GOLDEN GATE

 

It’s not the foam on the wave crest

But the sea below

& the weight in your hand

That you can’t let go

If the sea is a woman

She’ll let you know

Or you may wait for the flash of the lighthouse

& it’ll show

 

You don’t need to give me directions

I’ll just follow you

Follow your delicate Lotus-tattoo

Nothing but skin between

me & you

& a dream

To live up to

 

I’ve been a witness to the law of the jungle

To the wreck on the interstate

I’ve seen the black flag flying on the pick-up-truck

& the soldiers celebrate

Blue eyed boy peeking through the crack

Of the Golden Gate

 

There’s beauty lost in the fire

& beauty you gain

When the green disappears

& the black remains

God sends the Santa Ana-winds

He’ll send the rain

& if it pleases him

He’ll do it again

​

 

DEEPER SHADE OF BLUE

 

Deeper dreams & deeper water

& the sky is wider too

I have come here for a reason

I’ve come here to start anew

But all I see’s a deeper shade of blue

 

Got a reservation for the Seal-Inn

On Dolores Avenue

I am stranded by the seaside

& I pay for the sea view

But all I see’s a deeper shade of blue

 

Watching the waves roll in from the ocean

Watching the sun going down over the beach

I can have it all – I can see it coming

All I have to do is reach

 

Can’t say why I must be going

It’s just something that I do

I’ll be following the rainbow

You may see me flying through

Headed for a deeper shade of blue

​

 

NEW FRONTIER

 

You’ve been my closest enemy

For so many years

A vessel for my sympathy

A face for all my fears

 

Then you became a silhouette

A precious butterfly

A pigeon on the minaret

A sparrow in the sky

 

All the places we used to go

I don’t go there anymore

 I see a pale blue light in the afterglow

Of a long forgotten war

 

I know there’ll be a new frontier

For those who are sincere

So very close

& then again

So far away

It almost disappears

 

 

BEAUTIFUL DAY

 

Beautiful day – you may see me

Walking on solid air

I got my Sunday-suit & a free ticket

For the county fair

 

Beautiful day – floating on a summer breeze

Above the trampoline

There’s the jingle jangle of the carousel

& a line for the time machine

 

Somebody else’s reverie

Somebody else’s eyes

Somebody else’s sunrise

On a blood red sky

Never die

Never die

Never die

 

Beautiful day – stretching to infinity

Never gonna fade

Ghost train coming for one and all

At the Penny Arcade

​

 

ROSARY

 

Sometimes I just get so angry

I barely knew them but I found out all the knuckleheads knew me

They even came & searched my rabbit-hole – they’re just bullies

But today even the bullies are trying to be nice to me

 

If I had a friend I know he would agree

Justice will be done eventually

I even saw it written on St. Anthony’s marquee

& Daddy’s gonna take me to the shooting range

For my birthday

Mama’s gonna give me a Rosary

 

Sunday morning & the banshees go to sleep

People say I’m a night-creeper but that’s just a part of me

Part of me’s still trying to figure out who I want to be

& Daddy’s gonna take me to the shooting range

For my birthday

Mama’s gonna give me a Rosary

​

 

KINDNESS OF THE MOON

 

The hills in the distance

They seem so near

It takes more than a lifetime

To get there from here

Life here is slow

cause speed never pays

Not in the heart of the city

Anyways

 

Windowpanes

Shine in the night

Windows filled

With trapped sunlight

You’re caught in a trap

When you follow the sun

There’s a trap in this city

For everyone

 

From the flash boulevard

To the burial ground

From the underpass

To the merry-go-round

Sand in the pockets

Of their camouflage guise

Saltwater-wind in their hands

& the kindness of the moon

In their eyes

 

Crash on the freeway

Cars in the ditch

Scars on your shins

They begin to itch

The beaches are empty

& so is the fairground

& far far away

The sun’s going down

​

 

BEWILDERING B/W MOMENTS CAPTURED ON TRAIL CAMS

 

There’s no such thing as a true believer

There’s no such thing as common ground

The sweetest dreams come in a fever

The sweetest songs don’t make a sound

 

There’s no such thing as a false Messiah

There’s no such thing as wrong or right

You may be listening to a liar

But it may get you through the night

 

Is it just bewildering black&white moments captured on trail cams that you see

Or maybe just some long gone kind of twisted series of memories

 

There’s no such thing as a hopeless sinner

There’s no such thing as love untrue

I’s young at heart – I’s just a beginner

I never meant to sadden you

 

 

SOUTHBOUND PLANE

 

I see the road winding through the canyon

Down to the valley

Swallows are gathering on the fence

By the far-right lane

Seems like all of God’s little creatures

Are getting restless

Two more hours & I’ll be

On a southbound plane

 

There’s a gray light shining

On the far side of my eyelids

& a stillness in my mind

That I can’t explain

Angry men & women

Spreading the gospel

But I’ve got a ticket for a window-seat

On a southbound plane

 

Blue blue skies

Blue blue skies

Blue blue skies

For as far as my eyes can see

 

What else can you leave behind

Other than the things you don’t really care for

Spare them for the raptors

Circling over the plain

I’m gonna be traveling light

On that long sweet journey

There’s only so much you can take

When you board a plane

 

​

ARE THE ANGELS PRETTY?

 

Kick my feet against the counter

See the patrons & the saints

& I see you through the smoke of my cigarette

Is it true that we deserve what we’re gonna get?

& are the angels pretty?

 

I see the minutes turn to hours – but then again

I’ve been late for all my life

I stand outside & make a wish upon a star

For you to come around to my side of the bar

& are the angels pretty?

 

How pretty are they?

Are they prettier than pretty?

So pretty that it hurts & makes you close your eyes

Or just good looking?

 

Who was there when you came knocking?

Do we have to be afraid?

Do we really need what we’ve been praying for?

Do we really keep our secrets or do we leave them at the door?

& are the angels pretty?

 

 

THE WATERLILY & THE DRAGONFLY 

 

I see the lily-pond come alive in the moonlight now

In a sweet midsummer night’s dream

I see the willow bend & the black reeds bow

& the emerald water gleam

 

I’ve been listening to the fairies ‘til my ears were ringing

& I had to wash them in the sand

I would listen with my tired eyelids if you’re singing

Listen with the palm of my hand

 

 & you go

I’ll be your lovely waterlily

You’ll be my dragonfly

Can’t you see it’s surely gonna kill me

If the pond runs dry

 

Tonight I’m gonna give in to the clatter of the crickets

& the gentle sting of desire

One step away from the shelter of the thicket

One step away from the mire

 

I can’t compete with you

& I can’t fly

I’m gonna wither in the heat

Wither & die

 

​