Ah the fire burns bright
Gather around
Tell me how you are
Where are you headed
Pause, just for a while
Let the tired feet rest
Let the worried mind rest
Let the heavy heart rest
Take a sip of my wine
Drink some joy
Drink a little peace
Drink a little love
Talk to me of your victory
Tell me the losses
What do you dream for
Tell me your desires
Share your fears
Show off your strengths
Do tell what keeps you up
What keeps you going
For soon it will be time
For us to get up
And go
Our separate ways again
So until the fire burns
And the embers are not ashes
Talk to me
For I am your witness

If I speak from the mind

Overthinking makes me pause

If I speak from the heart

I have to undress, is the clause

Take off all the layers

Of protection and disguise

But where do I stand

Naked and not wise

Do passers by even care

I have a scar on my face

Do they look at me curious

Try to fit me in a place

Am I putting myself on display

As if to sell without regret

What will I buy

With the price that I get

I was deluded in my mind

That I was beautiful inside

That naked I would be desirable

And be of value or some pride

But now as I stand

On the curb as if a tease

All I see is a grimace

All eyes averted with unease

Is that pity that I see

Or concern for my state

Or even worse disgust

A look meant to berate

Mask up and quill down

I put my layers on again

And the armor is back on

And I long for the rain

In the brilliant reds of the sunrise

Are You asking to be admired?

In the fragrance of the jasmine

Are You trying to seduce me?

In the roar of the ocean

Are You trying to show off?

In the shimmer of a dewdrop

Are You telling me You are perfect?

In the passing of time

Are You telling me we will meet soon?

In the falling of the rain

Are You sharing Your pain?

In the glow of the fire

Are You showing me hope?

In the golds of the setting sun

Are You being shy?

In the breeze that lifts my hair

Is that Your caress?

In the rhythm of my heart

Is that You telling me stories?

In the reflection in my mirror

Is that You?

Perfect, just right

Exactly the way you are

Right now, this moment

From near or very far

The sparkle in your eyes

Or the tears in your smile

The laughter in your heart

Or the journey in your mile

The teasing in your words

Or the kind regard

The brilliance of your wisdom

Or the lowering of your guard

Letting me be

Who I want to be

Even when each day

I change like colors of the sea

Leaving me whole

Complete and free

Walk with me

No command or plea

We are not pieces

To make the other complete

Whole in ourselves

Walking to our own beat

Sometimes we walk in step

The rhythm meets by chance

We whirl synchronous

A beautiful dance

Other times alone

Pushing with our own tide

Serving our own purpose

And finding our pride

So I take claim

Of my joys and my sorrows

Hold myself up

Today and all tomorrows

You be you

The best you can be

We witness each other

Friends and free

The longer I stay

the less I belong

The more I listen

the sweeter the song

The more I see

the more I wonder

Am I the rain

or am I the thunder

The harder I try

the less I become

The more I am ashes

the brighter I burn

The more I live

the less I regret

The more you speak

the quieter I get

Kind and thoughtful

Gentle considerate

Caring discreet

Prudent deliberate

Proper and cautious

Diplomatic polite

Generous deferential

Calculated and right

But I want madness

Drunken despair

A howling desire

Fireworks with flair

I want the stars

The moon and the sun

All in my hands

A blazing run

I am simple

With a simple desire

The mind and the soul

Lit up, on fire

The fire burning

Burning bright

Until I am ashes

Star dust at night

I will go and fight my battles

Let my sword show no concern

I will shed my last drop of blood

If you will be here when I return

I will wander the streets and beg

Let my feet bleed a while

If you open the door when I knock

And fill my bowl with your smile

I will walk up the temple steps

And ring the bells and bow my head

If you stand right in front of me

When the grounds kiss my forehead

I will make each person friend

And give all of me with no fear

If you show yourself in each

And everyone that I see dear

I will be the jester in the town

Let all laugh and have some fun

As long as you will be amused

And laugh out loud with everyone

I will give up all my words

No more storm in the sea

Promise me that in that silence

You will then speak to me

Meet me at the corner

Where the parallel lines meet

Where north meets south

The ocean and sky greet

Meet me as the wolf

As I become the hawk

Meet me somewhere else

Where eyes can not lock

Meet me at the crossroads

Of heaven and hell

When I am Lucifer

And you, Gabriel

Meet me by the light

If the galaxies collide

Meet me exactly where

The high meets the low tide

Meet me in the embers

As the fire burns down

The air still hot

My face still painted clown

Meet me at the end

Of the rainbow that I see

Where the locks are broken

The bird is set free

Meet me in the valley

Where my words meet silence

The thunder mourns the rain

The end of all violence

Meet me at the steps

That go from wine house to the temple

Where we raise our cups

To the unkind in the gentle

Meet me where the sun

Meets the moon tonight

I will wear my finest

To my last rite

When I am gone forever

Light my pyre with a smile

Lay my words to rest with me

Break your silence for a while

Hold a light to the logs

Watch a spark burst into flame

Look around and find friends

No regrets and no blame

As the fire burns up bright

Lights up the night sky aglow

Walk around me one more time

And then gently let me go

Stand around a little longer

Watch the flames burn down at last

Down to embers breathing slow

Like a storm sky overcast

And then the final light goes out

The heat is gone for ever

We were here and then we were not

Feel a lifeline finally sever

Pick up a fistful of my ashes

Scatter the star dust at your feet

Let me lay in final silence

Where my heart found it’s beat

But until then, find me close

Laugh with me and hope you see

In the Now of our lives

You light the fire up in me

Your wisdom is Your being

You go about silently

You make the sun rise

And the earth turn quietly

You make the eagles fly

You make the mountains rise

You make waters still

No rush no surprise

You command the stars shine

You make dew drops glow

You make flower fields bloom

You put on a gentle show

Your silence lives in trees

Gnarled but standing tall

Weathered the winds of time

No fear of a fall

But today break your silence

The storm in me is loud

Go on speak in thunder

The lightening in the cloud

I am standing in the rain

Looking up to you

Go on and drench me

But talk to me too

Answer all my whys

And the why nots as well

I am pulling hard on the rope

Of Your temple bell

I seek answers to my questions

I have but one desire

Speak to me today

I want to touch fire