When the final act of courage

is gone

—all you have left is hope

 

(30^th Street Station: May, 2021)

She took her pain

and wrapped it around my heart,

tying us together in a misery

—from which we would never part

 

(Dreamsleep: May, 2021)

The riff smiled first,

as the raff smiled back

 

Each knowing the other,

the white from the black

 

“They’ll never accept us,”

they both would exclaim

 

“The ‘grays’ have the mantle,

defiled and profane”

 

(Dreamsleep: May, 2021)

Running away

from the impossible…

Truth,

 the last thing that’s caught

 

(Dreamsleep: May, 2021)

Like wine,

these older days

are vintage

 

Aging,

as each days number

declines

 

Ripe

in the tannin

of what remains

 

Rich

in the sweetness

of time now past

 

The vines

to wither

—in memory lost

 

(The New Room: May, 2021)

All Hail Caesar,

the conquering wind

 

A force of nature

that gusts within

 

Cities crumble

and empires fall

 

The shadow of Rome

—covering all

 

(The New Room: May, 2021)

 

Everyone is brave

inside the café

Tall glasses of courage,

fear toasting itself

The sound of the motors,

the drape of the muleta

A court full of jesters

—reliving the lie

 

(Amtrak To 30^th Street: May, 2021)

Too much honor

kills with impunity

 

The intrepid among us

—perdition surrounds

 

(Dreamsleep: May, 2021)

The best of the worst,

rules amidst chaos,

honor amongst thieves

—brothers in blood

 

(Dreamsleep: May, 2021)

If I chose the right words

I could talk to God

in language still unspoken

 

His arms to reach out

and welcome me home

with grace—my heart rewoken  

 

(The Book Of Prayers: May, 2021)