Forget the Formalities: The Capital of the Red, White, & Blue

Forget the formalities

Life lived with

High levels of uncertainties

I don’t complain

Even when the snow and rain

Take away

From the path we have laid

Deep breathes

Can take away the stress

Tea relaxes

Rest can settle the stomach

In a culture of rush

Instant satisfaction

My actions

Can be delayed

But we live full today

Making way for tomorrow

When the snow melts we will go

Continue on

New York on the horizon

Our minds prepare

For certain changes

We go were the wind howls

Us to come gathering

Make anew

The center of the world

In the capital of the red white and blue

A Wonderous Test

Plans were made

Belongings were moved

This place we lived

Now looked new

To my eyes and you

No longer our home

But a memory

A place we stayed

It’s hard to imagine

Us living elsewhere

But so calls life

Opportunity

And growth

So we had to let go

Of what we knew

For the unknown

Loosing sight of shore

Push from the dock

Just a little more

We move on

Happy and sad

Love was nourished here

Love will grow

Wherever we go

But today this place

Looks different

We will leave our youth

A sense of innocence

For what lay ahead

We hold each other

Not one word was said

We fall asleep

Catch our rest

For what lies ahead

Will surely prove

A wondrous test

The Tyranny of Propinquity

The tyranny of propinquity

Not by the governor

Rather by the governed

Promotion of oneself

To others

Whether it be helpful

Or whatever druthers

The focal point

Revolving around self

Can be a distraction

To the world around us

Bring down our mental health

Pushed by computers

Autonomous machines

We paint out every line now

Every scene

To share

To focus on me

Is this the grasping point

Of technology

We must oblige to pass

On devices that consume

Texting and eating

Making calls in the bathroom

Time forgotten

Time wasted

Time forgone

Let we wake up free

To smell the fresh summers lawn

For the tyranny of propinquity

When life is lived digitally

Is to much

For me

Forgettable Notes

Forgettable notes

On a seemingly empty guitar

Opened eyes late

Pushing hard

Living in tight bags

Reclined in the car

Many nights spent wondering

Who you are

Days home

Or days spent over

In countries afar

All deals settled

For one chance

Forget the drama

The romance

This is the only shot

One finale

Coming up shooting

From the depths of sorrows valley

I miss Nashville

I miss LA

Hope to make it back

The city landscape portrayed

Form and function

Met up at the I 90 junction

Headed out of town

I’ll make it back home

Come back around

If Indecision Supersedes Incision

When complete indecision

Supersedes the incision

Of which

We inject ourselves into the world

Launched

Taken off

We will run

Fast, hard, and lean

Towards the summation

The local or destination

Our minds will not sleep

Nor our hearts give

Any

Resignation

Until we find our ends

In this one fine nation

Questions will be asked

Notions given

Whether we are losing

Or we are winning

Hello world

Let’s become friends

We learn from our mistakes

Now and then

But tonight we begin

We no longer hesitate

To wake in the morning

And shake hands

With our new fate

The Blowing Lark of Winter

Stay inside

There is a storm out there

Blowing winds so cold

It will shrivel your fingers

I am told

City in chaos

A driving ban

Amongst all of this

How could we plan

Just about one thing

I never seen anything

Quite like this

The blizzard of 78

Paled

When this storm hit

Apocalyptic winds

Hustle over the earth

Creating a sense of unknown

In darkness so cold

In the air you hear the raging sea

Even though the sea is

Nowhere near me

Or you

We stay locked in doors

Tight

Shaking

With the blowing lark

I am amazed at this

Horrified

And in awe

None of us saw this coming

None at all

But here is this storm

This beast

This apocalyptic creation

Bearing down hard

On the Hoosier nation

From Chicago

Down the South Shore

We have seen snow

And more

More more

Sleep well rested

While the buildings foundation

Is tested

We stay covered

We stay alive

This is the most violent wrath of winter

I have ever seen

The January winter

Of two thousand

And fourteen

Blooming Questions

The world will not wait

No delay

No reason to hesitate

I move

I question

I try

In the evening

Under the crisp

Morning sky

Our destiny

Uncertain

Questions blooming

Into discussions

Full answers restricted

Unknown

Somedays feel

As if we go

Where the wind will blow

Us

But today

Reasons develop reasonably

In this season of cold

We set out on a journey

Forward march

Is where we will go

Gazing Ball Responsiblity

field collage

Gazing Ball Responsiblity

Freedom outlined with responsibility

Sounds so trivial

So silly

But the concepts upon which

Failure and success

Of our free country

Hinge

Are within

The two words mentioned

Herein

With freedom comes responsibility

Not political commitment

Or rigid views

Simple daily responsibility

Of citizens

Me

And you

No questions raised

About money, religion, or race

Equality to all

Under the human race

Let us be responsible for what we do

What we say

How we act

How we pay

For creations made responsibly

Temptations and challenge

Run rampant at our fingertips

Accessing the world

In just a few clicks

But with this gazing ball of wonder

You cannot underestimate

Your responsibility

To the greater mankind

So please be kind

Be helpful

A great nation

Flawed indeed

But if there is one call we can heed

Whether a conservative or a liberal

Is mutual respect for each other

And our responsibility

To make the world better

So that from sea to shining sea

We can create something beautifully

With true responsibility

From me to you

And you to me

Liquid Lights

Chicago

 

 

 

 

 

Liquid Lights

The polar vortex winter

What the heck is that

Where hot and cold intersect

Casting a spinner on the midwest

Over Chicago, Gary, and South Bend

The rust belt on lake Michigan’s end

A vortex

Sets 4 feet of snow on the deck

I am amazed at the violence this

Storm creates

Thrashing cars on highways

Like liquid lights on the road

It is unlike any winter I have known

Where the volatile winds blow

The crushing cold

Oh the cold

It seems unbearable

Stopping pumping engines in its tracks

Planes left running

On snow filled tarmacs

A smack

Of this winter vortex

Sets us spinning

Holding on to wheels

Less like driving

More like swimming

I hope to see the end

We just pull up a chair and watch

The true entertainer

The dropping thermometer

Watching it fall

Way below what I have ever known

Freezing finger tips instantly

With a frigid blast

I can only hope

This vortex

Is my first and my last