Across the Sea
on the ocean
so clear
drop the lights
there
bulbs that twinkle
day and night
no need for a tree
it should stand in the dirt
not the sea
no need for a gift
the day you were born
was more
than a wish
more than
a cave of stars
a heart can break
from too much pain
or too much joy
those are the moments
that move
like clouds
after rain
the peek of the sun
shining through
finding the sea
the wave
drop the lights
there
TL
Rocky
last night
I saw the real
Rocky
he was just
a little kid
sitting there
telling his story
his life story
he just wanted
what all little boys want
and need …
a loving father
someone to look up to
someone you could count on
someone who would protect you
someone who would talk to you
someone who would believe in you
someone who loved you more than himself
Rocky never got any of that
from his father
quite the opposite
so he turned his pen into a magic wand
and created the dad he should have had
the dad all broken men
should have had but didn’t
this was important not only for him
but for all those
who grew up
abused and abandoned by a parent
or parental figure
whether it was a mother
a father
or both
movies like Rocky
help the helpless
feel less
a l o n e
TL
Responsibility
there’s a grave
sadness
in the air
I can feel it quite
every
where
it’s in the vacant
stare
of that boy
there
that girl
here
after the camera clicks
the credits roll
the lights dim
the doors close
and every
body
goes on
home
the trash still needs
picking up
somebody has to stay
behind
and clean it
up
all the mess
else it’ll
pile up
and be too much
to bear
too hard
… too late
TL
Baby Blues
when she
comes back
I’ll be stooped
and low
looking at the ants
below
won’t see the sky
or stars at night
no sun
no moon
or tops of trees
or airplanes
headed out
I’ll see the drops
that fall
to ground
and remember
the river
her head down
picking up rocks
turning ‘em over
keeping a few
leaving the rest
yeah, when she comes back
I’ll be stooped
and low
looking at her
sole
wonder what she’ll wear
flat or heeled
or bare
TL
Willie Nelson
at 6
he was
a poet first
at 90
he still
is
TL