Pigheaded

Why do you do it?
What point do you make?
Cutting your nose off to spite your face.
Is it attention you’re seeking?
Well,  I'm here for you,
Just open some space in your so narrow view.

Searching for Solace

Spending the days in distraction.
Friends and family come and go.
My stomach full of comfort food,
fine wine and bourbon.
It doesn’t help.

I workout my tense muscles.
Racing heart, lungs bursting from exertion.
Power yoga, powerlifting,
kickboxing, Tabata, step.
It doesn't work.

I delve into my job;
aiming for focus and control.
Multitasking, organizing, detail checking;
late into the evening.
It doesn’t work.

I’m told by those who have been here,
it’s a process, a process, a process…
It doesn’t help.

A Welcome Guest

Oh, how much you are welcome here;
on the heels of scorching heat;
the landscape dull and devoid of color;
the air, a stifling haze.
But why must you come with such vengeance?
Falling from darkness;
amongst thunderous booms and electric lights;
saturating the parched earth in torrents.
At last, you settle in.
Your pace slows to a steady drumbeat;
the perfect guest bringing welcome relief,
and leaving behind restored vibrance.

The Perfect Day

Is today the day the stars align?
In perfect rhythm and perfect time. 
A day where nothing can go wrong;
the perfect melody to the perfect song.

Is today the day the truth’s revealed?
All debts forgiven and all scars healed.
A day where pain does not exist;
a world of joy and love and bliss.

Is today the day that dreams come true?
Wealth and health for me and you.
A day there is no need unmet;
no broken promises or regret.

No, today is a day like any other;
an unknown journey to be discovered.
A day to live the life we know,
in its unpredictable ebb and flow.

Bedfellow

I wake in the morning and 
see your lovely face;
It brings me instant joy.
You curl up next to me 
and I caress your velvety softness.
I feel my body and mind relax;
I feel at one with the universe.
Then you nip my hand;
Get up, it’s time to eat.

Peaceful Night

Frogs sing in the trees.
A shooting star overhead
One deep breath - exhale.

Mine Alone

Today was our day, yours and mine;
It had been yours for quite some time.
Then I arrived, a gift for you;
But the gift of life you gave was true.
Year after year we’d celebrate;
Sometimes early; sometimes late.
But never did this day go by
Sans birthday wishes, you and I.
Until this year, now mine alone,
As you're not here; forever gone.

Bird Business

Before the dawn their songs begin,
Announcing a brand new day.
Wake up, wake up they call again,
In the treetops we do play.

I pull the sheets over my head,
Though a smile alights my face;
As the sun blooms bright over my bed,
Bird business is taking place.

Something’s Off

Why do I cringe when you look at me?

I admit I don’t know you well,

But you have never given me reason to distrust you.

Yet, there is something about you.

My skin crawls even as you speak words of kindness.

I impulsively step just out of reach when you come near.

There is something under those words.

Something behind that gaze.

Something that you want from me.

Slithering

I slither through the grass
And feel the sun upon my skin;
I come upon a smooth, cool creek
And slither right on in. 

I swim along the surface 
With the current I do ride;
Then I slither up a rock;
Laying on the other side. 

I dry off in the sun 
And then slither up a tree;
I hang down from a branch
And I swing there happily.

I begin to fall asleep 
And am just starting to dream;
Then I fall out of the tree
As a child begins to scream.  

So I slither on the ground
Just as fast as I can go
And I make it to my den
Where this snake can now lie low.