I will survive and see what that brings me Everyone is born empty handed and all will die that way But to never be responsible for another’s pain Without that, I have everything to gain All I want is to be free. Free to enjoy this Life A Chance a chance And I know at the core of myself that I won't get it. And this- do you ever feel this Or does it crush you Like so many before and so many now Please… Please. Please! (Not this Life) My mind feels weak (Ready to collapse) To face the emptiness (To be alone) The loss of any power (Loss of control) All broken All comes apart All more, nothing less, Anything but lifeless And you call this humanity

Research shows, prevention With services are cheaper Doesn’t even have to be a moral question. Though it is. (It is!) Higher percentage recidivism rate For incarcerated youth Throw away the key Throw a Life away Maybe someday they’ll graduate to the DOC! Lower percentage recidivism rate With the proper support in the community How to support the community? Support the community. Jail’s not a correction (DOC!) Jail’s not a business Jail’s not a correction (DOC!) Jail’s not a business

I’m sick of privileged people, and their spoiled pasty children I’m tired of the glaring Inadequacies Well Johnny, we’ll get you yogurt and granola Right after Tae Kwon Do practice On our way to your soccer game This is not about guilt If we're smart enough (observant) We'd see this is about class We'd see it always was (It still is) Irish, Hungarian and German- Immigrants! (brothers and sisters) Ourselves once discriminated (And hated!) How can we accept inequalities Ignorance, you are a fucking disgrace! Build your walls high, paint your picket fence white Connect with your yoga latte and you just feel right I feel fantastic! It’s not that you can’t have It’s that so many don’t. And if it’s in your face, it bothers you So you build higher, and paint whiter I'm tired of the obvious lie (lie, lie, lie) The lack of knowledge that divides and blinds (binds) So you build higher, and you paint whiter

The Peace Pandas from Japan Stumble timed perfectly wrong Into the hipsters marching down Bedford protesting About being priced out of Williamsburg The Puerto Rican who was telling the story said That him and all his other friends from the neighborhood stopped and stood And watched- The Mexicans working in all the restaurants came out And stared- The pandas were brought here as part of this organization that brings art to the city It’s the organization that had those orange hanging curtains in Central Park It’s about art and expression and These poor guys from Japan come here Wobble at the worst time into the hipsters and police who were just beginning to scuffle Someone yells Fuck The Police! A hipster is picked up and slammed down hard, slammed on the very concrete ground He immediately pops up and puts his hands behind his back, waiting for the cuffs Unfortunately, as they were yoking this boy the pandas arrived and It was so perfect Did the pandas have a last minute of pure confusion and fear, before the cop- In the middle of taking care of the bouncing boy, Innocent panda’s maybe smiling because their vision is so poor and hearing muffled In high ethereal voice, We come in peace A cop shouts, The panda hit me! The head comes flying off white and black bulbous watching For a brief moment above the mêlée Some of the panda’s get arrested and go to jail They’re squeezed in the car. The Puerto Rican- Think of how hot the pandas were It was summer and warm as hell outside They could die They walked all the way from Central Park over the Williamsburg Bridge They were finishing in Brooklyn and They get arrested The fucking luck He said people wanted to watch to see what was going to happen You know, with the white people Today, and crucially tomorrow If something happens the thought was then we’re going in the streets His honesty told him that they were hoping nothing happened, because That meant they should have done this years ago He said someone had spoken to him about white slavery He was skeptical He had a hard time believing it existed, but it eventually registered across his face He was amazed. It bothered him because if white people or pandas aren’t safe Who or what is?

Dirt floors, green fields stretching out and away He works the earth for another’s fat Inevitability- the crystal dagger between his eyes This Life! is uncaring and numb Father beat him unconscious, he was 10. First time. Oh, and when father died he was only 14 The oldest male stands in the fields He can never, ever, improve his lot When you depend When you wait for the rain When you have no choice, but to be humble Hands earth covered and dark This Life is uncaring and numb Rocks hard, soil demanding His impotence torments, his impotence and torments Watch your children starve! He stares at the cooking fire He is the building fire Burning and Boiling He touches his hands to the flame- And now that you’re across the fire, Now that we stare at each other Flames in Our Eyes! This fire between us These flames, our eyes Burning

