The Dark Side of Ambition

In my quest for control
I have let down those around me.
She will not be vanquished.
Her black fire will not be extinguished.

I need her drive and passion
It will lead to a better life.
She will have none of my morals, though.
Her darkness will not let go.

I need ambition for an accomplished life
If I want to find satisfaction from living.
She knows how to achieve my goals.
Her heart is full of coals.

An Ode to Green Eyes

In a flash it came and in a flash it left.
That which would have been.

That which Fate did not choose for either of us. 

Lost to us therein.

Another fate and we would be together. 

We would be mirthful.

We'd been able to be happy forever. 

With nothing hurtful. 

That is the path Fate could have set us upon. 

But her die eschewed. 

But she decreed different lives for each of us. 

Who could know her mood? 

I know you observed the flash as well as I.

Your face said it all. 

Your eyes showed the same joy and regret as mine. 

My heart tried to call. 

But I cannot complain about Fate's choices.

For they brought me love. 

For they gave me a good and true husband. 

Who's a cut above. 

A momentary glimpse at what might have been. 

We share forever. 

We were not meant - to - be in this dimension. 

Lost endeavor. 

I could not wish for a different world, though. 

I love my bridegroom. 

I know you would not wish things to change, either. 

Happiness in bloom. 

A moment only, always and forever. 

Fate offered a glimpse. 

Fate gave us our greatest desires for love. 

A love without limps. 

So though we shared a moment of a lifetime, 

We go or own way.

We go to our lovers' arms and think no more

About this strange day. 

The Princess

How do they tell the tales of old,
That we have grown to love?
How do they start their stories out,
And get aid from above?

Many stories have started out,
With a warrior's cry.
Others begin with a whisper,
To warn taht one will die.

But I offer to those who hear,
An unusual tale.
No god, demon, or muse will own
Up to any detail.

The Fair Folk do not speak of it,
Mankind was never taught.
The animals cannot speak it.
The Devil can't be bought.

But she sought out to tell her tale,
Banned from life, though she was.
And she found a willing writer,
Who would take up her cause.

Now if you do not understand,
The world this story shows,
Worry not. Your comprehension
Goes up as your fear grows.

She was a princess at one time,
A title that was earned.
A class below Queen and Emp'ress,
As they made sure you learned.

Class was not a birthright to them,
They had earned them through might.
Only through bettering oneself,
Did one gain new class right.

All infants were treated the same,
Taken to first class lands.
Everyone starts at the same class,
Everyone understands.

Only those who sought better lives,
Were allowed to have them.
Education was something earned,
As ev'ry coin and gem.

The upper classes tormented,
For they had earned the right.
Ev'ry rise came with great struggle,
Ev'ry step was a fight.

The system developed hatred,
In all against others.
The pawns resented the High Kings,
 Kings saw them as bothers.

If one sought to improve themselves,
Trials came from all 'round.
Lows hurt that you wanted to leave,
Highs trying to confound.

She struggled all her life to climb,
Unable to find peace.
She hated being looked down on,
Fellows never gave ease.

She saw others become docile,
And give up on their climbs.
She vowed that she would never stop,
O'er a thousand lifetimes.

She earned the title of Princess,
After several years.
She was given new influence,
In the cultural spheres.

She tried for sev'ral years
To earn a greater class.
But found she could never succeed,
For she didn't have the brass.

In order to become a Queen,
She would have to cause harm.
The Lows would have to fear her name,
And not swoon to her charm.

In all of her years of climbing,
She never hurt a soul.
Causing pain was not who she was,
It left a gaping hole.

When she failed to prove malicious,
She was thought a lost cause.
They cast her out of the high class,
And into the low's jaws.

The lows thought she was elitist
For trying to climb high.
She was not qualified for work,
And she had no ally.

 She went back to childhood level,
To try to start again.
Ev'ryone teased and taunted her,
Immune to her clear pain.

