
SECTION FOUR
DAWN

The Long and Short Night
Anticipation for morning
and what it will bring,
at this moment
taunts excitement
that ruins everything
Sleep is suspended
by a working mind,
exhausting methods
to slow down
and unwind
Possibilities race
around tracks
built of promise,
as darting thoughts
sprint on paths
of composure upon us
Scenarios unfold
like new maps
in lost hands,
clasping sluggish
fallen fragments
of astray slumber plans
In the end,
this fatigue
defeats you,
as the night before
becomes the day
you need
to live through
Passed On
At any point,
modest
but ample degrees
engineer gaps
between generations
All societies
share critical events,
constructing corridors
and levels of morality
Inside barracks
housing these crowds,
lust floods shorelines
bound by flesh,
tolerance,
and indulgence
Ignorance loots decades
of understanding
everything about anything,
by the short-sighted nature
of flawed doctrines
The shame is that
shallow wisdom
survives,
through too few
defiant enough
to challenge
assumed methods
These designs
perhaps wholesome
in their origin,
breed corruption,
then passed on
as if a breeze
from one tree
to the next
Mistakes made once
will manifest again,
with refusal
to cross borders
between stubbornness
and compromise
Minor moments
of momentum
shake standards,
shaping status
for the powerless
at crucial times
There is endless hope
for humanity,
that with vigilant travel
on altered circuits,
sparks can merge
into firestorms
of possibility
That glimmer
of potential
shines over crowds,
brighter than
the eclipse
shading new terrain
and it’s nuance
Whether sons
and daughters
realize the faults
or the insight
of mothers and fathers,
is nothing less
than the difference
between
changing the world
for better or worse
Refuel For Bloom
Sometimes,
all it takes
is a push
Those tiny moments
or delicate gestures,
refuel desire
in desolate times
Bare fields stripped
of essence
are renewed
by lone seeds
of acclaim
As inclines level
and motivation
turns scarce,
simple praise
raises ranges
that pierce ceilings
These thrusts become
poignant memories,
in the soil
where new inspiration
will bloom
Q.C.
Random page,
work chose,
read aloud,
book closed
Language grows,
time elapses,
perfection sought,
grasp amasses
Spirit builds,
courage surges,
savvy sharpens,
cognition merges
Author pleased,
critic assured,
quality found,
control restored
Rush to Conquer
They're painful-
those moments
of humility
A difficult discovery
of vulnerability
can ambush
like a New England
summer storm
Bursts of concern
take hours to calm
and negotiate
between proof
and anxiety
Inflection sets
the narrative now,
as reasoning
grapples furious
with nerves
As terrible thoughts
spill a glass
half-full,
cautious drops
of resolution
rise slow
Mental claims
are exclaimed
defiant to strife,
conquering cavalries
of opposition
to come
Five Words
Again she asks,
'where's her poetry?'
I respond
‘it's between each line
that I write,’
as it's the confidence
she gives me
in every creative fire
I light
A specific work
couldn't cover
the feelings
for my love,
it wouldn't furnish
the page proper,
as simply words
aren't enough
What makes her believe
I can translate
passion through stanzas,
my admiration is stronger
than a charging army's
advances
Verbose scrolls
full of drama
can't accomplish
what five words
can do,
when they’re stated
simply as
'my darling, I love you'
Disconnect
Though there is stress
where love should protect,
it doesn’t mean trouble,
just a brief disconnect
Life runs down lovers
as circles bend,
forgetting for a moment
what signals are sent
They may not have intent
or crooked meaning,
just sentiment overlapping
what a conscience
is conceiving
To heal wounds
for affinity again,
sincerity is crucial,
not just a means
to an end
Aim actions
toward humility
not fingers in blame,
until a solution
is present
and worries are tame
Without confronting
such issues
relations can sever,
leaving wounds
of remorse
that both feel forever
Gravel to Grain
Initial drops fall fast
from a coming rain,
a precursor from nature
that moistens
gravel to grain
Without cue,
showers arrive,
affecting everything
that lives
to be alive
During periods
of downpour
a natural symphony
ensues,
as the wind
sets a tempo,
rhythmic beads
belt the blues
Such an onset
halts stillness
from pacing the night,
splashing subtle
and erratic,
until a new morning light
The Giving Sky
Across the world
a canvas displays
art without limits,
quieting anything
we could say
Generous is the sky
gift-wrapped
in brilliance,
with awe to embrace
it's beautiful resilience
As daybreak is painted
with palettes extreme,
mornings mesh seamless
into sunsets of dreams
Vibrant gradients
allure eyes
to it's splendor,
from a new year’s arrival
to the last dusk
in December
While borderless frames
promote murals
to believe,
this studio is ample
in speechless moments
it breeds
Morning Moon
It must have been
some kind of night-
as a morning moon
hangs around
to greet the daylight
Overstaying it’s shift
from sundown
to new dawn,
now puzzled
of the reason
that darkness is gone
Nightfall was a session
where stars
disclosed notions,
a lunar envy
of sun rays
that are selfless
in devotion
Soon it will fade
to return once again,
in the night,
and the solitude
a morning moon
can’t amend