The Eagle Rises

Mostly a vision, 
A speck in the heavens, 
Near imperceptible swirling about 
In an ocean of blue and white, 
Riding the currents, 
Filling its sails with billowy wisps 
Of nothing and everything 
In perfect repose.

Gliding in circles, 
All seeing, 
All seeking, 
All waiting to dive 
With the swiftness of lightning 
To capture 
To crush 
To devour with delight,

Then once sated, 
Wants abated, 
To rise again, 
To soar.

Lulu Storefront: http://www.lulu.com/dsmartin
Plays: http://sites.google.com/site/playsbydennissmartin/
Amazon Author's Page: http://www.amazon.com/Dennis-S-Martin/e/B004SXY4LG/ref=sr_tc_2_0?qid=1394055582&sr=1-2-ent

Lead Us Forward

Forge ahead, oh mighty one, 
Feel the breath of the chosen one 
Hot on your nape 
Craving the victory so long desired, 
So long elusive,
so distant, 
So close.

Spirit undaunted by tribulation, 
No speculation on which way to move. 
Dive straight ahead 
Without dread or emotion, 
Caution abandoned. 
Your cause 
Our effect.

You shall not waiver 
In determination. 
Your steely-eyed mission 
Can know no retreat. 
We cannot lose, 
We shall not fail. 
The ending is written 
As you lead the way.

Lulu Storefront: http://www.lulu.com/dsmartin
Plays: http://sites.google.com/site/playsbydennissmartin/
Amazon Author's Page: http://www.amazon.com/Dennis-S-Martin/e/B004SXY4LG/ref=sr_tc_2_0?qid=1394055582&sr=1-2-ent

In Need of a Blessing

I don’t ask for much; there’s
Not too much I truly need; 
A book, a pencil, a quiet hour 
Nesting in my easy chair.

The trials of a hectic day 
A spinning top slowly winding down 
To a wobble, a wiggle, 
A final spin. 
At rest til started up again.

So, why feel cheated? Discontent? 
What great malady ensues? 
Is the quest so daunting 
That it makes me cry for 
Devine benevolence to intervene? 
Is the path so troubled and 
Fraught with brambles that 
Every step is a task of its own?

Perhaps the masters of overstatement 
Have sold me a house in sad need of repair, 
A money pit with no end to the cycle, 
Forever in need. 
Forever in need. 
In need of acceptance. 
In need of a prophesy. 
In need of a blessing 
To find my way.

Lulu Storefront: http://www.lulu.com/dsmartin
Plays: http://sites.google.com/site/playsbydennissmartin/
Amazon Author's Page: http://www.amazon.com/Dennis-S-Martin/e/B004SXY4LG/ref=sr_tc_2_0?qid=1394055582&sr=1-2-ent

A Quiet Storm

Subtleties that bake and boil
Smoldering under a noonday sun, 
Never quite erupting into 
Molten fire and lava,

Never billowing the skies 
With fiery ash and fever. 
Never raging, ravaging 
In naked holocaust.

Most content to view events 
With quiet desperation, 
Riding out the mounting waves
That crash against the shores.

Lifting up her chin against 
A wall of rain torrential 
More intent on what was won 
Than what she might have lost.

Let the storm pass – as it will – 
Let Hades dissipate. 
The gold that lies at rainbows end 
Is surely worth the wait.

Lulu Storefront: http://www.lulu.com/dsmartin
Plays: http://sites.google.com/site/playsbydennissmartin/
Amazon Author's Page: http://www.amazon.com/Dennis-S-Martin/e/B004SXY4LG/ref=sr_tc_2_0?qid=1394055582&sr=1-2-ent

Bow Out Gracefully

Makes me wonder if ever you cared,
This thunderous wanderlust 
Bordered by prejudice 
Edging an infamous side-tracking jaunt. 
Base lining odd treatment 
Mainlining argument 
Streamlining instruments ready to flaunt.

It was no accident 
Shielded by incidence 
Trashing our picket fence, 
Making your choice. 
You never gave a clue 
Pounding the avenue 
Looking for something new, 
Losing your voice.

