No. 1 x 1
Destiny a winding road,
Fate the culmination;
To exist beyond such conceptions,
A truer freedom none have touched.
~
No. 2 x 1
My bones are hollow, thin like the bird’s.
But I cannot fly,
Save for in my dreams.
~
No. 3 x 1
Whisper when you rebel against unkindness; I refuse, categorically-
-speaking: following such a command would be foolish.
Instead, I offer forbearance: twenty,
Nineteen,
Eighteen,
Three,
Run!
It’s unfair, isn’t it?
~
No. 4 x 1
(It is fine to be stronger, more skilled and swifter than others;
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And it is good to be confident, to know of one’s worth.
But to lord and demean another for such differences-
-to revel in the acts of a bully can never be worthy of admiration.
Hold to integrity; it is the lifeline with which we might know:
To trust or not to trust.
I swear this.)
~
No. 5 x 1
If we knew the answer to life’s worth, I do believe there would be a disappointing dearth of care.
The degree to which we mind another’s pain is already so low-
-and our collective terribly slow in understanding why we should
Mind that the mother struggles, painfully aware that her son’s stomach hurts.
Giving a damn is sensible - and rarefied like Sinatra’s air.
Yes, I do believe there would be a disappointing dearth of empathy.
In the face of absolution-
-the messiah might be here, and much of the citizenry would kick him to the floor,
And they would spit-
-and he might think his sacrifice was for naught;
For why else would the people be so
Empty
~
No. 6 x 1
Normalcy is not overrated.
I think our sense of it has simply changed,
And we are, each of us-
-in our own way,
Deranged;
At least, according to the old guard.
~
No. 7 x 1
Talent speaks a language all its own:
A tremendous silence filled with ease.
(I do not mind having to make noise.)
~
No. 8 x 1
If Heaven is real, I think-
-somewhat sadly
That its gardens are scarcely occupied,
Bereft of believers.
Abuse is all too common.
~
No. 9 x 1
Smiling patterned rictus matter,
Broken grey simple May,
Wreaking seeking ample drinking,
I would rather not take refuge in audacity.
I hear their pillows are uncomfortable.
~
No. 10 x 1
Usurp the dragon-
-breathe fire across the countryside estates,
And make a home of their hoard.