I met a weary traveler
               as the day was nearing its end
              I asked him if he traveled far
                but he couldn't remember from where or when

             All that he knew was he'd been traveling
               and come tomorrow he'd be traveling still
              He did not know where or why he was going
                but he knew he had a need his journey would fulfill

             I was curious that he carried no baggage
               so I asked him why he chose to travel so light
              He told me he had no need of possessions
                To keep them, said he, one must be prepared to fight

             I walked with him for a short time
               and asked if he knew when his journey would be through
              He said that it would end where he ends
                at that time when there is nothing more he can do

             It grew late and I took my leave of him
               for there were people who would soon miss me
              I had realized while I was walking home
                though I never travel, I am on the same journey as he
 
 
 
 

                      Distant Shores

                      As I look to the open sea
                        I wonder what might await me
                       if I could force open fate's doors
                         and find myself on distant shores

                      I fancy I might soon set sail
                        away from my earthbound jail
                       toward a place where I can be free
                         and shun all the chains of duty

                      I would find a land of paradise
                        free from all malice and vice
                       where every action comes from love,
                         truly a model for any heaven above

                      Soon though,  I must turn away
                        and return to the toils of my day
                       but I hope someday someone will find
                         that such a place lies not just in my mind
 
 
 
 

                     Vestabur

                     Of all the great legends
                     which ever were
                     no name rings truer
                     than that of the mighty Vestabur
                     who gave all for nothing
                     chasing humanity's forgotten cure

                     In the land of Vikings
                     during the most violent of ancient days
                     this strongest of warriors wept
                     for man's seemingly eternal malaise
                     which pitted man against man
                     and goodness against stronger selfish ways

                     Finding none who were worthy
                     of his inestimable prowess of force
                     he then sailed off alone
                     letting fate decide his course
                     driven by a sense of uneasiness
                     and determined to find its source

                     For fourteen lonely days
                     and fifteen turbulent nights
                     no glimpse of sunlight broke the clouds
                     and no sign of land reached his sights
                     until at last upon that final day
                     he saw mountains of astonishing heights

                     The mountains reached right to the sea
                     barren of any form of living thing,
                     so empty and gray and desolate
                     no comfort did its appearance bring
                     with such an endlessly imposing facade
                     that even the sea birds no longer did sing

                     Hungry and weary from his journey,
                     Vestabur hastened to go ashore
                     but little respite did he receive
                     as his hands became bloodied and sore
                     trying to climb those rugged cliffs
                     which appeared to go on forever more

                     After what seemed an eternity,
                     he reached the top of a peak
                     only to be confronted
                     by a winged creature that could speak
                     which had hovered before him
                     and asked him what he seeked

                     A dragon some would call it
                     though dragons were not so small
                     for this scaly quite ugly sprite
                     stood no more than three feet tall
                     and because of its tiny wings,
                     one wondered how it flew at all

                     Vestabur thought for a bit
                     and then said, "To end my pain
                     for I am tired,  cold,  and hungry
                     and am quickly becoming lame
                     as I have traveled long and hard
                     only to find nothing gained."

                     After a long pause of suspicion
                     the creature looked wary and replied,
                     "A bed and shelter and food,
                     these things I can easily provide
                     but surely thou travels not for these
                     for everywhere these comforts reside."

                     The warrior let out a thunderous laugh
                     and said, "Thou art a wise sprite
                     for seeing deeper than I might wish
                     but thou art most certainly right
                     in that I seek relief of a deeper pain
                     than one can name or hold in sight."

                     He continued, "If thou wouldst comfort me
                     with the provisions that thou didst say
                     I would be in thy gravest debt
                     and shall be most eager to repay
                     by naming my pain as yet untold
                     if it pleaseth thee for me to say."

                     It was early the following morning
                     when Vestabur awoke invigorated and refreshed
                     that he told the sprite his woeful tale
                     of how the worst in Man destroyed the best
                     and it was then that he heard the prolific words
                     which would set him upon his greatest quest

                     The creature spoke in a low solemn tone,
                     "Thy vision is true and thy heart is pure
                     for there is a plague of greed upon the land
                     by which Man is poisoned and cannot long endure
                     but all hope has not yet been lost
                     for there is a place which covets the cure."

