There’s a lingering shadow
that follows us all
Counting each breath
each step till we fall
Its pall ever darkens
while just out of reach
Its voice heard to whisper
through mountain and beach
It sees every moment
both joyous and sad
Recording our journey
the good and the bad
And then on that day
when our fate meets the end
Its arms wrap around us
— our very last friend
(The New Room: June, 2025)
Through struggle
one can justify life
Losing the battle
enhances the view
Blood on the rails
all markings assured
Death as the prize
— recurring anew
(The New Room: June, 2025)
Writer’s write
Speaker’s speak
(and never)
— the twain shall meet
(Ketchum Idaho: August, 1983)
Too much
of too much
— is never enough
(Dreamsleep: June, 2025)
Lighting Tomorrow
Memory’s
lantern
near empty
unfilled
Each night
in the darkness
to flicker
until
Your eye
without warning
a flash
unexplained
Forever
relighting
and fanning
— the flame
(Dreamsleep: June, 2025)
Shamal Winds
Lost
in the deepest
recesses of myself
And happier
than I have
any right to be
The hidden
regions
my newfound oasis
A Bedouin
convert
— home among the sands
(The New Room: June, 2025)
Infestation
The American Dream
becoming
a nightmare …
Conscripted
by strangers
new thieves in the night
Usurping
our freedoms
embedded among us
Invested in nothing
but
— what they can steal
(University Of Pennsylvania: June, 2025)
Leaving The Noise
He came into
silence
like fish
take to water
The only thing
constant
his being
alone
To wander
the alleys
of quiet
reception
The noise
and confusion
for others
— to drone
(The New Room: June, 2025)
Looking back
speed is warped
looking forward
it slows
Each memory
a racehorse
that goes
and it goes
Intuition
the truant
in what it
will bring
When time
is reversed
and the Jester
— is King
(The New Room: June, 2025)
In flowering
wishes
a feeling
unfolds
A vase
sits awaiting
its love
to arrive
Each petal
of hope
in a blossom
untold
Till picked
from the valley
of passion
— alive
(Dreamsleep: June, 2025)
Walking South
on the beach
in front of Doral
I heard a woman sing …
“If you put the man
back in romance
I’ll put the lay
back in lady”
Catching up to her
I asked
where she first
heard the song
She said: “It’s mine
do you like it?
It still
needs more work
I was hoping
this walk
would enchant
or inspire”
At the Fontainebleau
I said: “I do very much
Let me help you write
the second verse”
(Miami Beach: 1982)
Dreams Of ‘Papa’
Burning fat
off your soul
with each word
that he wrote
Every vision
a banquet
to swallow
or choke
In the ring
or arena
with blood
boiling high
A man greets
the dragon
with hello
— or goodbye
(Dreams Of Papa: May, 2025)
Sins Of Omission
Intending
to deceive
with words
unsaid
In your
silence
truth denied
What’s stays
on mute
voiced in
your head
Its
intention
— vilified
(Dreamsleep: May, 2025)
Smyllum Park
The great
deceivers
hope and affection
Leave you
a foundling
an orphan of joy
As twins
they’re conscripted
in fields of abandon
Where life takes
no solace
and heartache
— deploys
(Dreamsleep: May, 2025)
Into The Breach
Every war
is different
Every war’s
the same
Bullets fly
and soldiers die
With valor
— to rename
(Dreamsleep: May, 2025)
Crossing Over
A whispered dare
a final vow
the Rubicon behind
New Light ahead
through smoke and blood
the final victim — time
(Dreamsleep: May, 2025)
Self-Owned
Remember
the day
you became entitled
to yourself
No debts to pay
no last charade
the circle closed
— indwelt
(Dreamsleep: May, 2025)
Reflection
Do we just recall
a memory
Or its cause
and its effect
Is consciousness
a chain of links
To front load
— or dissect
(Dreamsleep: May, 2025)
Beatitude
The deeper you question
the more you constrain
God’s true existence
to never explain
Loosen your grip
on what holds you back
Surrender to glory
— Divinity’s tack
(1st Book of Prayers: May, 2025)
The Only Thing
Winning is always
undefeated
Score
to tell the tale
The victory plum
is zero sum
With glory
— to regale
(The New Room: May, 2025)
All Is Now
Unplugging tomorrow
recharging today
Conscripting the moment
— inside which we pray
(1st Book of Prayers: May, 2025)
An Anthology Of Perception 