All strung
out
       on
sadness,
empty shells
of needles
      that injected
the next defense
      to keep me going
splayed upon
the coldness
            of metal
somewhere in a place
lower than
the floorboards
of the nether regions
of a private hell,
where no one sees
      the truth behind
the doors of
           beaten swords
of silken pictures
in frothy shades
of effervescent green
a smiling happy family
in which the
sounds of drowning
can only be
             vaguely heard
a faded gurgle
       in an ocean of sighs

Somewhere, there,
the pain in my veins
spreads like
a self-administered
                       drug
only it's not
my prescription, at all
just a parody
from the very
    sick doctor
who shares
          this house,
meant to
be a home
one who thinks
he knows it all
but knows nothing

In this dreamlike weaving
of staring blankly
into alternative spaces
when all is so heavy
that even breathing is a task
I suddenly remember
   who the **** I am
and push my gaze through
the ceiling cracks
to look up at
         the stars,
receiving their
            shadows
           of light
      like a blessing
   upon my
   nettle-stung
    tongue
and
       rise

If you want to know how I spend my time
RC Cola and a Moon Pie
Chewing on a stem of Bahia grass
Just in case you feel the need to ask

Skipping stones across a glass top pond
Blowing wishes from a dandelion off the lawn
Living the country life all inside my head
Before I find there ain't nothing left

Chasing Crawdaddy's in a deep wood stream
Playing hide and seek in a pile of leaves
Cane pole fishing for that elusive Bass
All before Summer's put to bed

Catching Fireflies in their flickering light
Counting all the stars in the skys at night
Stolen Watermelon always tastes the best
That's the part that I'll never confess

Skinny dipping for a living in a mountain lake
Jumping out of planes in a barn of hay
Kids being kids being life fed
Just in case you feel the need to ask

The best feeling

is when I see you smile.

When I peak over a book

there is nothing better

than you returning my look.

Been lost so long it feels like home
Been high so long it feels like down
But that's alright
Yea, it's okay
Down here
We all live this way

I steal and I rob for the things I've got
Until they're stolen from me
Mostly I rob to pay for dope
A piece of oblivion in place of hope
But that's alright
Man, it's okay
We live and die this way

I'm losing my teeth
And my lips are cracked
My face looks as though
It's made of wax
I'm thin enough to walk through walls
And I can't ever remember walking tall
Still, it's alright
yea, it's okay
It'll always be this way

                                      By Phil Roberts

Soon the sun will set in this valley
Where I've roamed for many a year,
So many questions left unanswered!
So many answers remain unclear!
And others will ask what has been asked before,
But this much I know:  I'll ask no more

I cannot say that I'll miss this Earth
That censured me at every turn;
Too often were tearful lessons laid
On a heart that was too slow to learn,
And many more tears will flood misery's shore,
But this much I know:  I'll cry no more

And as for love that hid from my view -
Come, emerge from your hiding place!
I'll no longer seek your charity,
Supplication was my heart's disgrace;
Surely, more lonely hearts will plead at your door,
But this much I know:  I'll beg no more

This frame will dissolve into the soil
To nourish the worms and green things,
And flowers and birds will take delight,
Uncomprehending the gifts death brings;
And life will continue the same as before,
But this much I know:  I'll be no more

From the cold marble tower of loneliness
I gaze at the moon, my loyal sentry;
Then dreams of love tap at the window pane,
And too willingly I grant them entry

Why does the moon frown in disappointment
And let passing clouds take him from my sight?
Does he not know my pain of solitude
Is far too great to bear alone this night?

As bells labor to announce the twelfth hour,
Loneliness comes scattering its ****** seed,
Yet, the blessed harvest of fantasies
That follow, bring comfort, sating my need

A touch, a kiss, his heart pressed against mine,
Once more, loving arms become my prison;
My darkened realm glows with the light of love
Until the morning's first rays have risen

But how could the moon ever understand
The pain and longings of the human heart?
If he could but dwell in this anguished frame,
Would he, too, not dream, holding dear this art?

So I lay here each night with heart forlorn
Trying to explain to the moon my plight,
Waiting for fantasies to take my hand
As together we fly into the night

Come back, old Moon, and keep me company,
Be my light as the shadows come and go,
Watch me weave this sadness into a dream
While the rivers of sweet illusions flow!

You bought your house with a loan
so it’s a place that you don’t own
but a place you still call home.

And to keep up the bills
you go in to a job that kills
any kind of happiness you have.

You crack your knuckles and your back,
work for wages that don’t keep up
with inflation, health costs, and
other things this consumer life’s demands.
So with your sweat and stress
you barely scratch the surface.

And the education that you got
cost you even more then
the home you just bought.
Fifty thousand plus debt
hangs heavy like an anvil
over your head.

So you keep on working
till you are the walking dead,
Till, the stiffness in your arms
and the tightness in your chest
explodes like a terrorist’s vest.

But if you make to seventy
when you were planning to retire
and take a holiday retreat
well, the market lost your cash
so you will be working untill
you finally collapse.