Now we need look beyond 
Sunset, to break the dawn 
Now that our past has gone slithering by. 
Bowing out gracefully 
What was not meant to be 
Comes about naturally. 
No need to cry.

Lulu Storefront: http://www.lulu.com/dsmartin
Plays: http://sites.google.com/site/playsbydennissmartin/
Amazon Author's Page: http://www.amazon.com/Dennis-S-Martin/e/B004SXY4LG/ref=sr_tc_2_0?qid=1394055582&sr=1-2-ent

Heart Bender

Do not fold, spindle or mutilate 
This heart. 
It is sent to you 
Preformed, filled with 
A billion delights 
All ready to eat like 
A chocolate surprise. 
Open your eyes to 
An optical feast 
From the most to the least 
Stretching hither to yon.

Hope springs from darkness, 
Searches for light with 
A fever and fervor 
Reserved for the righteous to
Bask in the glow, 
Forever to grow,

To bend but not break 
If the answer is “no”.

Lulu Storefront: http://www.lulu.com/dsmartin
Plays: http://sites.google.com/site/playsbydennissmartin/
Amazon Author's Page: http://www.amazon.com/Dennis-S-Martin/e/B004SXY4LG/ref=sr_tc_2_0?qid=1394055582&sr=1-2-ent

For Love or Money

Funny, the reasons so often decried 
For actions unfettered, 
Undisclosed. 
The weeping, the wailing, 
The tight upscale railing, 
The lies and disguises, 
The sinking boat bailing.

More often than not 
All filters down to 
One or the other, 
Sometimes both.

Be it love or money, 
Persimmons or honey, 
Dark, dank or sunny 
The net of its worth is 
A price worth its weight in 
Emotion or cash, and 
Choice is the demon who 
Rations the stash.

Lulu Storefront: http://www.lulu.com/dsmartin
Plays: http://sites.google.com/site/playsbydennissmartin/
Amazon Author's Page: http://www.amazon.com/Dennis-S-Martin/e/B004SXY4LG/ref=sr_tc_2_0?qid=1394055582&sr=1-2-ent

Giving

Take your pleasures 
Where you find them; 
At least that’s what I’ve always heard.
Doesn’t mean you 
Step on toes to 
Writhe in throes of ecstasy.

Simple acts of kindness carry
Special blessings in their tote, 
Free to all who spread their joy, 
Joy to all who spread them free.

Is it just me? 
Might you agree? 
Might pilgrims see the 
High degree of blessings 
Held in giving hands 
Riding on an endless sea.

Lulu Storefront: http://www.lulu.com/dsmartin
Plays: http://sites.google.com/site/playsbydennissmartin/
Amazon Author's Page: http://www.amazon.com/Dennis-S-Martin/e/B004SXY4LG/ref=sr_tc_2_0?qid=1394055582&sr=1-2-ent

Listen To the Lies

Wrestling with the grave predisposition,
Clinging to a trusting nature, 
Wanting desperately to find 
A simple something to believe.

Hoping that the fangs have been retracted, 
Waiting silently in shadows til 
The shackles turn to butter, 
Yearning for a fast reprieve.

Walk into the den of fire and lions, 
Leave your weapons at the doorstep, 
Slide the deadbolt from the outside, 
Blindfold covering your eyes.

Judgment takes a permanent vacation, 
Blinded by the situation. 
Pavlov’s pet in its creation 
As you listen to the lies.

Lulu Storefront: http://www.lulu.com/dsmartin
Plays: http://sites.google.com/site/playsbydennissmartin/
Amazon Author's Page: http://www.amazon.com/Dennis-S-Martin/e/B004SXY4LG/ref=sr_tc_2_0?qid=1394055582&sr=1-2-ent

Gulch Jumpers

We use to jump through puddles 
In the springtime 
In the rain.
We laughed and then got yelled at 
When our mothers saw 
Our soaking shoes.
We spent our teenaged summers
Jumping gullies 
Falling short. 
We laughed and we got yell at
For our dirty 
Dungarees 
Our chasm grew much wider 
When the leaves 
Began to fall. 
We laughed a little less and yet 
The yelling 
Had been stilled. 
Now wintertime approaches 
And our gully 
Is a gulch. 
And I don’t have the energy 
To jump
To laugh
To yell
To cry.

