Poetry contests …

skew the way

hoping

 for a win

Ink

that never  

truly dries

lost within the din

Words not felt

but chosen

to stay

forever cold

Spiraling

to depths unknown

in darkness

— bought and sold

(Dreamsleep: September, 2026)

Unless

I join you

in your decadence

we have no real connection

As Kirouac

you mirror

and Burroughs

you acclaim

In self

abuse

you wander

in dread of every mirror

True dilettante

of life’s betrayal

in squalor  

— where you hide

(Dreamsleep: September, 2026)

The aging

of our memories

Each year

a thought turns grey

Till all that’s left

is time bereft

And darkness   

— leads the way

(Dreamsleep: September, 2026)

Roses

of the unborn

planted in

my childhood

Blooming

not once

but forever

in my memory

Blooming

not once

rediscovered

in my longing

Petals

of transcendence

falling softly

— out of time

(Deamsleep: August, 2026)

All living

creatures

are lonesome

for God

Giving

them purpose

their light

in the fog

Not feeling

sorry

or thankful

in vain

They crave

the connection

their nature

— ordains

(Dreamsleep: August, 2026)

Black or White

a common soul

Beneath the surface

of hate resold

Uncolored ground

that buries deep

A shared endowment

— to haunt our sleep

Trying

to retrieve

the things

you threw off

the boat

before they

sink

and with them

my legacy

They drift

in the

saturation

of what never

should have

been said

and never

should have

been thought

I

fall into

the dark

water

where our

past

spawns in anger

treading

in desperation

Hoping

for a

last reprieve

still floating

on the

surface

of what

never really was

— and never will be again

(Dreamsleep: August, 2026)

Buying my

anonymity

each day

 is costing more

The mortgage

on new moments

signed in blood

 their payment sure

In plain sight

hides my essence

for as long

as I can pay

In debted

bliss

my soul is pledged

— to go from day to day

(The New Room: August, 2026)

You’ll never cross

the maelstrom

if your courage

has been stripped

Or trip the light

fantastic

when you’re crippled

at the hip

You can’t escape

the jungle

when the path

leads further in

Or greet the

new horizon

in a darkness

— mired in sin

(Dreamsleep: August, 2026)

Finding

your place

More important

than fame

To merge

with forever

Past transiency’s

stain

To letter

eternal

Beyond critic

and praise

To join

with the voices

In heaven’s

— refrain