                     "Devils be damned and heavens praised,"
                     Vestabur abruptly and joyfully exclaimed,
                     "A thousand blessings be upon thee
                     if thou wouldst only speak the name
                     of that place which has come to possess
                     such an auspicious claim to fame."

                     "Mubarakk," the winged creature said
                     as it began to fly out of his sight,
                     "Sail in the direction of the setting sun
                      for a hundred days and nights,
                      turn back for no one and nothing
                      and never give into your fright."

                     Slowly Vestabur made his way down
                     the dangerous steep mountain's edge
                     working his way away from the house
                     that the creature had built upon a ledge
                     with his mind dwelling upon the words
                     the strange creature had last said

                     The fury of the seven seas
                     hath no fury like that of a man possessed
                     to achieve that one goal or reward
                     that he knows in his heart to be the best,
                     not for himself but for his whole world
                     and Vestabur was driven by nothing less

                     Through the harshest of storms he sailed
                     unrelentingly plodding on toward some place
                     where he knew he would be gravely taxed
                     in a test which could affect his whole race
                     so he bore the worst the sea could give
                     and he swore he would not act in haste

                      During a rare moment of peace and calm
                      he happened upon a lush tropical isle,
                      a garden of endless sensual delights
                      radiating a joy that could make the devil smile
                      so it was here that he stopped for more supplies
                      and a place where he could rest for awhile

                     Words cannot describe the beauty of that place
                     or of the friendliness people there had showed
                     upon the storied stranger weak and frail
                     half starved and half crazed by his chosen road
                     to rid the world of its evil and its pains
                     that some unseen god or demon ungraciously bestowed

                     But here there was no hate or selfishness
                     and the world he left behind seemed to fade away,
                     just a nightmare that lingered in some twilight time
                     forgotten but not leaving its importance betrayed
                     as it clamored to him in his restless troubled sleep
                     and its resolve in hope there too vice could be allayed

                     And the love that had been denied to him before
                     came to him in that wonderful enchanted place
                     in the guise of the beauty Mirimaney Kondessay
                     who embodied the purest of virtue, love, and grace
                     with the glimmer of a thousand stars within her eyes
                     and a radiance as great as the sun within her face

                     Here was contentedness and here was untold joy
                     which he had never dreamed could be before
                     yet deep within he knew he'd never see again
                     for he knew that this place was merely a door
                     to be passed through and left behind forever
                     and that more pains of the past lay in store

                     Though this hurt was far deeper than any others,
                     Vestabur left quietly during one calm night
                     again sailing toward the land of the setting sun
                     cursing himself for being too weak to ignite
                     courage enough to bid farewell his new bride
                     and still be able to continue on with his plight

                     Five weeks hence, his supplies again exhausted
                     he found another island to look for food to eat
                     but no land of paradise was this evil isle
                     as death lay everywhere eager to meet
                     this giant of a man who dared enter the domain
                     of the Banu tribe with painted hands and feet

                     In the shank of the evening the blood bath erupted
                     as Vestabur awoke to them attacking him one by one
                     yet each time he triumphed, another foe lay vanquished,
                     and over a hundred lay dead before the dying was done
                     when ten men rushed him cracking his skull
                     for as the mighty Vestabur fell the battle was won

                     When he awoke he found himself tied
                     upon a yoke of precious metals lined with jewels
                     in the hall of a gigantic luxurious marble palace
                     among sculptures carved by the finest artisan's tools,
                     displayed along beside them atop a high ledge
                     being gawked at by a court filled with noble fools

                     From his perch he could look down and see
                     the story of the kingdom unfold beneath his eyes
                     as the monarch sat upon a throne of the finest jade
                     doling out the most incredulous of lies
                     eagerly consumed by a nation taught only obedience
                     caring not that they had no will to compromise

                     Thrice daily he would be washed and fed
                     serving no more purpose than that of a living statue
                     declaring to all the power of the emperor
                     which his bound and helpless state showed true
                     yet only his body lay confined and constrained
                     while his mind raced to uncover any opportunity cue