Lulu Storefront: http://www.lulu.com/dsmartin
Plays: http://sites.google.com/site/playsbydennissmartin/
Amazon Author's Page: http://www.amazon.com/Dennis-S-Martin/e/B004SXY4LG/ref=sr_tc_2_0?qid=1394055582&sr=1-2-ent

Awake at Midnight

Watching walls…
         Awake again 
With midnight creeping past my door.
Mind awash with daylight dread, 
Thoughts unsaid, 
        Sad regrets.

A million ways to make amends
For slights and slashes of the tongue, 
Songs unsung or sung so much 
They cannot leave my hollow head.

Nagging hunger for a slice of
Humble pie as recompense. 
Trying hard to make some sense of 
Arguments and quarrels.

Oh, the horror.
         Ah, the humor. 
Steeped in rumored innuendo 
Meant to send no earthly message 
For the masses to ignore.

Oh, that I could clear my head of
Past regrets, 
         Future frets. 
Perhaps I would not find myself alone 
        Awake at midnight.

Lulu Storefront: http://www.lulu.com/dsmartin

Plays: http://sites.google.com/site/playsbydennissmartin/

Amazon Author's Page: http://www.amazon.com/Dennis-S-Martin/e/B004SXY4LG/ref=sr_tc_2_0?qid=1394055582&sr=1-2-ent

Trust

I will not question your remiss.
You cannot help your folly in
A frenzied, fashioned, frivolous
Profusion of profession.

Within a welt of weariness

Without a weathered wariness

You seethe a certain innocence

That escalates confusion.

How could I doubt?

Why should I shout?

What kind of lout would question?

To taunt or mock

Would cause a shock

But garner no confession.

I will not cry
Or alibi

Or grumble in disgust.

Sometimes the fat

Is rendered to

A simple act of trust.

Lulu Storefront: http://www.lulu.com/dsmartin
Plays: http://sites.google.com/site/playsbydennissmartin/
Amazon Author's Page: http://www.amazon.com/Dennis-S-Martin/e/B004SXY4LG/ref=sr_tc_2_0?qid=1394055582&sr=1-2-ent

Blessings Abound

My humble life has been so blessed
In myriad of ways, 
I offer up a thankful prayer 
For every breath I take. 
So many acts of thoughtfulness 
And debts I must repay 
To friend or foe or family 
Or just for kindness sake.

I lift my gaze up to the clouds 
And somewhere far beyond, 
To all of those who’ve gone before, 
Who entered Heaven’s gate, 
Who searched for something to believe
But ended all too soon, 
And took with them a comfort 
That had always been their fate.

Blessings are not hard to find, 
They’re scattered all around.
One only needs to look inside
To see where they abound.

Lulu Storefront: http://www.lulu.com/dsmartin
Plays: http://sites.google.com/site/playsbydennissmartin/
Amazon Author's Page: http://www.amazon.com/Dennis-S-Martin/e/B004SXY4LG/ref=sr_tc_2_0?qid=1394055582&sr=1-2-ent

Fleet Afoot

The racing speed of a desperate cheetah…

The delicate grace of his fleeing prey…
With deft and defiance an agile surfer 
Angles the crest of an angry wave.

High-stepping kickers on pitch, field or rink 
Leap with dexterity, race to the goal…
Turning the tables to stem the aggression… 
Quick to defend… Eager to save.

I stand in amazement, 
Staggered in awe, 
Cheer for the effort 
As if it were mine. 
Praise to the winner, 
Bask in the glory. 
Sharing a toast, let us 
Savor the wine.

