The Cynic

There’s always something
Going on behind the scenes
No motive is completely pure
And all around us people lie

The world is full of smoke
And mirrors and short
Attention spans
With news on the hour from
Misdirection Central
In living color and high def

And if you don’t know what
To think about the latest news
Relax ~ with well-trained
Experts standing by
Your attitude will get a
Painless tweak or two and
In no time you won’t remember
What the fuss was all about

Of course the side effects
Are varied and long-lasting
But hey ~
It’s all a tradeoff isn’t it
And if it gets to that point
I’ve heard the operation
Is almost always a success

So lie back and enjoy
It’s going to be all right
It’s going to be all right
It’s going to be al . . .

(Originally published June 9, 2019)

More Than a Fairy Tale

There were elements
Of alchemy
Throughout the house
The very air was filled
With mystery

And in the darkness
Deeper shadows lurked
And moved
Hinting of matters
Sacred and profane

Of secrets too long kept
And far too dangerous
Ever to see
The light of day

I don’t know
What drew me in
How I came to be
Standing as if
Mesmerized
But I sense that
It is time
For me to go

But as I reach for it
The handle turns
And slowly the door
Opens inward toward me

And I know my fate
Is sealed

(Originally published March 14, 2014, and followed immediately by)

Ending the Fairy Tale

I stand as if transfixed
The power of speech
Has left me
Is it fear I feel or is it
More anticipation

Subconsciously I knew
Of course that I was
On a risky path
Perhaps that’s why the
House called out to me
So strongly

And now I hear the
House’s heartbeat
Or is it mine
Deep silence has blocked out
All other sound
And as the door swings
Open ~ it takes nothing
From the hush

An actual tall dark
Stranger ~ blocks the
Doorway side to side
He lifts the lamp he
Carries ~ and scans
My face

He takes my hand
And lifts it to his lips
I’ve been waiting
For you
I’m so glad you’re
Here at last

My heart has called you
And as you surely see
My house could use
A woman’s touch

And then he smiles
And I can see
This is no stranger
I’ve seen his face
In countless dreams
Now they’ve come true

It was my better angel
Led me here ~ that
We might find our love

And the house is happy

(Originally published March 29, 2014)

Psalm 151

Oh I have walked
By the peaceful waters ~
And I have heard
The forest’s call ~

I have climbed heights
And plumbed depths ~
I have loved and lost ~
And I have loved
Again
Anyway ~

I have tasted fear
And burned with rage ~
I have known hatred
And still have chosen love ~

These eyes have seen
My baby born
And my father die ~
I have watched the
Day dawn
And the sun set ~
And I have seen the Light ~

Now I see the patterns
And the characters
More clearly ~

I am adept at reading signs ~
Accumulating knowledge ~
For what future purpose
I cannot even guess ~

But in a Universe
Which operates with such
Minute attention
To detail ~
I have no doubt that
All will be revealed ~

(Originally published March 19, 2012)

Love Story

You draw my eye ~ whenever
You enter a room ~
Your grace and the very
Shape and the size of the
Presence you inhabit in the Universe ~
Are so unique that I would know you
Anywhere ~

Whenever I think of you ~
I think of love on the grand scale ~
As if you and I were meant
To have a mighty impact
In the scheme of life ~
I find it hard for me think of us
In any other way
And yet ~

While I was filling up those rooms
Inside my head ~ with memories
Of magic and shared ardor ~
You have been always ~ the
Calm and steady core at the
Heart of my existence ~ without
Whom I’d have shattered
Long ago ~

Here in this reality ~
You have tethered me to Earth ~
And I have shared with you my stars ~
Can you even begin to imagine
What comes next ~

(Originally published May 24, 2017)