                     For the first time in his victory filled life
                     Vestabur was held prisoner like some animal in a cage
                     removed from the freedoms he had always known
                     and daily he held witness to his mounting rage
                     at the atrocious abuses of power going on below
                     which were affecting him more than he could ever gauge

                     As he saw even mere children condemned to die
                     for deeds done by their parents or other kin
                     he vowed he would rid this world of this tyrant
                     before resuming the task long ago did he begin
                     believing nothing he could do could ever surpass
                     this victory over viciousness which he had to win

                     After the trials which always ended up executions,
                     Emperor Kyrik would stand alone in this hall
                     admiring his statues and opulent ornaments
                     gloating over having the power of death over all
                     and one day he spoke to Vestabur shackled high above,
                     "Thy head from thy neck might as easily fall!"

                     "Thou wouldst suffer far more than me
                     for I knowst a place of untold treasure,"
                     Vestabur answered,  "and beauty far greater
                     than could give such a beast as thee pleasure
                     for the wealth of this place surmounts all
                     that thou has is this hall or could measure."

                     "And all I must do to have this marvelous wealth
                     is to set thee free I supposeth,"  the emperor said,
                     "yet I be not the fool thou thinkst I am
                     for only moments later I wouldst surely be dead
                     though I thinkst thou speaketh the truth
                     so I shall send out my armies to search instead."

                     Moments later the emperor returned to the hall
                     where Vestabur stood consumed by his flaming hate
                     for the man who now predicted complete success
                     in plundering all wealth as his armies would devastate
                     all peoples weaker be they near or far away
                     and as he said so Vestabur realized it was too late

                     Suddenly he was struck with a vision
                     of the island of boundless beauty and grace
                     being raped of the riches it shone forth,
                     the kindness and the love too strong to erase
                     would doom them to be destroyed one and all
                     as the vipers poisoned that wondrous place

                     As the emperor laughed far below
                     Vestabur saw him directly beneath the ledge
                     and summoning all the strength left in him
                     he tipped the stone stockade using his foot as a wedge
                     tilting it forward inch by inch as his foot crushed
                     until at last the stone and he tumbled over the edge

                     He awoke upon a gallows before a crowd
                     shouting curses at him for killing the emperor,
                     no joy did they have for being set free
                     as they began to stone the mighty Vestabur
                     and the reasons why he craved that death
                     were so tainted by this he could no longer remember

                     "These fools shall never become free,"
                     Vestabur thought as he prepared to die,
                     "for they haveth no meaning or goals in life
                     save for those given by some ruler up high
                     and such as being as me wouldst never be
                     forced or force others to live out such a lie."

                     Bracing himself for the final yank nearing,
                     he felt proud for having the chance to have been
                     and he feared not death nor pain nor loss
                     for he knew that this was not his true end
                     because his quest was still not near resolution
                     meaning he still would be though knowing not when

                     He saw the coming events proceed in stills,
                     like photographs or like cards taken out of deck,
                     when the trapdoor fell and chaos ensued
                     while the rope snapped close around his strong neck
                     seeing lightening strike the crowd around him
                     then seeing the whole scene fall to a distant speck

      End of Part One
 

                    Vestabur-  Conclusion (middle parts missing)

                     How Vestabur had come to arrive there
                     I doubt that anyone could truly say
                     and where exactly there might have been
                     could easily go unknown for a million more days
                     so sadly I am left merely able to say
                     that at long last Vestabur had found his way

                     This isle was a perfect circle with a solitary peak
                     which rose forth from the center and ended in a cloud
                     but no joy came from his mighty heart as it raced
                     with a ferocity such that he thought it echoed out loud
                     and a solemn melancholy gripped his whole being
                     fearing the cloud above was his eternal shroud

                     Driven by forces too powerful to dare resist
                     he laughed as he pondered his very first fear,
                     that of reaching the end of his long troubled journey,
                     not of failing but of the success now drawing near
                     and that vague notion of a final resolution
                     made him shake violently as its meaning became clear

                     No more venturing would be should he succeed
                     in ridding the world of all ails and ills
                     as his meaning dissolved before the face of the resolve
                     that drove him here and would carry him up that hill
                     which cursed his success and dared him to leave
                     while he still knew who he was,  knowing he could be still

