arcana

deep beneath the soothing dirt
of barren lands, the lizard sleeps
and far from green and noisy strands
his quiet, lonely vigil keeps

he knows the silence of the dust
and how the heat drives men to drink
and why the wind said that we must
and what the passing beetles think

so while we shuffle through the sand
arriving where we'd rather not
the lizard understands
the sun is hot

* ****** **** ****** *

see "one more time, my hot little lizard"

go on

wrapped in rage
inspiring hate
a weary soul
defying fate

i live on rage
i live on hate
i live, they die
that's what's so great

as long as i survive
i win
only surrender
is a sin

growing older growing colder

evening falls and clouds obscure
the vision i once had of life
to struggle is no kind of cure
for pain which flourishes in strife

the darkness and the growing chill
of summers end and ages rush
is only one more pill to crush

its harder every day to see
the me i once thought i could be

and yet the closer that it comes the less i want to reach the end

haiku twitters

the longest day
the shortest moon
the changing sky

* ****** **** ****** *

crystalline echoes
reverberate each morning
in my quiet room

* ****** **** ****** *

speak of love rarely
spread its warmth bountifully
while no one's watching

iran

worlds collide & people die
as flames outline a darkened sky
& freedom calls but no one hears
as jackboots slip on bloody tears

my eyes are dry i cannot cry
their sneers are washing over all our fears

What the science is

Bats are birds, that's where it's at,
and whales are fish, you sea.
Don't tell me what the science is,
it just confuses mea.

A tick's a bug, a fly's a bug,
and so are spiders, too.
And if you contradict this,
I hope they all bite you.

But a horse is a horse, of course, of course ...

It's coarse to beat him in the head
When you should know that he is dead,
And shouting at him, cold and stiff,
Not showing sympathy or remorse,
Will only make your own voice hoarse.

free

the years go by
and leave us dazed
that those we love
are bound to die

but love will always still remain
when those we love are free of pain

peace is the absence of defeat

the sun goes down
the lights go out
the wild dogs howl

enemies determined on destruction
friends with something else to do
israel continues to defend and prosper
in a world where hating jews is nothing new

only on ourselves can we rely
to see them all retreat or die

suspension of self-control

love to love you, baby
without a bit of maybe
all-out loss of self-control
keeps the whole world whole

suspension of control

watching the world
without intervening
is relaxation
with a deeper meaning

and having written ...

i return
to margaritaville
to learn
if i prefer a sip of wine
or just the sea and sand by which to dine

* ****** **** ****** *

remembering "i call your name"

imperfection

The story of my life, so to speak:
going by the letter,
it couldn't have been better;
going by the spirit, well, the flesh was weak.