The Greatest Escape

what makes one free

the ability to have no cares

carry no baggage

freedom to move



when are we most free

when we have no stress

when we are able to just be

when we have a choice



when can we escape

why do we want to escape

to what are we escaping

the fire or the frying pan



is not the greatest escape

the ability to escape

regardless

true freedom

even it be to grass less green



the fire is warmer than the frying pan

maybe some of us take solace in its heat

 

© 2016 Michael D Emmerich

Night Unfolds

as the sun sets

and the day draws to a close

night stealthily creeps

across the land like a plague

inexorably it slowly advances

without remit or thought



one thing slowly becomes another

light fades to shadow

darkness follows shortly afterwards



many become few

few become one

in the unfolding of night

shadows blur the lines

that merge into silky blackness

enfolding all in its path

night becomes one

 

© 2016 Michael D Emmerich

We Were all Once Aliens

we don’t live her anymore

we have since moved on

the vacant and to let signs are posted

we have no forwarding address

we have moved on to another place to call home



we are following in the footsteps of our ancestors

and yours!

they were welcomed with open arms

we welcomed them with open arms

why do we find the doors closed

and signs saying move along

nothing to see or do here



no place for the refugee, the immigrant

no place for those who look different

no place for a fellow human being

our home becomes the street

the tented shelter



we don’t live anywhere anymore

we have no where to call home

so alone

 

© 2016 Michael D Emmerich

The Chemistry of Life

what is your pH

are you in the Zen

or are you just being acidic

breath in breath out

feel the symmetry of your inner diffusion



we could always be in an osmotic state

where we spontaneously move to be in balance

when we automatically

randomly intermingle to find our Zen state

the law of henry should be our mantra

balance the small stuff, and the big stuff aligns



Balance Ying Yang

the words that make the Zen go round

all of life needs to finds its fulcrum

including cellular life

as they say in life it’s the small things that matter

or is it the matter in the small stuff



Find your Zen

explore your inner chemistry

wear your No. 7 number with pride

find your inner balance

maybe you will then be in your Zen

 

© 2016 Michael D Emmerich

My Poetry Journey

My goal is to have about 50 poems by year end and then publish the best in an anthology with a short back story to the history/journey it took me to write the poem, and what/where or how I was inspired. Some of them are deeply personal, others are from my past and some are just diatribes about life, the world and all the shit going down . It is amazing how writing in different styles stretches my mind and also how some poems just fly out in machine gun staccato burst and others have to be dragged out over a day or two. Thanks for the feedback and I do hope you are enjoying taking this journey with me, I cant say its always fun, but the thoughts and inspiration sometimes take on their own life and just have to be written.

My Enemy is My Friend

the battle of life rages on

as it has since Cain killed Abel

sides are picked

weapons are chosen

the games dictated by others has begun

friends become enemies become friends



battles are won and lost

mountains are gained and valleys are lost

lives are lost for inches and feet

leaders spill the blood of others

never of their kin or own

living or dying in the trenches of life and war

in the mix and mess of the trenches

we all become equal



blood mixes with the soil and the soul

in the depths of the dark

decisions made can be unmade

enemies can become friends

who is to say that this life is not precious

who can be so bold as to let others suffer for an ideal

whilst they wallow in the comfort of their lies



sides picked can be unpicked

the enemy of my leader does not have to be my enemy

decisions made on high can be undone on low

when we look into the eyes of our enemy we see but ourselves

staring back at us in pity and fear

as we gaze into the thousand-yard stare

let us see more than the abyss staring back at us



as your thumb cocks the hammer

as your finger squeezes the trigger

as your fist pulls back

as your knife is about to plunge

first gaze into the mirror of his eyes

to see yourself staring back



the dignity of living

must become the new normal

enemies can become friends

friends and enemies all long for the same

to be able to die at a time and place

that they have chosen

not chosen for them through lies and deceit

as a new day dawns

young men should no longer fight the battles of the old men

 

© 2016 Michael D Emmerich

Don’t Look Back

 

The sea at your feet

The wind at your back

The horizon in your grasp

The weight of the world pressing you down



TURN

cast your cares aside

reach to the future

grab the horizon

drag it towards you

let the wind in your back drive you forward



MOVE

away from your past

write your own future

don’t repeat the history

let it keep you moving forward



FLY

like the wind

let your feet get wet

with the troubles around you

keep moving forward

stop and you will sink



ONWARD

your future awaits

do not fear the reaper at the rear

for he waits for no one

for today you fly

and tomorrow lies in wait

in eager anticipation

it is yet to be written

 

© 2016 Michael D Emmerich

The Arrogance of Entitlement

have we moved from the age of aquarius

to the age of narcissus

has the arrogance of entitlement

led us down the garden path

of hopelessness

the era of violence by web post

faceless nameless aggression

all in the pursuit of their ideology



 the entitled with their economic superiority

need to learn to bite their tongue

in the presence of those with smaller bank balances

lording ones perceived elevated status

at best lowers your intellectual status

at worst it negates your work

and the work of those with less arrogance



 why should a healthy bank balance

come with a condescending attitude

economic might does equate to being right

arrogance brings a sense of entitlement

in the person

more than actual entitlement



 we are left with the audacity of hope

in the presence of arrogance

entitlement should not usurp our history

let peace be our guide

as we chart our way through the islands of arrogance

 

© 2016 Michael D Emmerich

The Silent Observer

standing alone in a crowd

watching waiting looking listening learning

the crowd is unsure

silence and observation intimidates

the watched need to reserve judgement

take solace in the fact that as the observed

they are learning



observing to write

learning to observe

learning from observing

thankful to the observed for the lessons learnt



our internal observer pushes us forward

driving us towards new horizons

calling us to new challenges

but judging harshly when we fall short

never be scared to stand alone

in the crowded silence of your mind

 

© 2016 Michael D Emmerich

The Naming of Humans (A Cats Perspective)

how it came to be that cats gave names to humans

is very much a mystery, littered with rumour and intrigue

for as we have named cats

they have in turn named themselves

and then they named us

their lowly servants who have worshipped them for generations



legends allude as to how this came to be

but truth be told

it is lost in the mists of time in the fjords of Norway

Luonnotar the Norse goddess of the earth

gave life to this naming process when she gave birth to the world

the process is shrouded in secrecy and cat logic

and remains largely unknown in the human world

(cat logic and the naming process)



our primary name is based largely on geographical location

and physical appearance

so other cats can understand where we fit into their world

my primary cat name I have been told is

grayman culsac and my wife’s is

fairy goddess culsac



then there is that name that your cat has for you

the secret name that only your cats know

no amount of scratches rubs or treats will extract it from kitty

but the myths do speak of the secret cat nip recipe

but no more of that as I am being given the cats eye



so when you next notice your cat in quiet contemplation

casting a knowing half opened eye in your direction

know that kitty is quietly considering if your secret name is still as apt

as it was when kitty first wrapped

you around his gracefully extended paw



horror of horrors if your secret name is no longer valid

for the heavens would open up and swallow you

Luonnotar would regurgitate you like a hairball

again and again

until you become the crazy cat person your kitty desires

in every crazy cat person’s history

lies at least one hairball reincarnation



so when you next notice kitty gazing at you for longer than usual

best you scurry over with treats or scratches

far be it for you to incur the wrath of the cat gods

or as they would say in ancient Egypt

Bastet got your tongue

(busted or bastard) your choice

© 2016 Michael D Emmerich