THE SCHNAZZWANGERS Mom I tried so hard Mom I thought I got out, thought I was safe But I crapped out It all slipped out But I didn’t fall Everything is weightless now Gravity… no longer binding A moment in tune, it’s beautiful It almost makes up. No one can control the White half wolf loping through the house It’s running… 1st of the month He’d chase the postman From the house Past where we’d play ball No one acknowledges it It was good once… There was always the connection- There is nothing now. THE MANEUVER My friend Attila is driving. I'm in the passenger seat We have this big bottle of wine, and we're wasted! There's a prostitute in the back and we have no idea where we are. The cops pull us over and my friend gets out screaming at them! Holy fucking shit. Now we're in it. So what do the cops do... they start saying- well, you were driving... And we had to pull you over. They were almost fucking apologizing! All we got was a $20 ticket- But my friend's still pissed, doesn't even want to pay that! Jesus Christ! Holy fuck! Here's the 20 bucks! Are you an idiot?!?!?!!?!? You're going to get shot! Let's just get out of here! And they let us go! How does that work? How do you get so lucky? At the time it all seemed so ridiculous Who would have thought this would end. Who could see where we'd be? Here under this hot sun and cool moon Some have burned up, some have disappeared in the dark Some are standing some are running There's the dead and the living, and sometimes in-between We went there- in-between somewhere We weren't dead. We were at peace We weren't still, we were Dancing! and Singing! THE WAKE (THESE ARE THE FLOWERS) He just tears and spins loose Annihilation, Incomprehensible Fear bites at him, He swore he'd never make this mistake He gave in- Instantly he knew how you felt Why you did it. Warm and pleasant, forgetting He let it in and it tore him apart She took us all in We were like family To have so much, so much She'd tell us to Fuck Off At times she could be angry Cindy's pissed- let's get out of here To Bottle City! We knew it was magic Have to when it's shinning on you The boys were on The beat was tight- we were all smiling The best, the truest times Sunday afternoon TV, Cigarettes, Coffee! The lights yellow, the counter's green It was, it is a part of me I tried to thank you, I need to I hope you are painting, I hope you are free And I hope we meet again And until then THE SCHNAZZWANGERS BACKSTAGE Her boys found the giant white wolf dog Stop that fucking animal from running around! He's destroying everything in here Puts out her Virginia Slim and gets another He'd put his paws on your chest Made you feel small and vulnerable Our primal throats clenched and ready to be torn Said she'd paint me a picture People in the City Offer money and fame She painted when she wanted to It ran wild through the place, threatening everyone High on its hind legs, staring into your eyes And in the deepest darkness, still there was light She'd dance to their music, sing to the covers There was always music Strong coffee, and the dinning room TV Ashtrays and cigarettes In our brief moments of clarity The entire bottom falls out. Bottles clicking and sounding off But even then- The Song. The Song. The Song. It will set us free

Trapped between heaven and hell ... Teetering on the brink of insanity Staring into the absurd 8x8 Space truckin'

Cold On the cars Cold on hands and face Cold ice Cold air Cold dark And for a tantalizingly brief moment warm in the sunlight bright as summer. Cold Cold in the air fresh and crisp Cold browns and grays, yellows and green Cold silent trees Cold breaths of steam rising and disappearing Cold everything leaks out heat Cold shiver and shake Cold jackets, pants and people Cold inside and out Cold up and down the ridge of a spine Cold burns Cold shatters Cold wood and metal Cold living and dead Cold paused and waiting Cold charged static Cold kinetics, snap flash pop blue shock Cold dry sparkling crystals Cold sharp brittle angles Cold ready to come apart Cold

The bones are tired The scars are old I wish I could heal I came back to say hello (Hey, how are you?) Beautiful as always So long, so fresh and new Muse I worship you Muse I beg everything from you Hopeless without you I marvel at everything you do I'm humbled and grateful, thank you Another song, another poem Another anything It comes, and it goes Sweet taste of heavens Beautiful swell Gaping absence The empty hell Another time, another place Every time, and every place Where does it go How to drag it back Save me from myself Glimpse what the eternal is The peaceful, the moment The ability to let go Nothing to grasp! Let go (I will let go) And i know I am going to laugh At the end I'll laugh and come back to you (I will always come back to you) Pure, sweet, enough to heal And just enable to let go Echo playing out again and again Hope

She told me it was the most beautiful thing She ever saw And now this... What do we do with this? When one highjacks god When one claims It For one's self, one's right to expression When we're separated and god is superior They smile smug Reality as they make it We fall, we fall, we fall Down Our foolishness our ignorance We are our own excuse Can you love enough I hope you can There's so much hate To face, to overcome You can. You can! Brace yourself The beauty she put She placed before me My final hope The reason I stay I would quit I would throw it all away Liberty!

