Poetry

Tree Bark Blue

Why would you name your daughter Ruby
Why would you color the tree bark blue
Why would you take the truth for a mistake
And never give a reason for what you do

Why did you break my heart wide open
Why did you tell me you'd follow through
Why did you need to hold to your greed
And tell me the unfinished stories you knew

12/9/99

Going Away

I never used to take chances on playing with the rules
But I took a risk once and couldn't stop
Because I found that law is such a stately thing
And should not be such a part of life
Oh discoveries like this have kept me alive

I like to drive a little too fast on this one back road
Where I sometimes find deer and always fishing men
I especially love it at sunset when the colors hit my eye
And the mountains in the background tell me
Go faster, get home early

And I like to laugh with a stranger and dare to ask his name
And then never, never see him again
And I like to swear sometimes in front of people who least expect it
And think that I'll say something nice
Although sometimes I decide to think twice

        And I've quit anything that has wasted my time
        I'll disregard a notion if it doesn't seem right
        Cause I don't want to be
        Caught in my existence
        Yet I don't want to do whatever I want
        There is such a harmony, such a perfect thought
        When I have helped you and you have guided me

I never used to drift so far away from where I lived
But people move or become someone else
And although beauty is hidden inside you
I am going away too
I am going away too

4/1/99

I Am Wrong

I am wrong
Audrey is wrong
The homosexual is wrong
Bill Clinton is wrong
My mother is wrong
Your father is wrong
That biology teacher is wrong
The priest is wrong
We have not yet discovered how
To prove another wrong with love

Rambling

I'm  in love with a stranger
I smile at the guy with no teeth and mean it

There's a hole in the ground
I purposely fall in it
Then I'm shocked when I can't get back out

I know I have cancer
But I won't go to a doctor
Because the truth would ruin my fantasies
And because I'm not sure I want to live or die
But it still hurts

Sometimes I wish I was naive
And didn't knew know destruction was up ahead
I might be happier

When I was young
I was happy
I must have been oblivious
To the facts
To the rules
To the way things were

I'd like to change
      Things
      Me
      The World

I can't, so I  wonder...

If this were a song with a really fast tempo
They wouldn't know what I was saying
Unless they happened to glance at the lyric sheet
But then they would just laugh
Because they wouldn't think I was actually serious
And I could get away with ...
With whatever I was trying to get away with

I ask questions
Like why do I just go on rambling
Unless I'm with people
I am severely acquainted with
And am, then, silent?

1/99