My dreams are filled
With unknown faces,
Places I have never seen
Perhaps I got lost,
Looking for the place
My heart belongs —
Which obviously
Isn't here.

To understand,
Adjust your perspective —
From the inside
We but see
The negative.

Love would lead
If we could live
In beautiful empty
Between thoughts, distracting.

Acknowledging the urgency —
The situation dire,
We lack
The incline to act
To save ourselves.

When depression reigns,
Each chance you get
Binge happiness —
Let it warm you.

See the deception,
Recognize
Who steers the fight.
Don't watch the ball,
Watch the hands —
No victors walk
The arena's sands.

Envy.
Resentment.
Condemnation.
Blame.
Spite.
These selfish thoughts
Divide us.

These horror stories
Sadly
Are not fiction.

In smoldering heat,
Walking streets filled with
Smiles dressed in summer —
Dark thoughts hit me
Like cold shivers in July.

When struggling
Imagine each step
A journey
And press on.

Blame that goes around
Eventually always
Comes around.

A crowd, a stage,
A microphone —
Nerves rendering
A speech, prepared
An empty page.

The alarm stopped
Unanswered —
We never woke up.

Never overthink.
Words need no weight —
They have wings.

A thinly stretched smile
Never reaching the eyes —
Contoured in black
By fatigue, apparent —
Stares at me
From each reflection.

Moveless motion
Voiceless song —
Just a sense
The world moved on.

Love proved
Eyes like graveside candles,
Pale and fragile,
Flickering in the autumn wind —
Not her temporary beauty,
Though the ghost
Beneath her skin.

I can either
Release
And let you be
Or keep you safe,
Trapped in
A life, resentful.
Peace of mind —
The price I pay
For your free will.