                     But fear could have no hold over him
                     and he let the sensation run its course and go
                     as he slowly made his way toward the town
                     that his visions of forbearance quickly let him know
                     would await him at the foot of that mount
                     and would surprise him with an unexpected foe

                     Pleasant were the people of this remote town
                     eager to meet and greet this great stranger,
                     so accommodating and polite,  he was so enthralled
                     and taken aback by this kindness he saw no danger
                     in dallying for a time to repay their generous hospitality
                     when asked to stay awhile and tend to their manger

                     Strange animals he found in that pristine barn
                     where he came to work to tend their stout stock,
                     healthy and boisterous and so uncannily attuned
                     to service that he had but to think to command a flock
                     of sheep which went daily to a meadow undistinguished
                     but for an eerily glowing pile of mountain rocks

                     There at dusk after a hard day's work
                     atop the rocks he felt free as never before
                     in command of his self and his destiny
                     so much so that the future he dreaded lay in store
                     now seemed amiable and even friendly to him
                     smiling down on him because he dreaded it no more

                     Day after day went past while he worked
                     without notice of the time or the passing seasons
                     that soon changed to years,  then many years
                     but this seemed not to his goal to be of any treason
                     for this was but a temporary stop on his journey
                     and all must always be because of due reason

                     Four and forty years passed before he noticed
                     how those rocks that he sat upon for so long
                     were to be found in every house and every meeting place,
                     and how they glowed when the townsfolk would throng
                     for some festive event which celebrated each new day
                     as a new era never seeing how much that view was wrong

                     Time made no mark upon this forgotten place
                     as generation after generation came and passed
                     without making any innovation or any new creations
                     to distinguish one era from the next or truths from the mask
                     tradition builds to preserve all views from before
                     and strives to keep any questions from being asked

                     This is in all lands but nowhere else was it so clear
                     as here where there was no small task ever new
                     nor any thought different than those of the day before
                     for even as children learned and constantly grew
                     there was no dividing lines nor any individual patterns
                     setting them apart from each other in what they did or knew

                     Individuals had no meaning to be found here
                     as all worked to serve all others without thought
                     for themselves or for the betterment of others
                     who shared not their secluded seemingly ideal spot
                     yet they seemed not know of the horrors that lay
                     beyond their vision or of the wrongs elsewhere wrought

                     Yet Vestabur found his gift of inner visions
                     not to be strange nor did he find anyone astounded
                     by his presence nor did they ask of where he came
                     and when he spoke of the past, they weren’t dumbfounded
                     but would knowingly bow their head in aquiessance
                     whenupon the sorrows of the outside world were sounded

                     Longing to know just how much they knew
                     Vestabur questioned his friend Baynu without respite
                     until at last he admitted they all knew the truth
                     of the world from which he had long left in flight
                     and he too said the cure to all man's troubles
                     lay at the top of the mountain forever in their sight

                     Furious,  Vestabur lashed out in utter condemnation
                     at the whole town knowingly just standing by
                     doing nothing while evil lay everywhere hurting all
                     while they did nothing to aid in its possible demise,
                     instead languishing in the luxury of goodwill
                     without the fortitude to make all of mankind so wise

                    "But what of thou,"  Baynu said in a forgiving way
                     "We cometh here by our forefathers searching like thee
                     and it was here that the stones lastly didst them comfort
                     letting them know from their demons they be free
                     not having to purge themselves of others shortcomings and sins
                     and giving them peace the world beyond wouldst not let be."

                     Again rekindling the fire that led him here,
                     he fled the town in a fit of unseemly haste
                     violently clawing his way up that mountainside
                     not allowing himself chance to rethink out of fear he'd waste
                     this one last chance to gain what he had come for,
                      to rid life of its bile and bitterness of taste

                     He climbed until he could climb no more
                     frozen by the winds chiding "Death is at hand,"
                     and there he most surely would have died
                     had it not been for the kindness of a man
                     who had made his camp near the top long ago
                     in the mists of a cloud high above the land

                     Small he was though he did not look frail
                     and his temperment was decidedly meek
                     yet Vestabur felt humbled and quite afraid
                     of this man who many might think to be weak
                     for the fire in his eyes and the weight of his words
                     left the giant too afraid to dare speak

