Poise

There is nobody who
Can ever really do
What you can do for you

They claim they’re on your side
But all they do is chide
So arrogantly snide

Just focus on what’s right
And always use your height
To stay above the fight.

Right of Way

No one cares who they obstruct
They simply block your path
But you are wrong if you conduct
Yourself with righteous wrath

Every time I think I see a way
Something blocks me
Every time I have something to say
Someone mocks me
I do my best to just show up and play
And it shocks me
No one sees the angst I keep at bay

Each day becomes an exercise
In learning how to steer
Around the endless compromise
That drives the vexed to veer.

Bashful

Orion's just shy
(from lacking brilliance)
of fading for the summer,
the sun is still high
when he makes his entrance
by night he's a goner.

Corker

The vine has conquered many it seems
From sturdy trees to those with dreams
Destroying limbs and roots and lives
On others loss this species thrives

Insidious by how it clings
And the cursed fruit it brings
The vine has crushed so many it’s true
Never let it ruin you.

Third Person

Bobby do this
Bobby do that
Bobby’s about
To just go splat
I need another me
Or three begat
To keep me from
Dropping flat.

Bail

The indiscrete
That haunt my street
Are less-than-sweet

Their words are foul
They fiercely scowl
And proudly prowl

This little slice
Was once so nice
But now we mice

Are trapped by laws
That aid the cause
Of those with claws.

Boom!

I'm feeling rather vexed
The fascist system flexed
And now it’s got me wondering
What the crooks plan next

We voted full of trust
They gave us the unjust
Intent on petty plundering
To feed their every lust

It’s time to take a stand
And force their filthy hand
Let there be a thundering
Of truth across this land!

Arpeggiate the Day

Another dismal day?
Not if you can play
Just pick any major key
And pick your blues away

For music truly heals
And oftentimes reveals
The individuality
Conformity conceals.

Ageism

Regeneration is currently on pause
The consequence of Nature’s ancient laws
And no authority exists to hear an appeal
It seems, as they say, things just got real.

Sobering

No matter how depressed I get
I’ll never ask for a pill
That makes me numb to my regret
By weakening my will
I chose to cause my own distress
It’s up to me to face the mess.

Modifier

When people just keep taking
How much should you give?
The fault is in mistaking
How to serve with how to live

If all is given gladly
There can be no servitude
You won’t take things so badly
For love will set the mood.

Backed Up

I think I finally hit the wall
Exhausting any gas
But the most annoying pain of all
Is this brick stuck in my ass

Wishing

I’m melancholy today
Remembering the way
We used to share a cake
For convenience sake
Despite the day and week
Between. You’d kiss my cheek
And let me blow the candles out
While everyone would shout
HAPPY BIRTHDAY!
I miss you Kay.
Should have wished for time to stop
A cigarette that wouldn’t drop
A life that wouldn’t turn to shit
I miss you Mom, guess that’s it.

Sliding

When you live to serve
Sometimes your verve
Is short on length
Just pray for strength
On every curve
That tests your nerve.

Germinating

Beneath the budding trees
In a cool spring breeze
I feel the sprouting of creative ways

and suddenly I’m flush
with the preternatural rush
of searching for a thought, a word, a phrase.

Litterbugs

If I knew any magic
I would surely cast a spell
To make the lives of those who toss
Their garbage living hell

I'd enchant their litter
To stir and come alive
Then follow the offender back
To their cluttered dive

With mandibles of plastic
And eyes of cellophane
They’d overwhelm the messy slobs
Intent on causing pain

And torture them with fervor
Until they’re forced to vow
To never mar the land again—
I would if I knew how.

Try Me

Another day defeated
Refusing to give in
No cause to be conceited
No drive to try and win
The times when I competed
I took it on the chin
And now I’m near depleted
But always ready *grin*.

Catchy

The birds begin the day
By twittering away
I whistle right along
Not sure of what I say

With every lilting trill
I feel a little thrill
Nothing like communal song
To reinforce God’s will

And I’m hoping, as your host
That this idyllic post
Is one the sadly jaded throng
Enjoys the most.

Uncelebrated

No balloons or confetti
No streamers or the like
Just warmed up old spaghetti
In an old thrumming mic

Then, perhaps some frosted
Cake and strawberry ice cream
I seem to have exhausted
Any semblance of esteem.

Belly Up

Birthday cake for breakfast?
I ‘figure’ might as well
My skinny waist is long past
So what the hell!

Reciprocity

On the day of my birth
I ponder my worth
Despite my purse's
Lack of girth

I fancy some mirth
On the day of my birth
A smile reverses
My current dearth

From my humble berth
To the rest of the earth
I offer these verses
On the day of my birth.

Bloomers

When Lily is blooming
her dewy white skin
means spring is resuming
(much to winter’s chagrin)

She’s graceful and slender
and inspires respect
her mercies are tender
as one might expect,

with soft flowing garments
she’s the Belle of the bed
reminding all the varmints
Don’t lose your head!

Front Man

Yes, you’re great, you told me so
Right before you ruined the show
By reaching for more than you can achieve
As people shake their heads and leave

If you were as good as you think you are
It’s possible you’d be a star
Instead of just an average ham
That actually believes the sham.

Forbearance

As we counter those who push and shove
We overlook the love,
While dodging hits throughout the fray
We tend to lose our way
When seeking shelter from lethal rounds
Antipathy abounds
The trick is learning to pardon those
Who feel they are our foes.

Going

The red light racers gun the gas
And try their best to make a pass
But even if they get the green
They’re still inside a death machine.

Labyrinth

A hedonist of hardy stock
But now he was consumed
With finding some way to unlock
Another course less doomed
Determined jut upon his chin
He'll face the boss and win!

Wishlist

They say if you write down your goal
Your chances increase to succeed,
A skeptic at heart, I cajole
Myself to have hope, and proceed:

I wish to be somebody free
That isn’t coerced to compete
Awash in the love that could be
If selfishness met its defeat.

Rezero

These ingots of deliciousness
The price I pay for years of bliss
Where all I did was puff and sip
Now I sit here snip snip snip
The balance seems askew to me
I didn’t account for irony.

Nobody

What must be done
Is just no fun
Thus your attempt
To stay exempt
Oh foolish one

You cannot shirk
Required work
And then expect
Your due respect
So can the smirk

Too late you learned
What must be earned
Is worth the pain
If you abstain
You will be spurned.

Teetering

I know your breakfast was ruined
But please get off the ledge
And next time don’t butter your pancake
So close to tables edge.