Lulu Storefront: http://www.lulu.com/dsmartin
Plays: http://sites.google.com/site/playsbydennissmartin/
Amazon Author's Page: http://www.amazon.com/Dennis-S-Martin/e/B004SXY4LG/ref=sr_tc_2_0?qid=1394055582&sr=1-2-ent

Life Goes On

If the end is the beginning and
The portal must be breached,
Then the search need not fall heavily 
Upon the beaten masses who
Sit and weep and keep the vigil 
Deep into the night, 
Who cast their gaze toward heaven til 
The hopeless feeling passes.

And you and I bear witness 
And stalk uneasy truths 
And wonder at the wonder of 
The awful wondrousness. 
Dare we pose the question? 
Dare we to offer answer? 
Are we somehow at fault and 
If we are, do we confess?

For every sparkling dewdrop 
For every baby’s cry
For every lilt of laughter in
A halt and brazen world 
There lives a new beginning 
There lives a sad goodbye  
A bittersweet dilemma 
As the story is unfurled.

Lulu Storefront: http://www.lulu.com/dsmartin
Plays: http://sites.google.com/site/playsbydennissmartin/
Amazon Author's Page: http://www.amazon.com/Dennis-S-Martin/e/B004SXY4LG/ref=sr_tc_2_0?qid=1394055582&sr=1-2-ent

A Heavy Price

Danger is a constant force 
That presses ever closer 
When goals come into focus and 
The prize lies just ahead. 
Tiptoeing around it would be 
Prudent if not easier than 
Bulling past with helmet lowered 
Striking head to head. 
Lying dazed and shattered 
Hazed and tattered from the battle, 
Hearing sideline prattle wanting 
Desperately to know. 
Did I cross the goal line as 
The seconds ticked to nothing? 
Will I ride on shoulders or 
Is this the final show? 
Heroes are just suckers 
Offered up for sacrifice, 
Willingly forsaking as 
They pay a heavy price.

Lulu Storefront: http://www.lulu.com/dsmartin
Plays: http://sites.google.com/site/playsbydennissmartin/
Amazon Author's Page: http://www.amazon.com/Dennis-S-Martin/e/B004SXY4LG/ref=sr_tc_2_0?qid=1394055582&sr=1-2-ent

Scary, Scary

Monster faces…
        Scary, scary…
Moaning, wailing 
        In the night. 
Bloody hands reach out 
        In darkness 
Searching for a 
        Throat to squeeze 
Til every ounce of 
        Precious life 
Has left the soul to 
        Take to flight, 
Every thought snuffed 
        Into blackness, 
Life stilled with 
        Delightful ease. 
Damn you, Monster! 
        Damn to Hell 
Your crass satanic 
        Evil ways. 
I defy your 
        Midnight revels, 
Stand with dagger, 
        Sword and shield. 
Ready to defend 
        My castle
With my last 
        Remaining breath. 
Breathe your fire. 
        Do your worst. 
I shall never, 
        Ever yield.

Lulu Storefront: http://www.lulu.com/dsmartin
Plays: http://sites.google.com/site/playsbydennissmartin/
Amazon Author's Page: http://www.amazon.com/Dennis-S-Martin/e/B004SXY4LG/ref=sr_tc_2_0?qid=1394055582&sr=1-2-ent

Low-balled Again

Blanked and bewildered by 
Low-ball deception, 
Cranked up and shanked with 
A shiv to the gut. 
Offered up lamb-like to 
Bare pagan ritual, 
Left like road kill to 
Rot in the rut. 

You might have thought I would 
Learn by now to 
Stay out of the waters where 
Sharks tend to tread. 
But blinders and short-term 
Memory lapses 
Beckon for strangers to 
Crawl in my bed.

I take exception, 
Protest in anger. 
No matter the offer from 
Stranger or friend. 
My eyes won’t falter. 
My will won’t wither. 
I will never be 
Low-balled again.

Lulu Storefront: http://www.lulu.com/dsmartin 

Ambush

Who would have guessed it? No one suspected.
You, so lucid, so docile, so meek, 
So filled with scruples, so bent on tolerance,
Never suspected of vengeful bones.

