Under the Light of the Manhole

the skull you dig up
hands running over old cracks
can’t get that time back

rediscovering
that you can’t heal ancient wounds
time has failed to mend

asking empty eyes
how they lost their fabled shine
was it just your time

no one’s cross to bear
only pain is buried there
still you dig it up

get away from me
how do i get away now
self-induced exile

when you’re by yourself
there’s no one else to lie to
get your story straight

are you still out there
in a universe apart
each of us his own

see crystal visions
sometimes readings are unclear
but one is concise

lessons never learned
pitfalls into the unknown
swallow all the years

trouble never quits
i’d lift you til my spine breaks
just to prop you up

empty out the dust
crumbs of anger, guilt and fear
keeping you plugged up

say what you want to
no one listens anyway
find nothing to fear

everything to gain
from the scope of all angles
not all hope is lost

today you came back // all winters i wait

the rain weeps torrentially // stomping down like thunderclouds

how long you’ve been gone // someday you’ll return

palm leaves whispering // all souls drift apart

dark clouds gather to witness // spring showers petals of love

tomorrow you’ll come // down time’s great river

down time’s great river // tomorrow you’ll come

spring showers petals of love // dark clouds gather to witness

all souls drift apart // palm leaves whispering

someday you’ll return // how long you’ve been gone

stomping down like thunderclouds // the rain weeps torrentially

all winters i wait // today you came back

fields of dormant seeds
never saw a spring like this
one vibrant sendoff

try to start again
with more wisdom than before
life is a process

look deep in yourself
we’re nothing and everything
the loved and the lost

to get lost in you
don’t know how else to say it
just want you closer

dare you to let me
it’ll be time to go soon
sucks to say goodbye

fly off the guardrail
no one will know where i went
just like usual

fading lighthouse rays
beckon too late to the lost
through waves of silence

dark storms on the sea
thrash into the stillest calm
stirring all that sleeps

dreams drift through the night
sunlight now gleams on the shore
dancing as a breeze

the sea has not changed
and you’re not now who you’ve been
wings to the clear skies

don’t think i don’t know
even if i am not there
i know where you’ve been

so conscious it hurts
sore mind tearing its own seams
just lay down awhile

all you will will be
there can be no obstacles
just time in your way

fragile moments lost
friends will die or disappear
that’s just growing up

sift through specks of time
memories gather like dust
ghosts in picture frames

now i waste my breath
building temples out of words
that no one enters

this one is a shrine
your soul ridden with decay
seeking some respite

may you rest softly
dreaming through the darkest sleep
angels lead you in

if you have to go
a goodbye is all i ask
i won’t change your mind