Friday, March 16, 2012

why i believe we live forever

the inspiration of a song
the faith of a child
the shade of a tree
the call of the stars
the warmth of an embrace
a lazy afternoon
a good book
great works of art
finger paintings
smiles
hope

then it hit me

i dreamt we were standing in the light
we had conquered fear and banished night
and all our dreams were taking flight
then it hit me
i was naked, cold, and all alone
the hearts of gold were cold as stone
and these, the only friends i’d known
then it hit me
life is only made of dreams
nothing is ever as it seems
and all our longing, silent screams
then it hit me
hope is a prayer prayed in vain
we pull and tug against this chain
and for our efforts, only pain
then it hit me
i've felt a warmth out in the cold
a friendly voice, a hand to hold
like a spirit from the days of old
then it hit me
i wandered through the open doors
an azure ceiling with garden floors
to my surprise, that hand was yours
then it hit me
if your troubles become mine
we can banish night, make it shine
and all our longings will be divine
then it hit me

d.s.

Wednesday, March 7, 2012

the lubbers maroon! (we’ll give ye no quarter)


oh mutinous and crew,
with rapier and scimitar
do prick the hearts of brothers.
above the tumult i hear the cries
“swab the deck in blood you dogs!”
while our ship aflame
does circle drain
inverted cannons light.
draw out ribbons red,
with blunderbuss do blow
a murderous tune
played on trumpets of death.
let their report be heard
“peace is nigh”
while dove is trampled under foot.
“let god’s will be done”
ye sing in song
loaded to the gunwales
with the grog of the poor,
“we have had our fill of their booty.”
oh derelict home,
she is starboard listing
heave ho our cargo of dogma.
d.s.

black hole


i am drawn to you
try to pass you by
but i am bending
to your will
slipping
now falling
point of no return
all of you
crushing me
until i am one
with all you have absorbed
singularity
d.s.

the crew


sail in alloy ships of silver
upon the endless black
ocean of infinity
that stretches on forever more
where entire worlds spin
and twirl about endlessly
entire horizons beheld
in a single view
for we are the
captain
and the crew
and we long for ships
to cross the waters
and the cosmic waves
incessantly call to us
“come home”
d.s.

heavens


i am overwhelmed
with peace
when i gaze up at
this cosmos
born of tumult
and violence.
who knows,
perhaps this
is our mission in life
to find love
amid our chaos
to refine our spirits
in the fires of life
d.s.

human, rise above


rise above, be more
than just an african
be a human
rise above, be more
than just an asian
be a human
rise above, be more
than just a european
be a human
rise above, be more
than just an american
be a human
rise above, be more
than just a christian
be a human
rise above, be more
than just a muslim
be a human
rise above, be more
than just a hindu
be a human
rise above, be more
than just an atheist
be a human
rise above religion
and beliefs
and borders
and flags
and status
and anything that hinders
unconditional love
stand human, rise above
d.s.

master of fire


i have looked into these flames
a million times
watched them dance and swirl
releasing the spirit of the wood
the embers burn down low
waves of orange bending and swirling
in rhythm with my mind
countless bodies have I shed
lives lived and died
on a plain in Africa
snowy Asian mountains
European meadow
by the salty ocean
high on a bluff
and yet the fire remains
and i sit and watch it dance
as i have a million times
contemplating existence
consciousness
and the eternity of the soul
d.s.

consider war


have we considered the fact
that it may be a sin to
fund bombers for killing
people on the other side of the world
when we have children
who go to bed hungry
without medical care
or a chance to learn?
perhaps if our money
went to healing
and not killing
we would surely not be
in so much debt
as we are now.
for great is the debt we owe
to the souls of those who have
died in need within our own borders
while our killing machines
did their best abroad.
it is no sin to protect
those we love
or to defend the borders
of the land that sustains us.
but it is certainly a tragedy
to let our neighbor starve
so that we may kill
those who live abroad
because they do not share
our wholesome ideals.
d.s.

stored potential


humanity
we have the power
to break the bonds
of gravity
and depravity
to soar among the stars
to thrive in places
we could never survive
to love
when it is beyond reason
to dream
we have this power
this potential
stored within us
release yourself
be bound no longer
let us not be beasts
of the earth
but children of the stars
born upon wings of faith
high and higher
d.s.

people i look up to


gentle as a whisper
solid as the earth
faith that never was blind
push against the currents
hold back the angry sea
love for people
love for nature
love for learning
never ceasing
stories to tell
till stories are no longer told
d.s.

welcome spring


welcome to the fluffy yellow lion’s mane of the dandelion
welcome to the lively purple deadnettle
welcome to the henbit and the vast carpets of chickweed
welcome to the green fig leaves in the backyard
welcome to the rain that announces it’s entrance with a clap of thunder
welcome to the open door that lets the breeze stop by for a visit
welcome to refreshing
welcome to old things made new
we welcome you as the birds sing
welcome spring
d.s.

for a few


cut funding for nasa
so that we may explore the stars
in spaceships with advertisements
do not explore
for the glory or the advancement
of all people
instead make a profit
for a few
plant the flag of a corporation
on some foreign world
replace our ladder to the stars
with the corporate ladder
reach up and pull yourself there
with a fist full of cash
and plenty of selfish ambition
exploration for the sake of learning
is for imbeciles
there is money to be made!
tourists to transport
asteroids to be mined
astral dumping grounds
for nuclear waste
do not waste the people’s taxes
on something so trivial
as the vast expanse of the universe
we have wars to fund after all
d.s.

gravity


displacement of space
draws us together
alone is a tragedy
listless in the void
but we are not alone
slowly we drift toward each other
reaching out with unseen hands
to hold to what is dear
for all that we have is each other
an attraction that defies reason
a need that simply is
though we are apart
we will fall toward each other
in the end
d.s.

