
I have only to sleep
Never waking
Only dying
I know it is wrong
To focus on this
It comes close to suicide
But I came to love the thought
Of leaving this world
And escaping this cage
Of flesh

Destined

Some are
Destined
To enter legend
Heroes reply
To the quest
To answer
The question
Committing to a task
With danger and death
The Gods watch
As the hero acts
Culture will remember
Forever
And should the hero succeed
Will be remembered
For his deeds
And become
Part of the pantheon
Of those favored
By the Gods

Years fly

Years pass, like wind through hair
I watch with sorrow
For the things I didn't do
And people I miss
But I loved
And I loved you
I burned all my tomorrows
For a chance for today
To be
Yours for a day
And I don't regret my act
I had to take a chance
If I didn't
I'd be here
Saying I wish I did
It is the coward's way
And so now Older by far
Death is near
And without shame
I know what I want
Upon my final breath
I want to say I love you
Still
Missing you will haunt me
For the rest of my days
But at least
I got to lay in the sun
And return your gaze
For a little while
While you called my name

Foolish Man

I couldn't understand
Why you ran to the other man
I wanted to give up and throw up my hands
But something
Somehow
Kept me there
In that circumstance
I never knew why
You'd abandon this life
We'd created a family in our time
But something
Somehow
Made you run
My heart is not able
And my soul is crushed
All options are off the table
You dictate the terms
Of my surrender
So we can get back to living
This love fable
Together
I have lost
Too many nights
Missing your touch
We once had forever
And now
Our love is harder to remember
Than our last fight

Love's Epiphany

It seems to me that you are
        not in love with me
you are simply using
     my naivety
and my love for you
 for company
And your self esteem
If I am honest...
You are very mean

It was days before you called
      after you knew I was worried
I can't keep destroying my hope
My belief system
You shattered my inner walls, and doors
You hurried to respond to the others but not me
Yes I am a fool
But your fool
Forever yours

You can have any one
Males view you with awe
This love towards one
      who doesn't care
Is no miracle, no phenomenon
You are simply cold
Unwilling to hold
Another person
Who might break down your walls

preplanning my funeral

Crimson spray

Sharp is the blade

What can I say

Quitting is my game

Soon my vision blurs

Bleeding the devil’s liqueur

I stare in the cracked mirror

And it laughs back at me 

For now I'll lay down

Into the sewer

Until my time is gone

Until I pass

From this 

Stained palace

 

Flight

Smoke from the fires
Black smoke rises
Clouding the view
The raven ascends
To the heights he flies
A raven glides above
The broken earth below
The battle was over
Fall the walls
Of Jericho
A creature of wisdom
Has watched mankind
And offers no advice
He will rise
Upon the wind
And never return again

gone

we've driven beauty to extinction
in favor of pleasure and ignorance
art is exterminated
as if it is our mission
to feed our indifference
to the world created
we pave forests
kill the creatures
poison the waters
to eradicate our world
by slaying the dreamers
we are fated
to be the destroyer
to be the ones
who slay nature
we commit massacres
of beauty
to replace it all
with buildings
streets
cell phones
pornography

wake me from

wake me from the dead
asleep I have been
forever knows
I am untouchable
no healing
no imagining
without the courage
my heart shows
how I suffer
how hungry I have been
don't let me start
I will never end
so ravenous
towards the other
love is empty without
transparent hearts
without hope
without affection
no
love is empty
without you
wake me
wake me from the dead
I don't care what I said
wake me

The Ancient Dead Remain

The corpse adjudged
Without shame
Nor worry
The past flees
Cascade started
Should the spirit be missing
And life is gone
The shadows and mist
Refuse to part
These bones exist
And the ancient dead remain
Before the court
A case presented
Though flesh has parted
The dead live the same
Skeletal remnants of life
Artifacts of existence
Bleached white
The life that is lost
Is a memory
A ghost
Still haunting
Still mourning
The loss

the pain in the darkness

amnesiac memories
gnideelberaeyesym
so much pain inside
snetsilydobon
No one cares
I can't escape
dnimgnimearcsym

Postcard: Alone Again

in the morning, they linger

In the morning
They linger
Where it is quiet
And white with mist
They are silent
Keeping aware
The deer feed on grass
Knowing
That should they remain
When the sun
Burns the mist away
Predators will hunt
Their ears prick up
Hearing and sensing
A human stranger
But there is no danger
Here rides
A human warrior
Upon a chariot
Armed for battle
Cu Chulainn is renowned
Being pure of soul
But black spirit in war
The deer continue feeding
To Cu Chulainn
Hero and bold
The deer hold no interest
His heart longs for action
He is a hero
And there are many wrongs
To address
Before the day grows old

Books featuring Celtic heroes, written by me, illustrated by Ed Quinby and others.

Books about Celtic heritage and history, not by me.

Postcard: Against the Tide They Stood

Postcard: Eternity's Garden

questioning

angel chorus in the clouds
celebrate the new arrivals
yes
they survived the temptations
and they are proud
but I have to ask
what is the joy
of saying no
to the world
given to us
for our pleasure
dichotomies suck
and I am too stupid
to understand
a farmer breaks the plow blade
in a rock strewn land
an artist is born
without hands
called to a destiny
that I can't fulfill
or fate that escapes
due to my unawareness
of wisdom I had to distill
from the spilled vintage
I can't see myself alive
beyond this flesh life
But I pray to be
worthy of the breath
given to me
forgiving me
I believe
and I resist
but the wisdom is beyond me
and I still am alone
with my belief

Chasing evil in the Urals

We rode against the trolls
Against the Turks
Against the giants
Against the slavers
Who'd sold their souls
We were the Bogatyr
The warriors of the Kievan Rus
We never paled in the face
Of enemies
We were breaking their control
Of the human race
We rode
Never ever ending
Our forward charge
For we were the defenders
From the fields of Ukraine
To the golden land of Thrace

Through the mists of eternity

The cycle of existence
Is not monolithic
It will rise
or descend
Based upon my choices
And the use of gifts
And talents lent
This life will never end
My soul is eternal
my flesh is not
My flesh of clay
My soul has bought
Every tear
I suffer
I'm not God
Yet I am born
Ever again
The everlasting
seems so far away
Forever days
Ascension is my goal
No hunger left to sate
I am yours
Dear God of all
Do with me
And I shall answer
Your call

I long for you

In the absence of light
I cannot find
Where you are
Your form is near me
As we meet in the night
My hands reach,
But you are too far
From my arms
The rhythm of your breathing
Tells me what I need
In your presence
I am alive
My defenses disarmed
Your beauty is unique
Your mind is glorious
Your lips are what I seek
First and foremost
Your flesh is warm
I am cold
We are dynamic
And our love is new
We both want more
In the darkness
Our hands reach the other
Moved by your beauty
I am awakened
To your charms
Hold me
Kiss me
Please do not
Resist me
I long for you
And only you
In this dance
We perform

The Beautiful Lady Without Mercy

She knew my heart
Hidden behind the chest plate
Her touch was cold and taunting
I was naive to her ways
But I was not afraid
She had beauty that was haunting
Her voice soothed my fears
Her form moved my being
And when I reached for her
She was gone
And I was left
With only tears
Grieving my loss
But was she ever near