Square Nails

I hope to see some photo survive,

Or perhaps my own written word.

My alms to immortality,

Hope my obscurity is deferred.

Surviving unforgotten,

An ash in my urn of rust,

Real as these found square nails

Proof of my house dissolved to dust.

My Time

It was an era of assassins,

Our friends died in an unjust war.

Music heroes fell to overdoses,

The oppressed people wanted more.

Betrayed by our parent's values,

We felt an overall mistrust...

The politicians were all liars

The court systems all unjust.

Oh, but we were a happy bunch,

The protest song's loud chorus...

Every road in America, ours,

The future created it seemed, just for us.

The Greying Years

A friend asked me in passing,

If I regretted getting old...

“No, I even tease myself”,

And recounted some jokes I've told.

We must live out our lot in life,

Accepting unchangeable fate...

Looking at mirrors as if they were clocks,

Aware, the time's getting late.

I will admit, I do tear up

At the one thing I find so unfair...

When I look at my best friend Otis,

And notice another white hair.

A Modicum of Decency

Oh dear god, sweet Harriet!

What on earth were you thinking...

Belching in the dining room,

No shame, not even blinking.

What's become of decency?

The lack of manners today...

We are facing a changing world

Civilization is in moral decay.

My notice to you historians,

Who promise, “This phase will pass”...

Now repressed republican women,

Are publicly passing gas.

Shhhh

I thought it once, but never thought,

One day I would be old...

I traded time for memories,

Realizing now, my youth was sold.

I'd offer you my wisdom

Facts of life I found were true...

But the secret of life changes.

Every second starts anew.

Most that all youth thinks is true,

In time time, will prove it ain't...

Elders print the warning signs,

Still kids have to touch wet paint!

The F/V Deep Sea

I was a sailor once in the Navy,

When civilian, I changed crabbing history...

Now I am but a hero forgotten,

Anchored in Penn Cove, a local mystery.

The brass that once propelled me,

Was taken and sold by weight,

My once proud skin is rusting,

Aging to a sad, undetermined fate.

Most new neighbors resent me,

Questioning why I remain afloat...

My still proud bow facing into the wind

This once famed, almost orphaned boat. 

See  Sunday, May 13, 2012 For F/V Deep Sea Eulogy

Blinded

I saw some snow a few days ago,

The ugly black stuff on curbs you speak about...

That one epic morning plowed to the gutters

The same exact moment the day before

We saw a most beautiful, white lace fall upon a silent world.

The same beautiful moment when I cursed being trapped

In my peaceful world, imprisoned against my will,

Forced to recollect and remember, the noises, photos,

Deceased faithful pets, and memories of past storms,

Their snow melting, and allowing me freedom once again.

Full speed into the present today,

I headed untethered towards the thawing town,

Elated to purchase unnecessary pleasures,

Useless tokens and sweets to validate my life

In this dirty world, now that the beauty is gone.