But truth is a bitch who knows no remorse, 
And facts lie before us in humbling rote. 
You, in your passion, committing atrocities 
No one who knows you could ever foresee.

Now in reflection I see you rehearsing, 
Running your lines again and again. 
No room for error. No turning back now. 
Focused obsession your only meal.

Keep your head down and be very still. 
Become invisible. Don’t make a sound. 
Silence and stealth frame an alliance 
Able to bring down the largest of prey.

Wait for your moment to leap from the shadows. 
Pounce with a fierceness that overwhelms 
The bravest heart, crushing resistance, 
Crumbling will like an axe to the skull.

Lulu Storefront: http://www.lulu.com/dsmartin 

Old Man

Look at you. You are amazing.
There must be a thousand stories buried deep 
Behind that face. Every wrinkle proudly earned, 
Every crease a battle-scar.
It wouldn’t launch a single ship, 
But tells a tale of odyssey. 
Furrowed deep by sun and smoke, 
Brow and cheeks reflecting but a memory 
Of taut and toned. 
The mirror can be so unkind. 
Burying the past behind a mask so heavy 
That it’s only seen in pictures taken somewhere 
Far away. 
Long ago.

Hard to picture in my mind

You running, skipping, hurdling, 

Making sweet love in your prime, 
Bent to set the world on fire. 
Beg me listen to your story. 
Let me nestle at your feet. 
Teach me. Guide me to your wisdom. 
I have so much yet to learn.

Lulu Storefront: http://www.lulu.com/dsmartin
Plays: http://sites.google.com/site/playsbydennissmartin/
Amazon Author's Page: http://www.amazon.com/Dennis-S-Martin/e/B004SXY4LG/ref=sr_tc_2_0?qid=1394055582&sr=1-2-ent

One Last Word

Let me say just one more thing 
Before I rest my quill and muse. 
I’ll make no apologies to those 
Bewildered or bemused by 
The uncluttered caterwauling 
Found within these simple lines 
And pages to exemplify 
Opinions that are clearly mine.

You may love or hate or view 
My words with bland indifference. 
Mayhap you feel I castigate 
With malice or impertinence.

But wait.

I hold no malice in my heart 
For any who might bid me same. 
To issue harm or cause alarm 
Are items that I dire disclaim. 
But dare not test the limits 
Of my patriotic verve. 
It is resolute, with absolute 
Perpetual reserve.

Lulu Storefront: http://www.lulu.com/dsmartin 

Decades

Our lives are made up of decades 
From zero to ninety-nine.  
When we recollect the “Good Old Days” 
It is how we measure our time.

Think back on the roaring twenties: 
Prohibition, speak-easies and flappers. 
Then it all fell apart in the thirties, 
The depression distressing that chapter.

The forties did not fare much better. 
The whole world was a sad battle song. 
Then the fifties saw wars, both hot and cold. 
Thank God! Rock and roll came along.

The sixties saw turmoil with mobs in the street. 
The age of assassins. The pain of defeat. 
The seventies brought our resolve into question, 
And Disco and leisure suits were the obsession.

The eighties and nineties were on cruise control 
As if common sense may have returned to the fold. 
So many lessons. You’d think we would learn.

But we just stalk the sidelines 

And watch decades turn.

Lulu Storefront: http://www.lulu.com/dsmartin
Plays: http://sites.google.com/site/playsbydennissmartin/
Amazon Author's Page: http://www.amazon.com/Dennis-S-Martin/e/B004SXY4LG/ref=sr_tc_2_0?qid=1394055582&sr=1-2-ent

Cross Country

Sometimes you just want to hop on 
That Harley and head off to nowhere 
With no given plans, 
Or leap on a slow-rolling freight train 
To hide and ride thousands of miles 
Across vast open lands.

A countryside long and wide 
Ocean to ocean, border to boundary 
To mountainside, 
City to forest to desert and canyon 
From dawn’s maiden brilliance to eventide.

You may fly through bright clouds 
Laying claim to her wonders, 
Drive her highways and byways in every detail, 
View her marvels and monuments, 
Forests and foundries, 
Follow her mysteries 
Down every trail.

