sandals and sand
flowing robe and turban
kalashnikov in hand
holy warrior
rides a horse named extinction
instructed in hate
he eats naught else
vengeance his only comfort
holy warrior
rides a horse named oppression
his god death
his murders blessed
with 70 virgins in heaven
holy warrior
rides a horse named delusion
Listen to the Radio
Listen to the radio, listen night and day
Listen to the radio, as it plays
Listen to the radio, 'til my heart's content
Listen to the radio, it's my best friend
Home alone all day, home alone all night
No one to share heart secrets, drowned in red wine
But your sweet voice keeps me, feelin' alright
Helps keep far away, that ol' warden time
Listen to the radio, makes me smile
Listen to the radio, makes me rewalk the aisle
Listen to the radio, makes me pledge
Listen to the radio, to stay off that ledge
Dreaming of yesteryear, dreaming of days gone by
Makes today more bitter, when I awake back to the truth
It's a hard pill to swallow, but I swallow it every day
But you add the sugar, to help it go down smooth
Listen to the radio, play that sweet romance
Listen to the radio, salvation's second chance
Listen to the radio, weave those dreams at night
Listen to the radio, 'til the dark fades into light
PEACE ON EARTH
If you want a glimpse of hell just turn on the evening news
murder, hunger, domestic violence, foreign wars and child abuse
Death, conflict and disease, aeons the curse of man
Ain't what he wants but what he wants he can't have . . .
Peace on Earth
Peace doesn't blow in radioactive wind
Peace doesn’t lurk in nuclear armaments
Peace doesn’t multiply in toxic germs
Peace hasn't been found to reside in chemical burns
Peace doesn’t stroll the streets of Chernobyl and
Peace doesn't cause the cancer killing kids' thyroid glands
Imagine watching your family and friends dying, all covered in sores
Freedom we love ya but ya gotta understand WE DON'T WANT NO WAR!
Peace comes when we love our neighbor, who is anyone in need
Not just Iraqis but for any people Americans freely bleed
When we willingly lay down our lives to protect our innocent friends
It’s an act of love that can bring about Peace on Earth again.
A STORY FROM THE HEART
For many years
there was a heart
that was so neglected
that weeds began to grow
But the Lord noticed
and in His love and mercy
tended it for a season
until it was healed
Then He planted
deep within that heart
a tiny little seed
of Love
And in the twinkling of an eye
that tiny little seed took root
and grew into a mighty tree
that nothing could shake
And the fruit of that tree
was love and joy
and its branches
shelter from the storm
Time could not govern its growth
for it was authored outside of Time
and Man could not judge its integrity
for creation cannot judge the Creator
But the heart knew
from the moment the seed was planted
the blessing the Lord had given
And that blessing
is my love for you
BON VOYAGE
I have this trip planned
no return flight booked
one way all the way
amongst all the earthly places I have loved
when my name is called
I'll wander down country roads
through the rolling hills
into silent forests
filtering with the sunlight
through the leaves of ageless trees
flowing with the mystical river
over the rapids and behind the waterfalls
through whispering woodlands
until I finally pick up my boarding pass,
floating across that purple-shadowed valley called death
the final boarding call echoing as I soar over snow clad peaks
sparkling like diamonds in the moonlight
on my way to heaven.
UNDER THE SEA
I had a dream
in which I died
And in that dream
I neither laughed nor cried
I was in water
neither hot nor cold
I didn't feel fear
I no longer felt old
I was simply puzzled
as to how it could be
That I was alive and could breathe
under the sea
I was inside a house
Victorian style
Where sea horses wink and
beckon with elfish smiles
I stood at the bottom
of a long flight of stairs
When I realized I could pull myself up
by the wooden side rails
I climbed one step at a time
neither floating nor drifting away
Each step seemed to wash off
a bit more of yesterday
The higher I climbed
the lighter I became
No longer subject to the gravity
of another world's claim
I walked as easily
as if I was walking through air
Step after step
as I climbed the stairs
When I reached the top, I paused ...
contemplating from whence I had come
Down below was gloomy and murky,
a deep shade of glum
Yet when time was now
it seemed none of these
Now glided like a butterfly
on a warm summer breeze
But time passed and the butterfly
became a cold gray cocoon
What never really was
died and become entombed
At the bottom of the stairs
under the sea
Of an old Victorian house
for me to see
How could it be
that in the light all seemed right
But now sight was clearer
through the gloom of night
The fire dwindled,
went cold and was gone
And the memories that clung to it
as well passed along
When I paused to catch my breath
bubbles floated up under the sea
And a passing sea horse got caught
threw back his head and sneezed
Tiny ripples of water tickled my face
and I laughed, well pleased
For wherever I am
isn't important, you see
For wherever I am
I am still me
It was then that I awoke
and marveled at this dream
It didn't make sense
it wasn't what it seemed
Was it a ghost of the past
come back to haunt
Or was it a vision of the future
sent to daunt
It gave neither sense of dread
nor fear of death
No loss of time or space
or loved ones left
Perhaps death is nothing more
than a passing through
Of some other space and time
and phenomenological zoo
The dream never returned
so I'll never know with certainty
The meaning of the riddle
silently sleeping under the sea
TO INFINITY AND BEYOND
The trip will blow your mind
Where meet unknown seas and wizen’d suns
and minds marching toward blank horizons;
where roaches roar and seafood screams
and captive souls dare not dream
Where leaves turn fiery with trees yet green
as you ride the high tide of a breeze unseen;
turning brown, withering, landing in a yard
raked into a pile, set ablaze and charred
Where ashes to ashes and dust to dust
mean nothing to you because the next gust
will whip you up, up, up and away
to infinity and beyond, so they say
Where terminal velocity no longer applies
moving faster and faster, you continue to fly;
and gravity can no longer hold you down
or keep you chained, eclipsed, earthbound
Where Damocletian swords hang by a hair
as you sit for hours in your chair and stare;
ready to sever old mind from new
some go in a moment, others in a few
Where truth has died, blitzed by lies
that feast like flies on its blood-spattered cadaver;
its perverted corpse melts the mind and warps
the soul pushed off the wharf, adrift forever
Where bridges are burned at critical points
when mental coup d'etats surreptitiously anoint
newly enlightened minds with how to achieve
a new civilization, simply said, the end justifies the means
Deception demands sacrifice of your personal morality
in the fiery furnace of an altered reality;
and freely it is surrendered with nonchalance,
a living sacrifice to the ersatz religious renaissance
TEARS
tears will diminish
every day
for the rest of your days
only to rain
when you least expect it
tears will grow sweeter
aging in time
like a mellow wine
warming your heart
when you least expect it
tears will disappear
from memory's view
like morning dew
kissed by the sun
and you'll never know it
but one day you'll realize
the rain has moved on
beyond the soft dawn
of another day
and you can accept it
HOW MANY
I have counted the number of wishes I have
I won't tell how many
I share my dreams with others
They say they haven't any
I have counted the number of friends I have
I won't tell how many
I share my love with others
They say they haven't any
I have counted the number of fears I have
I won't tell how many
I keep the sadness to myself
Life is hard enough