Religious war's begun Stand within the right Stand with/without us Our truth our reality Preaching in uniform 23 churches The general hunting Osama bin Laden The Deputy Secretary of My god put George Bush in the White House "My god was bigger than his" (Evildoer) "My god was the real god" (His was an idol) Satan's the mastermind terrorist (Terror terror terror) "He wants to destroy us as a christian army." Terrorists (terror) can only be defeated "If we come in the name of Jesus" (Halleluiah) Onward christian soldiers Marching off to war Onward christian soldiers Marching off to war! Rumsfeld praised his work (Bible) Ashcroft's "optional" prayer groups (Study groups) From India to Indiana (On your knees and bow your head) Insecure frightened shits use religion. IT is all. Powerful and loving If IT's not loving- brother you can keep it Does it need your help? IT will come IT will be free IT won't depend on you (or me) And IT will come even in despite of you They stare cold stone, relics Read Argue Memorize Pray

Strip searched probed because women driving by themselves Burned alive because they ran without their head scarves Forced back in less they contaminate someone pure of mind Cowards! with small dicks are this afraid of women And we who turn our heads to avoid and forget? For a profit, for a profit Trading gas, selling gas What cost, what profit It’s not religion. It’s wrong! No just and loving god sees one above another You’re paying your murderer and someone’s getting rich They’re fat and gorged, and you’re eating the shit Blown up in our face, how stupid can we be?

I’ve got the invisible man Potion And a jar of Vaseline Slip into action and in-between Set it straight and wipe it clean I get all dirty and do all the work There’s always a reason, and always an excuse Bad girls and bad boys Like bad things for their toys Role playing, and being played Paying and being paid Domination, I dominate I slip in and infiltrate You feel me and can’t wait See me, and try to forget But you want me; need me You can’t live without me Quite nights and dark alleys Bodies hot and sweaty Every-body getting funky, Bodies and bodies Blind folding, bondage and torture Stabbing hot pokers in back rooms, You’re paying for this You’re paying for this You might as well as enjoy it

This last warm night, this last goodbye- I will send for you. I know you understand this opportunity for our family I know you understand So baby girl, let me go this time They found work for me Soon we’ll be together and Life will be better for all of us When will I get home Will I ever come home (Where is home?) These lights so bright These streets are foreign and crackling Across the desert- post to post Crawling under ground, run across the sand Wade the river and feel it so close Get in the trunk- (8 Hours!!) Get out! You’re lucky you have so many people with you- You’ll keep each other warm (To NJ) Hey baby girl I’m sorry it took so long. Bring your jacket because This cold can freeze you Across the desert- post to post Crawling under ground, run across the sand Wade the river and feel it so close Get in the trunk- (8 Hours!!) And I would do it again And so would you Why can’t you understand that? How could you stop this? We will keep coming As you kept coming (And coming) Falling as numerous as the snow Seemingly endless white flakes falling, and falling There are no fences high enough No! There is no danger bad enough To stop me, to stop you Was the Atlantic wide enough? That last summer night; the warm breeze Do you remember how the wind made trees talk We go (No more) where we must (Goodbyes!). We go (No more) where we must (Goodbyes!). We go (No more) where we must (Goodbyes!).

Secretly the moon watched As the night air held its breath Silently the water parted Around a boat full of dreams Drifting down a river Towards the China Sea Leaving almost no trace Only soft goodbyes floating towards the shore Spoken softly in a tense dark night As secretly the moon watched Through a crack in the wall Just big enough To let dreams escape Run back down to the water As the night air held its breath And waited to see If the current was right If the rationed gas was enough If the moon would hide Just long enough To let a boat full of dreams Drift down a river Towards the China Sea

Did it feel so good Were you so fucking high? I can’t imagine it So high- everything means shit Was it worth it You’re hurting everyone Smiling like a fool- sucking Clown, you’re the joke A fucking joke I wish I could laugh I believe in you Despite all you’ve put us through You earn forgiveness