Whether by train or plane, auto or boat, 
No matter how long or how far you may roam 
Across this great land, in all of its splendor, 
One thing is certain: 
There is nowhere like home.

Lulu Storefront: http://www.lulu.com/dsmartin

My Enemy, Myself

Are you my enemy  
Or are you friend? 
Where will we be 
At the end of the day? 
Our pathways are certain to 
Cross many times 
In the struggle and scuffle 
Of life’s great mêlée.

We face across battle lines 
Stranger to stranger 
In xenophobic eccentricity 
Foregoing the foreboding that 
Logic commands, or anything 
That might escort tranquility.

Reason suggests that 
Accord is in order. 
Garner fresh compromise 
Down from the shelf. 
I search in the mirror 
To find your reflection. 
Epiphany unveils 
My enemy. 
Myself.

Lulu Storefront: http://www.lulu.com/dsmartin
Plays: http://sites.google.com/site/playsbydennissmartin/
Amazon Author's Page: http://www.amazon.com/Dennis-S-Martin/e/B004SXY4LG/ref=sr_tc_2_0?qid=1394055582&sr=1-2-ent

Enduring Peace

“What might it take to achieve and preserve the enduring peace that the world deserves?”

“It would take much more patience than we ever have known. We would need to grow wiser than we have grown.” 

“Why must the world be forever at odds? Are our differences such that we cannot agree?”

“Our differences never should keep us apart. After all, we are all part on one family.”

“Are we then doomed to be ever embroiled in the conflict of nations, bent to destroy?”

“The nation of man knows no boundaries or borders, which all of God’s creatures are meant to enjoy.”

“So, I must ask again. Please, tell me, my friend. Will the struggles of war ever cease?”

“When the greed of mankind can leave loathing behind, we may then find enduring peace.”

Lulu Storefront: http://www.lulu.com/dsmartin Plays: http://sites.google.com/site/playsbydennissmartin/ Amazon Author's Page: http://www.amazon.com/Dennis-S-Martin/e/B004SXY4LG/ref=sr_tc_2_0?qid=1394055582&sr=1-2-ent

A Constant Vigil

The watchman stands punctilious guard 
As his charges rest in sweet repose. 
He speaks no word, makes not a sound 
To stir the hush as darkness grows.

His mission clear: to still all fear to 
Grant them winsome peaceful sleep. 
His warry eyes rest on the prize, 
Relentless, as he tends his keep.

Woe to those who dare to breach 
The borders he is sworn to tend. 
No interlopers penetrate 
Where he has chosen to defend.

And so must we all watchful be 
With steadfast caution, circumspect 
Of demons lurking in the dark, 
Our one and only task: protect.

Prudence brings its own reward 
Rejoicing with exuberance, for 
Caution begets peace of mind 
To those who practice vigilance.

Lulu Storefront: http://www.lulu.com/dsmartin
Plays: http://sites.google.com/site/playsbydennissmartin/
Amazon Author's Page: http://www.amazon.com/Dennis-S-Martin/e/B004SXY4LG/ref=sr_tc_2_0?qid=1394055582&sr=1-2-ent

Virtues

What virtues do you most admire?
So many to espouse. 
We’ll make a list if you insist 
So we might freely browse. 
They say patience is a virtue, but then 
So’s tenacity, and 
Understanding rates quite high 
Along with purity. 
Ethics makes the list with 
Incorruptibility, and 
Worth is so important to 
Preserve our dignity. 
Honor is the cornerstone 
Of deemed propriety, 
But honesty is vital to 
Secure integrity. 
Innocence is virtue blessed 
By chaste morality, while 
Goodness shadows worthiness, 
The grounds of decency.

But there is one that stands alone 
In virtues, great and small. 
Kindness… simple kindness is 
The greatest virtue of them all.

Lulu Storefront: http://www.lulu.com/dsmartin 

Homeland

This is my home, my native land, 
The country of my birth. 
What better place to live and grow, 
To lift my inner worth?