Countless times the Princess did climb,
Only to fall once more.
They thought for sure she was insane,
Could she not see the score?

The Princess thought herself insane,
And could not find the cause.
Was she simply born defective,
Why did she fail the laws?

She was pondering this one day,
When she was asked for help.
A man wanted her opinion,
And wasn't good with self-help.

He did not laugh at or mock her,
And listened with earnest.
He did not care about her past,
Or that she was tarnished.

They began to talk for some time,
Liking the company.
The man got the Princess to laugh,
She did abundantly.

Their love quickly grew strong as steel,
The Princess felt at peace.
He had followed her path before,
And gave her life new lease.

He could have risen in the ranks,
But chose a simpler life.
He did not ask much of the world,
And it gave back li'l strife.

Her life could be whate'er she chose,
And he would support her.
Their love was not bound by classes,
Only by the other.

The Princess still felt her old drive,
To gain a higher class.
The Man gave her support and love,
With each test she did pass.

He was also there when she failed,
And gave her much comfort.
He was a solid foundation,
Forever her cohort.

She reached the high levels again,
And given the pain test.
But instead of granting suf'ring,
She made people feel blessed.

When the higher ups threatened her,
With expulsion again,
She burst forth with laughter at them,
That they could not contain.

She did not need their approval
Of her Princess title.
She had someone who made her feel
It was not that vital.

For with the man she loved she knew,
That she would always be,
A true Princess in heart and mind,
And it would be strings free.

She gave the title of Princess
New meaning in the lands.
For instead of brutality,
She gave out helping hands.

From all sides the enemies came,
But she could remain strong.
He would always be there for her,
And never treat her wrong.

He became her strong foundation,
Together unrestrained.
They did not care for social laws,
And thus much love was gained.

The classes hid away her tale
To keep the status quo.
Their power came from in-fighting,
With her this was not so.

The power of the Princess comes
From peace and harmony.
It had nothing to do with class,
Resources or money.

So please remember dear list'ner,
Pain only goes so far.
Love will carry you much further,
When you be who you are.

 

Librarian's Vow

As your librarian I vow
To treat you with respect
Whether you are royalty or reject.

As your librarian I vow
To protect all your rights
Whether I agree or not with your fights.

As your librarian I vow
You'll have access to any datum
And you shall be given all, verbatim.

As your librarian I vow
No question is too strange
To have its answer outside of my range.

As your librarian I vow
To keep all your secrets
No matter how much the government frets.

As your librarian I vow
To be cost efficient
Part of your taxes should be sufficient.

As your librarian I vow
To teach you today's skills
To get a better job to pay your bills.

As your librarian I vow
To get you what you need
So that a free and full life you can lead.

The Phoenix Legend

Ev'ry five hundred years or so
There is a gathering.
Birds from ev'rywhere congregate
To discuss their new king.

I was invited to attend
To see who runs the world.
By watching and listening,
Secrets would be unfurled.

The three phoenixes dictate all,
They choose who shall be king.
Through a battle bloody as war
One says what the birds sing.

One phoenix is of flames and power,
He longs for the cries of war.
He will lead the world to ashes,
Only to rise once more.

The second bird is of lightning,
And craves to understand.
He'll lead the world to discov'ry
With skills of mind and hand.

The third phoenix is of beauty
She longs to heal the world.
She will lead all mankind to peace
With grace and healing swirled.

Each phoenix would fight the other,
Flames, lightning and sunlight.
Their blood would pour onto the ground
As each displayed their might.

The winner would choose the world's fate,
Or so the birds told me.
Every five hundred years they fought,
Only one saw vict'ry.

They could not live at the same time,
Earth couldn't handle it.
And so they fought for survival
Killing each, bit by bit.

But there was a surprise this year,
The birds sang together.
The birds of beauty and lightning
Seemed to like each other.

The birds' human incarnations
Had become as family.
They didn't want to fight or rule
They just wanted to be.

But the Phoenix of Fire was true
And kept to his nature.
He grew up in the midst of war
His pain his sole feature.