Cackle laugh she drove me wild she brought me back Under the window waiting room in royal purple sari with bag and cane lying at ankle level watching the motion We lock eyes. How could we not Hey you young man I need money you see I'm old and am poor please give me something so that I can eat so I can buy rice and dhal In a train station if you give to one you'll have 50 more who want. No, I'm sorry Please look at me you see I'm close to death, ease my journey. She puts her hand on my shoulder and smiles. Come come, give a little I'm sorry Hah hah hah you're a funny boy you smile at me when you say no ha ha hah She touches my face- her hand's are leather- for an instant everything stopped. Complete. You see? It's my grandmother's hand, it's reached around the world and pets my face here in Mymensingh in this train station is my grandmother. I should call her dadi. In her tattered royal purple sari she stands queen hunched holding her staff . I give her 2 taka. She smiles my heart dies Hah hah hah you're a good boy she squeezes my shoulder. Where are you from America Ah...America hah hah hah She touches me again with her rough hands, she rests her head on my shoulder and hugs me, my heart is shattered and my soul is shit You're a funny boy take me to America with you. She smiles at me gums and all I can't, I'm not going back for a long time Hah hah. She pets my face (leather) she holds me with her amazingly pale blue staring straight at me. Please I can't Pale blue almost silver Oh you're a funny boy. Her eyes begin to tear. Please even for two days please look at me you know me. For two days She said that her mind cried for me The train is puling up I look she's gone I give 10 taka to my friend. Find her give it to her tell her I won't forget, can you remember that, tell her As I pull away I wave to my friend still looking for her. She's gone and so am I

Her hair is thick black curled There is something to hold and feel Yet never have I held, or pressed against The delicately curved Mediterranean lips A curve only the sea can give A temptation only the waves can draw. Further and further, deeper and deeper Floating and sinking And no longer caring When she laughs she looses her balance But there is no sound until she slaps her knee Or stomps her foot And then, even the cruel gods smile She stumbles and begins to sing her silly heaven song She places her hand on my shoulder To balance herself, she may rest her head on my arm It’s exactly then I lose all bearings And I drift further out I’m pulled further out And I want nothing more than to go And all this time I loved you I Love You!! All this time I'm waiting for you To tell me that you love me, too.

By who’s decree, is this Greek tragedy? Persephone in six months Can something be too strong (Super touch) Hot… Cold. What is this field between us Two like magnets Rubbing and bouncing off each other Off of our other If I could place my hands on it If it was something I could hold Something I could tear or burn Something I could dissolve

How am I to process two opposite spins In unison Lightning! The darkness shattered How can this be, this impossible, this unimaginable There truly are no limits. How only to understand Fully to comprehend, to make it more than Words, numbers- the abstract Arranged pieces on this page Feel the tide shift, a second static and still The slow suck, the end of earth Reforming and beginning again Aldous, what happens when I step out that door? It's bright, almost blinding and we kidded ourselves We stared straight into each others eyes, and lied Or hoped to, or didn't know But everything changed with that step We were blinded by the stink of Death We were blinded by the scent of Life. How could this happen And there were no answers Even with the numbers and equations provided Are we awake? Is there sleep? After all this, after the fire and destruction- Oblivion! Beyond our science, infinite and infinitesimal The universe inhaling and exhaling It will start with silence, again The embryonic wash of water on land Caressing Mother. Father.

If I told you I talked to god, If I told you It talked to me... What then. Am I delusional? Maybe Since I was a child, staring The window's sunlight rays falling on dust Eternal universe Holds me in potential And then what if I told you I talked with god's opposite Because there always is, infinite What if I told you I weep tight Squeezed tight- alone This is not art This is expression, this is any chance I can take This is too much, more than a lot More than I can barely handle

I don’t know, maybe we play too hard too fast Maybe I talk too much Fid I never pretended to be perfect What is this thing? What is punk? When we need to define it We rebel against structure… and then we structure ourselves… What?! What are we still doing here? Is this satisfying our demanding egos? Come on Fid, you can’t say it’s not nice in the lights Isn't that what they say? Wait, what lights?! If they can’t handle it… You can’t ask me to control this. It’s why I’m here I am never as free and I will not be denied I know it makes me move It gives me Life Fid, if I’m not a good friend I’m sorry. I'm sorry! What is this thing? What is punk? When we need to define it Rebel against structure, we structure ourselves

He was the shit, feathered hair and all The hip dude so cool he can't be questioned She was sassy and sexy man, she would put out They were cool forever; we were lucky Potbellies and flat ass, Dropped Flabby tummy and we're getting old Death comes on so fleshy and soft Slides up on you like an old friend I saw them in the bar last week She had saggy tits, and he was balding Be yourself, be yourself It's the only thing you'll ever be You are the most beautiful, ever Brother sister We are so priceless- forever We are the light eternal!