                     Though this man did his best to reassure him,
                     Vestabur could not come to feel at ease here
                     for always was he the most powerful one
                     yet this tiny man somehow made him to fear
                     even though he knew this man meant him no harm
                     he became ever more uncomfortable when he came near

                     After a time he found the courage to speak
                     his irrational fear to this gentle little man
                     and he found himself being able to clearly express
                     notions that he did not even fully understand
                     while saying to this compassionate patron of help
                     how he feared himself no longer in command

                     The look on this stranger's face released him
                     from the fear that he felt within his heart
                     for Vestabur understood that this man knew
                     his fears and his need to feel apart,
                     to be bigger and better than all the rest
                     and how he had need for them all in his heart

                     "That thou wishst to serve thy people
                     is honourable is didst bring thou to me
                     here on thy mountain today,"  the man said,
                     "as my wish to serve my people faithfully
                     hast brought me here to await thee
                     and to help thou learn what it is thou seeks."

                     Vestabur relayed his entire life's history
                     to this stranger upon a cliff high in the air
                     telling him of his joys and his loves lost
                     and how the whole world seemed in deep despair
                     hoping that when he ended his tales of his past
                     he might be told if his future lay ahead up there

                     Instead the man said nothing at all
                     of what Vestabur ought next to wish to do
                     as he motioned toward the top of the peak
                     saying, "The end is there to go if thou needst to
                     but what thou may find is within thee now
                     and will still be there when thy journey is through."

                     With great trepidation,  Vestabur went outside
                     to gaze at the peak barely visible in the pall
                     seeming so near that he could be there now
                     without needing to have to go there at all
                     and without realizing it he was doing so,
                     climbing as if answering some inner call

                     Then it happened as the universe ended
                     without Vestabur or the snowy mountaintop
                     because it all had come to an end long,  long ago
                     before the beginning with no story now to stop
                     for he realized what he wanted could never be
                     as his whole life fell like rain or a single teardrop

                     Wanting for everyone to live in joy,
                     knowing what it truly is like to live free
                     was to him then and is to us in our time now
                     forever to be more of a dream than reality
                     as it can never be that for any who are free
                     not to be able and therefore not to do,  us misery
 
 
 

                 Going Home

                 Soon to be going home again
                   soon to be at rest
                     as the quest reaches its logical end

                 Looking back upon newfound friends
                   I met upon my travels
                     immeasurably saddened I shall not see again

                 The road is a curious way to be
                   touching upon others places
                     momentarily theirs is yours and through them you see

                 Traveling is to risk to fall deeply in love
                   with moments you can't keep
                     knowing these you can be with but never of

                 Once home hopefully the joy of belonging
                   will fill the emptiness I feel
                     at having to commit to the past my unsettled longings
 
 
 
 

                  Starry-eyed and Boisterous

                  Starry-eyed and boisterous
                    I soar higher than my imagination flies
                   eagerly meeting heavenly surprises
                     before my tottering rationale and reasonings
                    are again able to catch up with me

                  Without a net I glide ever higher
                    without fear of ever again falling below
                   for fall I shall and fall I shall soon
                     as no bird or man can escape the dirt
                    which commands thee and me to return home

                  Plummeting is the only return left for me
                    as I have been away too long to long retain
                   the life of those bound to the ground
                     solid and stoid yet not without its advantages
                    such as never going beyond reaching safe returns

                  So soar I shall in my final few days
                    forever reaching after what is and isn't there
                   in the mists of clouds of mystery and wonder
                     rolling over the world that was never really mine
                    as seen from above in bewilderment and awe
 
 
 
 

                  The Wayfarer

                Torn and tattered were his clothes
                  and his face,  like a well worn overgrown trail,
                 inspired polite respect with a twinge of fear
                   in the people whom he passed as his soul set sail
                  to find some wondrous place to finally rest
                    and upon that day he felt it drawing ever near

                It was the fourteenth day of December
                  when his feet first carried him into the town
                 where he would meet the strangest of fates
                   and revel in the wake of the unseen forces that abound
                  between the reality of day and the darkness of night
                    which draw one unknowingly into the eeriest of states

