Sometimes I wish
I could lose weight
Just by lying on my bed,

No exercise,
No walk.
Just me,
My  bed
And my sleep.

You can change your life
You just have to begin
Today
Of course, it will take time
Do not dwell on failure
Or mediocrity
It's not a contest
Think instead of today
Then tomorrow
When it becomes today
Do not ask why there is dirt inside a coffee ***
Or how long the drought will last
Don't shout at a cactus because it's not a rose
These things do not matter
And they won't stop you if you will only begin
It is not a matter of comparison
For though what one man can do so can another
But to what degree
And under what condition?
It is only for you to choose to be who you can be
Not what they can be or were
For though we know who was once great
The also knew who was greater than them
And yet they continued on
For they had to live in that way
The way you wish to live
But you must have the courage to begin
To call yourself an artist
Or an athlete
Or a cook
Or a connoisseur
Or a lover of life
And you are
Because you have made that decision
So now go
And learn about your new life
Wake up thinking about it
From now on
But not talking about it
Not right away
Wait until you know you have the will to change your life
And you will know when you are involved
When you want to be a part of it everyday
When the challenge of it means something to you
When you no longer care about failure
But instead you care about creativity
And the love of your new life
And the love of being simple in your new life
Because it need not be sophisticated
Or complex
Or flashy
Or justified
Except to your own heart
For who you have become
Is who you were always meant to be

Oo, this is ugly.
I've grown to crave the pain
And for the last ******* time
I swear this is the last ******* frame

It's all the same thing
...all the same thing, all the same thing
                                ...all the same

The landlady pounds, one door left,
And my “Momma’s” chopping chives in the kitchen;
So I wince when
My black hat’s conquered wrought wool.

Right, and right out the window, the workers break,
And my “Uncle’s” feet crack, crack come the chemical grass;
So I concentrate when
My chopsticks carve pork.

“Up,” cries the baby, starved are the mice,
And my “sister” bids farewell to her soldier;
So I grasp when
My feet twitch to understand the cold, cold concrete.

Diesel cooks, so down goes the neighbor,
And the “Missus” smiles with our son atop lap;
So I admit when
I try to smile, I really do.

Herein lies the endurance, the rice paddies ancient,
And we’d all bliss ignorant, come the table we surround;
So I reconcile when
Again, I try to smile, I really do.

Sweet lavender lifting aromas.
Warming and comforting allowing me to calm.
Bitter chocolate sifting around my room. Tempting and elusive melting liquid in my mouth.
Bitter sweet
Bitter sweet
Lavender and Chocolate
My favorite things.
Tempting warmths
Elusive comforts
Calling me
I will be drifting off to sleep

One kiss from red wine
On her rosy red lips
It's a little sweeter
When my heart is
falling into little bits
One kiss

Come softly, stranger
Step inside the light
Here is home of a sort
Here is nowhere else to go

Such staggering ambiguity
Such all-consuming cruelty
I see it all so clearly now
Wide-eyed and unheeding
Unaware of double-dealing
I was an innocent
And then I was born
Wise to the lies of the womb
And with a grudge for being disturbed

                                           By Phil Roberts