the saurus


the odious creature stalked the anhydrous, effete plains
but this was not a commonplace bipedal creature
no, this beast was a vile denizen of the ignominious depths
conjured from beyond the diaphanous veil
that separates this world from the next
with elongated claws and execrable protruding cuspids
he ravaged the bucolic country side
and everywhere the iniquitous creature wandered
the people bewailed in consternation
“the saurus!”
d.s.

to be a tree

i think that i would like to be a tree
for a while
to grow unchallenged in a forest
to sink my feet deep into the fertile earth
to raise my hands in praise to the sky
for a hundred years i would stand motionless
swaying to the rhythms of the earth
and when my leaves fall for the final time
i will stand as a silent effigy to myself
as my peers look on
and remember the fine tree i was
yet they will not weep for me
nor would i desire them to
for one day a strong wind will come
my carcass will be toppled to the ground
and it will be a home for worms and beetles
friends one and all
i will slowly melt into the forest floor
and in that place will sprout
a fine young tree

ponderance


a thin, sticky web of reason
stretched across my mind
to capture and to entertain
i will be your host for a while
i will wrap you in ponderance
while turning you over and over
all your sides revealed
and should i choose,
i will feed upon you
and you will become
a small part of me
and when my web is torn down
when the silver cord is broken
we will drift upon the breeze together
and know not where we shall land
d.s.

drifter


dance
as i have danced
upon the void
upon the black
drift
as i have drifted
ages uncounted
see
as i have seen
from the beginning
to the end
then you will understand
my joy
my torment
my longing
i am shattered
shattered but not broken
never broken
for i have a will
freely given
free i wander
lifetime to lifetime
age to age
restless
searching
d.s.

let there be


light waves bend and twist and turn
radiating
ebb and flow of radiation
frequencies
vibrations
pulsing energy
woven around an ethereal frame
create the physical from nothing
all is made of light and love
d.s.

peace of winter


silence falls with the snow
as if the earth is waiting
breath held
to hear what will come next
waiting for the first trumpet call of spring
no call today
today the world is quiet
peace
peace for the day
for night has faded away
the stars have stretched and yawned
extinguished their candles
one by one
they slumber
the sun climbs
higher and higher
into the sky
searching for travelers upon the road
the empty open road
curled comfortably
under a blanket of white
today the earth will rest
and night will come
as quickly as it left
and the world will wait
patiently
as the naked trees
stand in silent guard
waiting
for the ambitions of creation to thaw
d.s.

open road


scoop me up
a child
in the arms of joy
a pilgrim lost
an adventurer
I have wandered far
too far
a simple dream of home
i do not remember you
only a memory of
a memory
is left
a feeling
a longing
did i leave
or was i sent
surely i was sent
though i admit
i loved the road
even now
i love the road
but i am lonely
as travelers are sure to be
d.s.

wild onions


a buried treasure
green marks the spot
though the grass
is dead
brown with sadness
weeping and wishing
for the warmer days
of summer
but you are not like them
you do not lose hope
boldly your emerald stalks
shine as a beacon
defiance
year after year
season after season
your stubborn soul
has boldly flavored your heart
millions pass you by
kings in plastic chariots
riding to market
to purchase your inferior
and twisted cousin
fattened by those with fat wallets
but i choose you
for you are wild
and free
and also free
and your flavor
burns with passion
the passion of freedom and defiance
d.s.

reach


dream with your eyes open
do not waste your dreams
to slumber
sleeping in the land of living
and living in the land of slumber
release the inner power
of your mind
do not hold within
what should live without
though we may reach the stars
in our dreams
we will not reach the stars
unless we give our dreams
flight
fly to the stars
not in slumber
but wide awake
for this is the power
that God has given us
it is wise to be content with what you have
but only a fool does not reach for something greater
d.s.

defiance


love is the miracle
that broke the cold empty
sadness of non-existence
let there be light
let there be love
let hope shine like a beacon
a vast expanse
an empty ocean
a buoy bobbing in the distance
something to cling to
hold on to to life
though the empty waters
wash over
live in defiance
love in defiance
defying the
sadness of non-existence
d.s.

waking in a tent


the golden mist of morning
marches against the
melancholy solitude
awaken
sparkle shine
against these canvas walls
walls erected in bold
defiance of nature
fall over my cloth castle
let the heat of your great siege engine
make my fortress most unpleasant
warm
i will not be moved
these walls
will not be moved
(except by a slight breeze)
shake my fist at the morning
hide myself from the light
slither deeper into my cocoon
darkness found within
drifting back
welcome land of dreams
but curse you bladder
for you have betrayed me
d.s.

sow


open up and receive the wealth of nature
live like a king in a garden
sowing goodness and watering the spirit
walk like a god among the trees
learning and knowledge is yours
an animal may see the stars
but only you will wonder
wander far and wide
discover all that nature will reveal
be a priest of the air and water
let the land be your pews
a garden your pulpit
the mountains your steeple
preach the gospel of nature
its glory and splendor revealed
reach out to the lost
who would sell their souls for profit
who fell the trees to fuel their greed
show them the way of salvation
show them the healing
that only a garden can bring
d.s.

lament for the day


setting sun
please don’t go
sinking on the horizon
my heart is longing
thoughts of the day
reflecting from the clouds
in hues of orange and pink
rays reaching out
grabbing the ends of the earth
holding the four corners
hold in vain
gripping
slipping away
tears falling like stars
scattering on the
blank page of the evening sky
one by one they appear
a steady stream
intensifying
one by one
now a hundred at a time
the world is hushed
i pull the darkness up around me
like a blanket
lay my head in the earth
dream of a kiss wet with dew
kissed by the morning herself
draw your sun out of bed
i am yours
d.s.