He vowed to destroy all makind
When he was crowned king.
He would obliterate all humans
And then peace, he could bring.

Lightining would not stand for this war
And knew he had to fight.
His sister phoenix was too gentle,
And would not survive the plight.

Lightning challenged Fire to a duel
To buy his sister time.
She would flee while the two battled
And one heard their death chime.

But Beauty was no chicken bird
And stayed by her brother.
He protested loudly at her.
She paid him no bother.

Fire attacked with all his power.
Lightning shield Beauty.
H would die before she saw harm
He knew 'twas his duty.

While war can lead to discov'ries
And new queries of though,
It was done so on the shoulders
Of the ones who had fought.

Peace would lead to less advancement,
But progress would be pure.
No blood would taint science's hands.
Peace, Lightning would assure.

It seemed the fight would never cease,
Neither could land a blow.
Lightning kept his cool, but Fire raged,
Vowing the blood would flow.

Then he made good upon his vow
And struck a viscous blow.
Lightning then fell upon the ground,
Fire had bested his foe.

The Phoenix of Fire dove downward,
Sure of his victory,
He would kill Lightning and Beauty
And rewrite history.

But for the love of her brother,
Beauty would not stand by.
She dove between Fire and Lightning,
All sure that she would die.

But she deflected fire's power
Through her own silent strength
And drove him back with sunlight pure,
That threw him back at length.

Beauty used her powers of peace,
To look into Fire's heart
And dismayed at all of his pain
And understood her part.

She looked at Lightning with a smile,
"Don't worry about me,"
She said to her precious brother.
"This is so we can all be free."

She dove headfirst into his heart
And drove his pain away.
She used her healing powers to
Make his heart bright as day.

In doing so she lost her life,
For it took all her might.
But the pay off had been worth while
For Fire had seen the light.

He'd found a force so pure and good
That it healed his old scars.
He'd never felt so free before
No more trapped behind bars.

But with this revelation came
A new feeling of pain.
He could feel a great well of guilt
'Twas driving him insane.

He looked to Lightning and begged him,
"Please take away this pain,"
And raised his neck up to Lightning
In hopes 'twould be his bane.

But Lightning could not bring himself
To end his sister's work.
She gave her life to end the reign
Of this self-serving jerk.

He glared at Fire with teary eyes
And asked why he should care.
The only one he loved was dead
'Twas Fire's burden to bear.

Fire begged with him to be put down,
And end this pain of guilt.
For of all the pains he'd endured,
This was the greatest built.

Lightning refused to take his life
Saying he deserved it.
Why should Fire get the peace of death?
Why should Lightning submit?

Then Fire got mad, for the last time
And built up his fire storm.
Then he threw himself at Lightning
In perfect fighting form.

But instead he did as Beauty,
And gave Lightning himself.
Lightning, Fire and Beauty fused
Making a higher self.

Then the birds from around the world
Began singing their songs
And gave praise to the Higher Form,
Saying goodbye to wrongs.

I marveled at this Higher Form,
Eager to hear it speak,
Wanting it to share great wisdom
With my kind that was weak.

The Higher Form stood in silence
While the birds sang its praise.
And then it turned and looked at me
And it said with voice raised;

"You humans could become like me
If only you would learn.
I am the balance of all life,
Beyond what you discern."

"This shall be the fate of your kind;
Following in my stead.
I will guide you to balanced lives,
And put behind your dread."

"To you I will pass some great truths
And you will take them out.
Some people will listen to them,
Others will have their doubt."

"You must only concern yourself
With those who will listen.
For those who don't, it is their choice.
And they shall not wisen."

And so the form told me its truths;
It talked of life balance,
Bringing peace to the world at large,
And how man can advance.

But let me ask my fellow man,
Whom I know, oh so well,
Would you take the advice I bring,
And on its wisdom dwell?

Or would you tear these words apart,
And destroy their meaning?
Causing more arguments and pain,
Purposely misleading.