                In a little old inn on the edge of town
                  the wayfarer stopped for warmth and a drink
                 but this was no ordinary inn as he soon found out
                   for the innkeeper had devious eyes which would wink
                  whenever the wayfarer thought something was strange
                    and the walls themselves seemed to scream or shout

                Intrigued by the strangeness of the place
                  the daring traveler decided to stay the night
                 but after making a quick check of his room
                   his eyes caught flash of a hideous sight
                  of a wolf standing bloodied over a mutilated body
                    and when the brief vision ended, he felt impending doom

                 Hurriedly,  he splashed his face wet
                  in a water basin at the end of the hall,
                 his heart racing at the marvel he had seen
                   driving him to take some action or to call
                  for help from some sorcerer,  demon,  or god
                    to help him vanquish this terrible dream

                Once again in the inn's tavern
                  he instead chose food to regain his composition
                 for he felt that he would need all his senses
                   to do battle with the demonic apparition
                  that lay waiting for him in his room
                    yet also in some other world behind unseen fences

                He felt its presence even then
                  as he ate in an attempt to gain strength,
                 he felt it chiding to him to run while he could
                   but he did not listen to it at any length,
                  just long enough to know it was still there
                    and that if it could destroy him it surely would

                The man at the bar let out a laugh
                  that sounded as deranged as its meaning was unclear
                  but before he left the room in a frenzied delight
                    he had pointed to the wayfarer sitting demure
                   and said nothing though the meaning was clear
                     in that he was a fool for not feeling proper fright

                Alone in the room of the wolf
                  he sat expectantly upon a wooden chair
                 and with his gun at his side and knife in hand
                   he waited for something or someone to be there
                  but though the feeling grew ever more intense
                    nothing appeared that he could see or understand

                Soon he began to grow tired
                  yet the more that he gave into this tide
                 the more invigorated he felt himself become
                   until he lay wide awake on the other side
                  where the wolf lay waiting in a field of green
                    and the light of the moon was now the sun

                He stood up and gave chase to the wolf
                  although he was no longer certain why
                 for this world was certainly not like his own
                   as it had orange plants and a bright pink sky
                  and as he grew nearer to the fleeing wolf
                    he realized it was unlike any he had known

                The ominous hatred and venomance
                  which he had sensed back at the inn
                 no longer were present in this strange new place
                   though still he felt driven to purge this sin,
                  this horrible abomination incarnate in the wolf
                    seeming so near that he could sense its foul taste

                 Then the wolf grew tired at last
                  and turned to face the wayfarer's approach
                 yet it did not show any sign of fear
                   nor did it turn hostile when he drew close,
                  instead it quietly awaited its impending fate
                   as the hunter flung himself at it like a spear

                The wayfarer's confusion grew still
                  when the wolf seemed to vanish in the air
                 but the feelings still had hold of him
                   and as he fled across the plains in despair
                  he noticed that his body had disappeared
                    while he ran within the wolf's own skin

                Over the next hill he came across a man
                  whom he vaguely noticed was himself
                 and as the man began to shudder back
                   the man-wolf felt the fear rise in itself
                  growing stronger until both were one
                    at the moment its teeth gnashed open his neck

                Screaming,  the man was again in the room
                  far too shaken to think of anything's meaning
                 as he packed his things and hurried away
                   into the darkness of that fateful evening
                  when worlds collided for one man never known
                   except for the footprints in the snow never shown
 
 
 
 

                   Vanguard Ventures

                  Sluggishness is fading
                    and wariness a distant memory
                   as I have freed myself from
                     fears of failure and disappointment
                    for oh so long now
                      that I move forth proudly and defiantly
                     challenging the wrath of fate

                  Broken out from the pack
                    I dance upon the virgin snows
                   that have yet to fear the passing
                     of that animal which I am but one of
                    as I gain nature's trust and awe
                      by virtue of being the first of the many
                     who will wander into this domain

                  Released from all frictions
                    I possess all speeds at my command
                   to go where my thoughts lead
                     and follow my hearts desires
                    as I chase the whimsical notions
                      that my preponderant nature spins forth
                     to lead me beyond my world
 
 

