Chains

All of us carry

Dead weight,

Our past

Is chained to us

Now, in the present.

And but for brief moments

Are the shackles released.

Euphoric times

Of great buoyancy

As we freely

Swim our allotted course.

 

My bonds are rusty now

Leaving their marks upon me.

I am gouged

But not defeated

They will drag upon me

Yet I shall soar,

It is my delight;

I shall be Houdini

Ever escaping

Till I am claimed

And am no more.

 

Glistening

Is it tears that make them so?

They shine those eyes

With a sparkle

That catches my breath.

They see into

And through me.

I am laid bare.

 

They promise a

Duvet of delight

A comfort forgotten

A stillness of spirit;

Timelessness

 

No tears shed

Could it be joy

They promise?

The languor of fearlessness

A lilting of the heart.

 

Chances

A life well lived

Involves risk

Often risk without reward

We must challenge ourselves

Else why be human?

 

Chances are inevitable

Waiting is often prudent

Waiting

Then there we sit

Eating ourselves up

Wishing for naught

Hoping to be saved

From our vigil

Of self.

 

Only the Zen master

Finds enlightenment

In the long wait

Seeking inward answers

That serve few, if any.

 

Ride the Ferris wheel

Hop a train

Knock on doors

Ride the waves

Write a story

Share it with others

Go naked for a day

You find out about self

By doing, stretching

 

Criticism is inevitable

There is no escaping it

Seek it out.

Fear is a great crippler

Sapping our strength.

 

Look before you leap

Then leap anyway.

 

Though you might consider a net.