Apron Strings
Life�s frosty chill lies over me,
Runs rampant through my veins,
No place to run that I can find,
The frigid air remains.
Sometimes I think if life could turn
I�d have it carry me
Back to a time when I was small
And sat on Mama�s knee.
The cold wind blows across my face,
I feel it enter me,
And seek a solace found with warmth,
But find insanity.
Return me now to that safe place,
The place where life still sings,
A time in life lived long ago
When tied to apron strings.
Sun tries to penetrate the cold,
I feel the warmth of rays,
But frigidness of life remains
And so does this malaise.
My mind drifts back and now I see
My Mama with brown hair
And I asleep so peacefully
While in her rocking chair.
Life will not keep my mind in past,
It puts me back in cold,
Where winds of life blow hard and fierce
And I keep growing old.
Ashes Of Youth Not Buried
Soot smudges mirror before me,
A blackened face of mockery,
Ashes of youth come back to haunt�
This one no longer me.
I find them scattered �cross my mind,
No form remains for me to see,
I blink to chase, to make them run�
The loathsome remains before me.
I watched the flames as they consumed,
So quickly youth was turned to dust,
And now I see in blackened ash�
The days of old I saw combust.
No innocence on face remains
For life has sorely changed the eyes,
And now what was, no longer seen�
I�ve watched it burn, saw its demise.
Ashes of youth in urn of black,
And few I found congenial,
Days lived in sorrow, spent in tears�
Yet can�t be found a burial.
Their memory is kept alive
Though senses scream to let them fly,
But it�s the joy among the ash�
The reason why � can�t say goodbye.
The smiles that lie between the tears,
I see them all again relived,
The days of youth I spent back there�
Heartache and laughter�all short lived.
I hold their ashes in my hands
And bye and bye� I see dust fly,
Can�t seem to hold them anymore�
Too long ago I watched youth die.
So Hearts Don't Shatter
Dwell in a world, desensitized,
Ills hidden by closed eyes,
To see and feel the things in depth�
Brings sorrow to the wise.
The ones who know and dare to see,
Have read what it would be,
Have known the world will know no peace�
They�ve read the Lord�s decree.
Too painful for the heart and mind,
We close in part within,
Half-frozen in our will to feel�
Eyes blocking out man�s sin.
We watch the heart of man grow cold,
Each day we feel the chill,
We see men die, hear babies cry�
And wonder at God�s will.
If it should be, hearts sensitized,
We�d see each shattered piece,
For not a one could stand the pain�
Nor from it find release.
It�s in defense, this frozen state,
Protection from it all,
Too great the sorrow for the heart�
The writing on the wall.
�And Once Again
All through life
I�ve seen the pain
And teardrops fall
And smiles wane.
I saw the strife
that comes with life,
I�ve seen it all�
This falling rain.
But then I saw
The gardens grow,
The flowers bloom
And came to know
The winter thaw
And seen in awe
The lift of gloom,
The sunshine flow.
I watched the pain
That in me weighed,
I felt it lift,
I saw it fade,
And then again
The sunshine came,
The clouds had left
That on me caved.
...And once again
The music played.
My God Leads Me
Through briars and thorns my God leads me,
And takes me �cross tempestuous seas,
And walks by my side through the tempest
Until Himself in me He sees.
He places my feet in the fire
And lets sad things come my way,
But through it all He is with me,
And stays by my side every day.
His children chastised to make ready
Their entrance through heavenly gates,
Where mansions for each is now standing
And the Father for each one awaits.
Through briars and thorns my God leads me,
His image to carve in my soul,
Through sorrow and refining fires�
He places my feet on the coal.
To Climb A Mountain
I sat within the valley deep
With mountains all around
And didn�t see the upward path
That God for me had found.
Around in darkness stumbled blind
And failed to see the light
That shone upon the given path
On which I could alight.
The mountains loomed and overwhelmed,
In darkness there I laid,
Until my eyes came off the ground
And saw the path He made.
With weary steps begun to climb
With feet upon each ledge
And often felt the way too steep
When feet stood on the edge.
When eyes looked down into the valley
And gazed on where I�d been,
My upward steps seemed paralyzed
And light ahead grew dim.
With eyes again placed on the light,
The mountains overcome,
I look upon my callous feet
And see how far I�ve come.
I give the valleys quickened glance,
While mountain tops ignored,
And soon I find the summit see
When eyes stay on the Lord.
Box Of Crayons
Within the box are many colors,
Why do I use the color black?
A man we know told us his reason,
The poor, downtrodden� those on crack.
But what of I� this reason too?
There are so many ones to choose.
The color red, yellow or green,
Instead of black, should I use blues?
What color use for loss of hope?
Or choose to paint the sick and poor?
Of all the colors in the box,
Which one is best to color war?
Would you use red for spouse abuse?
How would you color love that�s died?
What of the agony in prisons,
Or the pain I see worldwide?
Perhaps the man in black knew best,
Of all the colors in the pack,
In this pretty box of crayons,
The only one to use is black.
Dead Dogs
(Kyrielle Sonnet)
Seldom left beneath the stones,
Dug up are found yesterday�s bones,
Once more we cause the eyes to cry,
Dead dogs are seldom seen to lie.
The scabs are picked once more to bleed,
On sorrow�s past again we feed,
Monuments built that reach the sky,
Dead dogs are seldom seen to lie.
Blisters are seen again to ooze,
Viewing again yesterday�s news,
Digging up bones, stacking them high,
Dead dogs are seldom seen to lie.
The tape�s rewinding once again,
And soon will play within the brain,
Yesterday�s pain won�t say goodbye,
Dead dogs are seldom seen to lie.
The Key In Three
My name is love, can I come in?
Does your heart the room?
And if I fill it, will you miss,
The halls you�ve filled with gloom?
If I leave a light on,
Will you miss the dark?
Will you shove me out again,
And turn on love your back?
My name�s compassion, hear of me?
I can�t live in hearts of stone.
Will you let me melt your heart?
Help you learn to shed a tear,
Allow your heart to hear a moan.
If I enter in your heart,
Will you welcome me in there,
And in your life, make me a part?
My name is forgiveness� yes it�s me,
I�ve come to knock upon your heart,
You used to know me as a child,
My face you used to see.
I hung out with compassion,
And married one called love,
One time you gave me freely,
But now I see I�m one you shun.
Your heart is barren can�t you see?
It is empty without us three.
Can we enter in today, be a part of thee?
You�ll find with us� happier be,
It is with us, you�ll have the key.
You�ll break with smiles and with glee,
You�ll have it all, we all agree,
So come and let us in... all three.
A Dirt Road
God placed my carcass in the dust
That sprang up from an old dirt road
And all through life the stones would fly
And dust filled nostrils as I rode.
He didn�t choose a life for me
That led to pavements long and smooth;
But instead the bumpy ride,
With rocks and hills that didn�t soothe.
Upon a dirt road I was raised
And through the hardships God was praised.
I didn�t know that some weren�t thus,
But thought that all were perilous.
I learned to love in spite of pain
And learned to walk in pouring rain;
The dirt road made me grow up strong
And helped me learn to find my song.
I learned to love my fellow man
And to reach out for his hand.
The dirt road built my character
And taught me things no smooth road can.
Strength is built through adversity
And lessons given how to pray;
My Lord knew best what road for me
So placed me on this dirt highway.