             Excelsior

             One by one I shall cut the ties
               which will bind me to the ground
              and I shall feel the pull of the heavens
               begging me to rise forth and come hither

             I shall sit in the comfort of my airship
               and watch the world fall beneath my feet
              while setting my gaze upon a far larger world
                whereupon the distant and unrelated become one

             As I look down from my celestial throne
               and revel at the expansiveness of my new sight
             I shall carry with me the hopes of the spoiled and the damned,
                as they bow before me longing to be set free

             Over boarders and barriers I shall drift away
               in my craft crowned by heat and golden sunlight
              and as countries and continents fade to a distant blur
                I shall learn true freedom at the mercy of destiny's winds
 
 

     Flying through the night

     A minúte pocket of existence
       hangs suspended in the infinite void
      Moving at speeds unimaginable to us,
        its motion is dwarfed
       by the sheer majesticness
         of limitless horizons

     These beings which inhabit
       this metal-coated gas bubble
      cast adrift upon a sea of solitude,
        they cannot help but feel
       the stirrings of silenced voices
         pleading for them to take notice
        of themselves in the face of eternity

     The emptiness surrounding them
       rejoices at the chance to become real
      No longer void of meaning
        it now becomes a real place,
       a great chasm to be crossed
         by those few destined to try
 
 

               Eclipsed

               The motions of the universe,
                 so damningly precise and congruent
                mark the seasons of my life
                  upon an eternal timepiece
                 created by the spinnings of stars
                   and mimiced by our watches gears

               But what of me,  I shout
                 letting my frustrations spill out
                to become absorbed by the blackness
                  of the peaceful autumn sky
                 which never breaks its stony silence
                   to comfort or admonish me

               Left to wonder or to die
                 by divine providence or cruelty
                I stand alone too empty to cry
                  for everyone and for myself
                 fated to be kept from understanding
                   the purpose behind their pains

               In conquest or perhaps resignation
                 I tune out the vastness before me
                as I slip further into unconsciousness
                  falling asleep under a cloudless sky
                 for the indomitable straits of time bind
                   enough to destroy my hopes of understanding
 
 
 

                  The Immortals

                  Beat fast oh heart of endless motion
                    that carries us through the shrouded stillness
                   of the omnipresent cold eternal night
                     which holds countless souls captive,
                    entombed within its endless fiefdom
                      smothered in angst and robbed of sight

                  Move quickly you who dare to think
                    that you have any relevance to it all
                   or it to you or you to what is right
                     lest you may learn that nothing matters
                    to life which you may cherish or despise
                      and to death which merely continues this plight

                  No future is real and the past slips away,
                    not wanting to be remembered or relived,
                   not holding onto you nor letting you hold it
                     as you are perpetually thrown into nothingness
                    and then let to grasp at something
                      yet that something never enables you to quit

                  Constant scurrying with nowhere to go
                    is the empty fate which befalls us all
                   and holds us in the wake of endless questing
                     after truths that lose their importance
                    as easily and as often as we lose our lives
                      without diminishing our spirit's vesting
 
 
 
 

                 The Dark Horse

                 Built like a mighty fortress,
                   the dark horse rides asunder
                  with its giant hooves
                    tearing up the ground,
                   making sounds like rolling thunder

                 Relentlessly it surges forth
                   like a vengeful demon of the night
                  making all bear witness
                    to its unbridled fury
                   and its overwhelming sense of might

                 Bound by the truth of existence
                   and binded to an earth dominated by Man,
                  it searches for escape
                    the only way that it knows,
                   by running as far and as fast as it can

                 Running to every corner of the land,
                   one and all will sometimes hear it
                  as it thunders past
                    seeking limitless pastures
                   and freedom for its restless spirit
 
 
 

                 Lexicon       (language)

                Everyone anxiously jumps upon
                  an antique train called Lexicon
                 riding forth steadily toward the sun
                   carrying all and sparing no one

                Out from the multitude of paths
                  it surges forth leaving all else past
                 accommodating all wherever they need go
                   and showing them places only others know

                Those who are hurried share space
                  with those who care not for a frantic pace
                 as they sit together riding the same line,
                   both reaching their destinations on time