These words shall only be shared with
Those who hear the calling;
Those who seek to be changed by them,
Who know that they're falling.

I will not give these words to those
Who would change their meaning,
Those who seek justification
Of their acts, demeaning.

The words are meant to be as is
And not torn into parts.
You cannot pick and choose the words,
All shall be ta'en to heart.

Listen for them in the birds' songs.

No Smoking, Please!

***This is not an original by me. This is a traditional poem recited by my Great-Grandfather, Papa B, the original Storyteller in my life. ***

One of my bygone recollections,
As I recall the days of yore
Is the little house, behind the house,
With the crescent over the door.

'Twas a place to sit and ponder
With your bowed down low;
Knowing that you wouldn't be there,
If you didn't have to go.

Ours was a three-holer,
With a size for every one
You left there feeling better,
After your usual job was done.

You had to make these frequent trips
Whether snow, rain, sleet, or fog--
To the little house where you usually 
Found the Sears-Roebuck catalog.

Oft times in dead of winter,
The seat was covered with snow.
'Twas then with much reluctance,
To the little house you'd go.

With a swish you'd clear the seat,
Bend low, with dreadful fear.
You'd blink your eyes and grit your teeth
As you settled on your rear.

I recall the day Granddad,
Who stayed with us one summer,
Made a trip to the shanty
Which proved to be a hummer.

'Twas the same day my Dad
Finished painting the kitchen green.
He'd just cleaned up the mess he's made
With rags and gasoline.

He tossed the rags in the shanty hole
And went on his usual way
Not knowing that by doing so
He would eventually rue the day.

Now Granddad had an urgent call,
I never will forget!
This trip he made to the little house
Lingers in my memory yet.

He sat down on the shanty seat,
With both feet on the floor
Then filled his pipe with tobacco
And struck a match on the outhouse door.

After the tobacco began to glow,
He slowly raised his rear;
Tossed the flaming match in the open hole,
With no sign of fear.

The blast that followed, I am sure,
Was heard for miles around;
And there was poor ol' Granddad
Just sitting on the ground.

The smoldering pipe was still in his mouth,
His suspenders he held tight;
The celebrated three-holer
Was blown clear out of sight.

When we asked him what had happened,
His answer I'll never forget,
He thought it must be something
That he had recently et!

Next way we had a new one
Which my Dad built with ease,
With a sign on the entrance door
Which reads: No Smoking, Please!

Now that's the end of the story,
With memories of long ago,
Of the little house, behind the house,
Where we went 'cause we had to go!

Azazel in Love

How long have I been a demon in love?
How long since I first saw your pale beauty?

I was rejected by God up above
I became a creature of cruelty.

That is when I saw who you would become
While learning the paths of the Divine Will.

Your wit was sharp and your tongue never dumb.
To have your beauty any girl would kill.

Bought you sought to destroy my bretheren
Your blade drew blood for the great rejector.

I was jealous of your place in Heaven
But wanted to become your protector.

The Princes set a bounty on your head
From the time before you were even born.

Ev'ry demon came and was defeated
You even turned some with your lack of scorn.

You were quite the precious and gentle child
It even hurt me to try to hurt you.

As the years passed, you never became wild.
You stayed precious as well as tranquil too.

I sought to bring you over to my side,
Away from The Rejector of Heaven.

You followed my logic as time did bide,
You learned things not allowed by God to men.

Several times I broke your spirit of trust
And I got you to doubt his existence.

I would not let you hurt from a sword's thrust,
But I did hurt you with logic and sense.

And yet you stick to your belief in him
You will never forget that he loves you.

My love for you is not based on whim
I long for when, my bidding, you will do.

Your spark of the divine will never die
You will always be beautiful to me.

We'd be one if not for the One on High
You will always haunt me with your beauty.

The day will come when we will have to fight.
We will try to kill each other that day.

I do not know that you could compete with my might,
But by my side, you shall forever stay.