UPS warehouse in Edison Kids from Newark kids from Spotswood One day I get into the truck with him One day I get into a fight Fuck off! Do your own work. You've got to be out of your fucking mind Pushing. Pulling. It's me and him tonight Better get everyone together, for the dance in the parking lot But out come the supervisors Separate us, and pull me aside He initiated it right? That cold yes in their blue eyes Oh how his Nation of Islam self, and me not being neighborly Set us up right Both of us animals and inferior before It Get on your knees! People here's the joke, we became friends And called each other's bullshit And laugh about it Ha! Ha! Ha! Ha!

I am the invisible man you may see off the side of Fulton Mall I don't have a shirt My pants have no belt and hang around my hip bones Connected to my leg bones Connected to my foot bones I have no underwear No shoes, no socks, no service I don't know why I wear pants I'm told that I'm supposed to I don't know what I'm waiting for on this bench I know the bus stops in front of me I know the subway is on the corner Location, location, location 5, 10, 15 years There was a home, there was something relative 20, 25 the city agencies A metaphorical doctor walking away from a metaphorical bleeding patient The abandoned and forcefully ignored If only his wound were red The ER nurse said, "emaciated" I laughed at the sound of it Other time and place Uncle Keenan and Aunt Diana, Mr. Kiki and Mama D Lunch and dinner and breakfast, a full stomach A quiet and deep sleep Routine. More clear. Mr. Kiki's National Geographics on his giant bright bookshelf Ethiopia, somewhere else Starving, too skinny, somewhere else The tiny print below small baby, folded over its big belly on dusty dirt The bird behind baby, staring at baby That word in the sentence Kiki taught me to read. You wouldn't look away if we were in the wild and you came upon me My bones covered in filth You wouldn't be that cruel That uncaring That hopeless That blind But if you give to one... He looks even dirtier, if possible, a week later He spasms and makes a gaping mouth squawk- stabbing his tongue out His rigid jaw anxiously shakes and moves his lips shaping syllables He stares at the ground He picks up a discarded cigarette butt He is sweltering in the sun and the smell is intense and suffocating He was once a child. Maybe even loved As the children 10 yards away are As they fidget and sit on their mother's lap As they misbehave and talk back to their Caribbean nannies As they bump into each other in their day care group And finally the MC says We're going to spin around for 5 seconds And when we're done we'll be in another era! The kids scream that they're ready His arm jerks slightly and the half empty Starbucks passionfruit lemonade that someone had given him sloshes in the oversized plastic cup I recognized the flavor immediately And thought, how vastly different the past 40 something years have been for us As the earth starts to shake The train below rumbles by and is gone

Serving your country is honorable Loving your country is beautiful And when it breaks and dishonors you (Us!) The vacuum in Our! heart To all those who served To all those who will… Here’s how to train a killer/machine Line the pigs up Hang them from the legs Repeat- and repeat, dull the senses Point like a gun And destroy Turn on anyone To all those who served- (With honor!) To all those who will I (WE!) salute you!

All you needed was a good spanking Now you’ll listen when I speak Little boy, little girl I’ll make you learn I’ll make you kneel down. Get Down! You will be taught to respect You will be taught to fear and accept Little boy, little girl This rod’s for your benefit So you grow up big and strong Leaders and Followers Discipline by force Respect out of fear The future’s always changing Love is never forced Love is a need Love is perverted Love is nurture and let go Love is eternal and will flow Now I’m too big to be hit Put that rod down. I’m going to tear this place up Just try and give me shit. Ha! Ha! You’ll stop when I say stop Little boy, little girl Old man, old woman You’re getting older each day Tick tock, tick tock How long can you hold on Tick tock, tick tock Your grip is getting weak Little boy, little girl This rod’s for your benefit So you grow up big and strong Leaders and Followers

Those dark skins, those Africans A constant guilt, unspoken Fear forced down and in Always the bloody cotton sin Let them suffer (AIDS) Let them beg (Sudan) Let them learn (Apartheid) Who is the master of this ship Senegal (Where we sold our soul) Ethiopia (How the jokes made us laugh) Rwanda (They are hopeless) Somalia (They're Muslim too) The cradle of civilization How Solomon fell in love They weren't black OUR ancestors They were orange and flickering Safely around the fire Grand father, Grand mother Bring me in, bring us round It's so cold out here There is no fire as warm as a body (You) The shattering starlight, diamonds spilled (Sierra Leone) Comprehension (A child is greater than diamonds and stars) The ability to self reflect (I will reflect) What am I What is human