                It brings together all and lets them share
                  each other's truths and each other's cares
                 as they enjoy the ride in comfort and style
                   becoming closer with each passing mile

                On into the sunset Lexicon rides
                  and at each stop its prominence presides
                 as each young generation climbs on board
                   eager to know the perspectives it moves them towards
 
 
 
 

                      Landmarks Left By

                      Ahead is another landmark
                        by which to frame off another section
                      of my hectic endless journey
                         between the here and now
                        and the there and then
                          along life's lonesome highway

                      The terrain and scenery changes
                        but not nearly so often or as drastically
                      as I myself become changed
                         by each new turn
                        and each new fact learned
                          as I bridge the greatest divide

                      Another set of useless baggage
                        gets thrown off by the wayside
                      as I shed my skin
                         like some odious reptile
                        eager to leave the past
                          for the uncertainty tomorrows bring

                      A brand new version of me
                        will relegate all that I am now
                      to the past pages of time
                         for I shall not remember
                        nor engage in the pursuit
                          of ambitions that meant everything to me
 
 
 
 

             From being to becoming

             From the babe to the boy to the man
             from being to becoming that which I am
             yet to describe all that which I was before
             as simply a prelude to this and nothing more
             is to underestimate those of me as I was then,
             of not being the best and most as was possible back when
 
 
 
 

            Temporarily Occupied

            In an unwashed somewhat opaque window
              a vacancy sign dangles as if anyone really cared
             for out on the windswept streets
               of this dusty dingy little town
              it was a might rare when anyone cared to stay awhile

            Yet even the most unlikely events will someday happen
              and one day one particular woman decided she needed
             one of those unwanted rooms
               which waited day after day in vain
              to serve any purpose other than taking up space gathering dust

            The immensity of Texas looms larger ever yet
              when viewed from a room only slightly bigger than closets
             and such was her sight
               as she awoke the very next day
              to find herself where so few had longed to be

            With an energy that seemed greatly out of place there
              she bounded through her morning routine zestfully
             eager to broach upon a new life
               in a town more comfortable with slow death
              languishing in the loss of industry,  its youth,  and interest

            Though the spirit of the town was gravely ill
              this deterred that young woman not one single bit
             as she made haste to find the saloon
               and declare to the owner its stark void
              of a singer as beautiful and talented as she said of she

            Having had her perform and seeing nothing new
              he declined her offer with another one of his own,
             that of waiting on tables
               paying barely minimum wage
              plus a percentage of her tips less what he kept himself

            In too mean a disposition to refute his offer entirely
              she accepted given the chance she could one day perform
             before what here passed for a crowd
               in a corner saloon where no one came
              except  when passing through save they who called it home

            The regulars at that place were anything but
              as each seemed a character frozen from another time
             as a partial list included the likes
               of an aged gangster from prohibition,
              a box toting peddler of old, and a gypsy complete with ball

            It was there the young siren came to be day to day
              serving drinks to those who often wished to be elsewhere,
             she included though on this fact
               she knew better than to let her mind dwell
              while doing her best to do what little was expected of her

            On a busy night comprised of all of fifteen people
              the owner gave her the chance to perform her songs
             from a slightly out of tune piano
               there for the occasional drunkard
             to bang out a few poorly sung half-forgotten drinking songs

            With a voice too fine for such a rough crowd
              as the rowdies who dominate the place every Saturday night,
             the lilting melody of true harmony
               was drowned out by cat calls and jests
              which shook the very core of her unflinching fortitude

            With her spirit dimmed as bleak as her surroundings
              she cried her heart out in that tiny lifeless hotel room
             lit momentarily by the vigor of youth
               driven to pursue necessary dreams,
               hoping to rise above those personal straits surrounding them

            Again empty the next day, the room was cleaned
              now ready to begin that long wait for a tenant
             to seek what little recompense
               that such a barren room has to offer
              set in the middle of whatever circumstances one finds oneself
 
 
 
 

            Whenever you

            Where life leads
               is where I will go
              and not try to control
                what it will show
               as I lose myself
                 into the flow

             Wherever it takes me
               making whatever I do
              I'll hope in my mind
                and in my heart too
               wherever it takes me
                 will be whenever with you