New flower feeling,
but deliveries have stopped,
and the roses browned.

They throw the first stone,
trying to knock me down, but
I am the mountain.

All my detractors
try to pull me down with words,
but I will be free.

They say I will fail,
that I’ll amount to nothing…
I will prove them wrong.

Today it seems like
this world is too bleak and lost –
God can’t stop crying.

To never grow old…
wouldn’t that be a wonder?
Endless summer days.

Immortality:
the desire of old men, and
the folly of youth.

Momma’s apple pie
A stern lecture from Father
Brother’s bloody nose.

Bars on the windows
The sign says, “Beware of dog”
The front door light’s on.

I can always come –
beaten, broken, weary, damned –
and find salvation.