“My country, right or wrong,” is a thing that no patriot would think of saying except in a desperate case. It is like saying, “My mother, drunk or sober.” - G. K. Chesterton
The unlaced thread
Purplish mist descending,
upending ancient obelisks
as phantoms bewail
the last pilgrim’s trail.
Bitter smell of fresh-cut grass
icy touch, eidolon clutch
infinite emptiness
awaits the fated ones
within the broken circle…
At first sight
Love, born once,
dies a thousand deaths.
Eyes meet,
hearts dance,
flesh burns.
Like chocolate tasted,
love quickly fades
into but a memory.
Eyes tear,
hearts pain,
flesh longs.
Each pillowed night
cries in darkness,
lies in bitter solitude,
only to repeat
till the last drawn breath
gives blessed relief…
We are so
“Why shouldn’t things be largely absurd, futile, and transitory? They are so, and we are so, and they and we go very well together.” - George Santayana
Lilith
Look once, briefly,
then never look again.
Disbelief, like quicksand,
firmly grasps for grief
as demons delight once more
dancing to the torrid story
of tripping stones
and stripping thrones
gods once warmed;
love once stormed
the beating chest…
a last failed quest…
unanswered prayers for lightning
frightening the remaining ghouls
on this great stage of fools…
Seaweed
Darkness fades as solar flares
peal forth, never knowing, ever-growing
toward a childhood no one dares
seek; sleek as a slick oilspill-victimed duckling
rising from the ashes of humility
who will willingly see humanity’s
search for a sister planet, built to sustain
Judgement Day’s cast-offs,
lest they wrest fate’s finest hour
from the mighty death-grip of power.
We’ll give them hybrids, no more;
let the exuberant soar
on the floor, head tucked between your knees
pleas bounce off His Majesty’s conscience
and the porridge is neither too hot or cold
we all fall into the fold
we all fall into the fold…
You people
I have no desire to enter into the political debate, however recent events have forced me to at least address a singular issue that won’t seem to go away. The horrific tragedy in Aurora, Colorado has sparked heated, sometimes incomprehensible, words being thrown back and forth, as if whoever is on the receiving end is as evil a person as James Holmes himself.
I was just lambasted by an individual outside the United States, condemned as a violent sociopath because all Americans are gun-toting folks who shoot first and ask questions, well, never. Even after my attempts to dissuade this person from his beliefs, I was rebuffed.
Humans are a social species. We require contact with others of our own kind. Ah, but what constitutes “our kind”? If you were dropped into the middle of a jungle, you would run toward the first human you saw, no matter the color of the skin, or religious tilt. If, however, you met that same individual in different circumstances, such as a political rally, and you were of opposing camps, you would inevitably distance yourself from him.
We are a simple people. We all see the world as black or white, good or evil. If you’re a climate change denier, all climate change believers are less intelligent, less “good” than yourself and those with whom you agree. Conservatives are somehow “less” than liberals, if that’s what you happen to be. Yet, if you’re both Yankees fans and are at the park, you’re best buddies.
The point of this post is that I hope to see, and be seen, as more than just a part of a group. We must see each other as a people whose tendencies, feelings, hopes and dreams are more the same than they are different. The future of our society, nay, our species, demands it.
