Grazing

We didn’t agree on much 

My father and I 

But each day as we drove over the hill

On our way home from work and school 

We’d look for the cows 

That speckled the mountain side in the afternoons

Smiling and pointing we’d shout 

‘Look, there they are!’

And for a moment everything else washed away 

We were no longer at war with one another 

And our silence was filled with peace 

Now I’ve grown and moved away 

But still my father calls from time to time

To talk about the cows 

They are still there 

Grazing on the sides of those grassy hills 

And in the moment 

When he’s describing the scene to me

My worry washes away as I’m brought back 

To the days where something as simple 

As cows on the hill 

Could bring such peace 

And amazed how it does still 

Spare Change

I was down to my last dollar

And the sun still had the nerve to show up

Bright and burning in the sky 

And my heart still dared to beat 

A ‘boom boom boom’ in my chest 

I guess it’s not over yet 

My feet hit the pavement 

Matching rhythm with my heart 

I guess it’s not over yet

Youth

“Young and dumb”

“Too much ambition” 

“You never think things through” 

“A hopeless dreamer” 

These are all things you’ve told me

And I can’t disagree 

But the fun I’ve had 

The beauty I have seen 

The things I have learned 

And the people I’ve met along the way

All of it would have never been possible 

Without my young and dumb 

Ambitious 

Spontaneous 

Dreaming 

There has been pain 

Failure and hurt 

Times where I was sure I had made the biggest mistake of my life 

But the beauty I found 

In back streets at midnight 

And in hotel rooms with creaky windows 

And gas stations in the middle of the desert 

Where I saw the sun rise 

And set 

Behind the wheel of my car

Is everything I’m worth 

I live in those streets 

The ones that called to me 

For so long 

And when I finally listened 

I was home 

That longing you feel 

It is real 

And all I can say is 

Listen 

Even if it’s crazy 

Even if they say you shouldn’t 

Listen or it will keep pulling at you 

Tugging 

Begging to be heard 

Listen 

It’s the easiest thing you can do 

You Are

You are not what they think 

You are not what they hear 

You are not what they say 

You are what you are 

You are here 

Beauty in You

When your eyes meet mine 

When you open your mouth to speak 

I realize what beauty lives within you

How each movement you make is art

How each moment breathes a life of its own when I’m with you

And I realize what a fool I am 

In having to let you go 

Nothing

No one is listening 

Nothing is out there 

Yet my soul won’t stop yearning 

Yearning for something it doesn’t know

Something that can’t be found 

Yearning for a reason 

Yearning for purpose 

Perhaps that is the worst part of the human condition 

We keep on yearning 

When deep down we know 

There is no god 

There is no reason 

We are but a blip 

A smear 

A stain 

A mistake 

We are nothing 

No one 

Ever

Will 

Be 

Anything more 

Or anything less 

Constant

What is the point of chasing after the carrot dangled in front of us 

If we catch it 

We will just began to chase after another 

Story

Your story is in your heart. 

When you were hiding from your mother under the bed. 

Do you remember how it pounded? 

Do you remember what it said? 

Soft

Try to be soft 

Like the sun that seeps into your window at dawn

Like leaves that soundlessly depart with the only trees they’ve known 

Like a cat as it slinks down a dark alley on soft worn paws 

Like pink clouds that are scattered in the sky at dusk 

Be soft in your ways 

For a far too many things are not

Silence

Why is it when I’m quiet for a long while 

You ask if I’m okay

Or if I’m angry

Why has silence turned into a reflection of anger

I wish we could get to a point 

Where stillness 

Simply meant you were lost in thought 

Just thought

I wish my silence didn’t make you feel like something was wrong 

I wish it didn’t make you uncomfortable 

Silence is the lack of noise not the presence of anger

And trust me, when I’m angry you’ll feel it.