I belong to Glasgow Dear old Glasgow town Well what's the matter with Glasgow It goes around and around When I get a couple of drinks on a Saturday Glasgow belongs to me

Sitting at the top of the hill, looking down Into the forest- the trail bending and disappearing Into the trees. Shadows and clouds, overcast mid-winter Five years ago; here- sitting staring down Scared, and doubting After the struggle, still struggling The picture of the final set peace The image haunting me The memory of Truth. -Balance The landing on the other shore, beaching the boat at the creek’s mouth The white snow outlining the stony grey river bed curving around and out of sight like a snake He looked back across the river briny brown and green Back to the other shore. Faintly he can see the sandy beach; it winks in and out of focus Is that someone over there, are they waving? They seem familiar- He smiles, and raises his arm Could they see the smile from this distance- He turns his head and his thoughts swim round and drag him after Here I’ve come to the top and look down Into the forest- where packs of coyotes roam the peninsula Mountain lions hiding: cats and dogs vanishing- is one watching…. The creek is high and rushing My mind runs with it twisting back and forth and then out to the open and forgiving sea There is no imposed guilty There is no static moment There is no memory This coming back and forth, in and out, internal tide Here the ripples grow The land disappears The ripples fade The land grows I want to be here; and there by the water To sail out on the river, out to the point and around to the sea Looking back and seeing myself sitting here on this hill. Without time or place It is beautiful- For the moment I comprehend It. Panic. grab. reach. lose. confusion. anger Again and again, I try Suddenly maybe it will become something easy and tangible Place my hands on and hold… I don’t want to go through the door; I want to explode through the fucking wall! A ball of nuclear hot white fire Come to the fire The forest dark and silent, Ancient Shuffle, snap and pop There is no brave man in the dark, alone Which way do you point your weapon, your anger Which way in the dark? At night I come into the forest to drink in and stare at the flame Walking the path, I wonder are they out there Stalking us yet- me, now I bring the.45 and wait Maybe it’s always been here, staring at me from just beyond the light I had missed the shining, little pools of flickering fire reflecting on me The cold burning eyes simmering in the night’s obscurity They evaluate and determine There is no wrong and no right There is. The cool firm grip of the .45 This is power. Explode and tear away This can stop that clawed four legged night. (My fear and flash light searching the shadow pregnant beyond the fire Am I still alone…) Come on… Now! Do it now! Finish it. Coward. The immediate adrenaline and genetic memories Old animal fear, original. The surprised victim, alone And at some crucial point, from a matter of survival to… Hunting the predator, the turning of the tide Effecting evolution The mind, over muscle and fang Beyond the brute. I desire, and I fear my desire I am cautious of the animal in the fire. Focused on the neck… Squeeze, Crack! Warm bloody meat. The fear of being hunted. The sensation of your flesh being torn off in violent mouthfuls The silence, the forest whispers The fat people in suburban kitchens The mountain lion on the deck, staring into the glass door The wet snow falling on its tan hunched back It hisses and bares its teeth But- To fight them off, to kill them, to hunt them Squeezing the trigger, and feeling the recoil Your projected power blasting into flesh Their look of fear. There is no doubt. Vengeance. Dominion. Am I waiting for them? Am I waiting for them? …. I heard you out there I hoped for you out there. And if I become my own predator A circular parasite Maybe those eyes dancing orange are my own Hungry for my soul Paralyzed with complacency, drag It by the throat into the deep forest and devour It leisurely The hunter and hunted Covered camouflaged shaking shadows Movements meshing franticly A twisted tangled body The ability in the epiphany; to transform the self and touch through time The ability to experience eternity Individual, community, culture, history I am what I pass on I am greater than my self I am unforeseen potential Human = man:woman Unlimited We are animal, but we are more than animal. Coming together and making something larger, more than the sum of our parts. Interwoven Each one on the journey. 1 and 1. 2 together becomes 1. 1 journey new. The center is Us. The center is Us! I stare out from the hill From either shore brightening From the river rushing From the dark forest silently speaking I stare out and look within And see the sky shading blue, purple, pink, red, yellow, white and orange I have no answer- no solution, other than what you already know in your heart. It is harder than I ever imagined; but worth more than any sunrise I hoped for Greet It. Or not. The sun will rise for another five billion years How long can I affect the events beneath? It will be determined by how many days I am willing to face It— Wholehearted and Truthful. -Balanced. I pray forgiveness (from my GodSelf) for the things I could have done better I pray (from my SelfGod) for strength and insight, to do the things I should do, better. So let It be.