Even though I oft make light 
Or speak of her in mirth, 
No better place can I speculate 
Exists on Mother Earth.

Some people like to travel 
Hither, yonder, near and far. 
They never seem quite satisfied 
Just being where they are.

Exactly what they’re seeking 
Is impossible to know. 
But I’ve got all I need right here. 
I have no need to go.

And when, at last, it’s over and 
My final race is run, 
Embrace my ashes over Her 
And let us breathe as one.

Lulu Storefront: http://www.lulu.com/dsmartin 

Loyal to the Last

He couldn’t tell you why 
He volunteered, only to say 
It was something that he felt he had to do, 
To help… to serve. 
There were other options that 
He might have chosen. Better pay, 
Better hours, not as taxing on 
His body or his nerves.

He didn’t mean to make his mother 
Cry so many tears, 
But she couldn’t hide the pride 
She felt inside her breaking heart. 
He only meant to honor her and 
All that she had taught 
Of integrity and loyalty and 
All that they impart.

He knows that any moment can bring 
Turmoil to his life 
Where endangerment can threaten hard and fast. 
But he will never waiver 
In the face on enmity. 
He vows to stay forever faithful… 
And loyal to the last. 

Lulu Storefront: http://www.lulu.com/dsmartin 

The Longest Road

So many highways and byways to roam 
In every imagined direction. 
So many places to go and to see, but 
Too little time for reflection.

Youth is a footpath of foreshadowed trails, 
Much too busy to echo reproach, but 
These pathways grow longer 
As summers traverse 
And culpability comes to encroach.

The cherished path is the lane that is shared 
With the one true love, so adored. 
As the dove lingers long it will warble its song 
Like a wayfaring charmed troubadour.

The roadway of age lingers long, travels slow, 
Pausing frequently to contemplate
All the streets and the avenues 
Crossed and recrossed 
And the memories each one relates.

But the longest road, 
The loneliest road, 
Is covered with cobblestone. 
A thoroughfare paved in shades of despair, 
For the longest road is travelled alone.

Lulu Storefront: http://www.lulu.com/dsmartin 

A Twist of Fate

Plans are great… 
            And necessary. 
Everyone should have a goal 
Along with a map to get there 
To help them grasp and keep control.

But plans are often sidetracked by 
A sure but subtle twist of fate 
That recasts hunger’s fierce desire 
And occupies a different plate.

Even blatant surety 
Cannot be grist to guarantee that 
Every plan must carry true to form. 
The ride of cunning circumstance 
Can oft unveil the gypsy’s dance 
And transform to a search for unicorns.

But dreams need not be abdicated 
Just because plans break apart. 
The shattered pieces congregate to 
Find a brand-new place to start.

Focus! Focus on the point. 
Important plans do not abate. 
They can thrive and will survive 
The meanest, harshest twist of fate.

Lulu Storefront: http://www.lulu.com/dsmartin 

Out of the Sky

Shock and awe rain out of the sky 
 -A perpetual juddering whirligig – 
Sending even the strongest, shuddering, 
Seeking shelter from the crippling storm.

The constantly pounding juggernaut 
Creating bedlam and confusion til 
Nowhere in this endless night is there 
A place that’s safe from harm.

I pause and ponder what unforgivable 
Evil deed I must have done to 
Summon this Hell from the firmament 
To overwhelm and paralyze .

Surely, there is justice somewhere, 
Some great karma round the bend 
With shielding power to sustain us 
So we might survive.

This is madness, 
Vile nightmare, 
This undue cacophony 
That seems incessant in its measure. 
Must it be the end of me?

Lulu Storefront: http://www.lulu.com/dsmartin
Plays: http://sites.google.com/site/playsbydennissmartin/
Amazon Author's Page: http://www.amazon.com/Dennis-S-Martin/e/B004SXY4LG/ref=sr_tc_2_0?qid=1394055582&sr=1-2-ent

Do It Now

Don’t wait. 
There’ll never be a better time. 
Do it now. 
Scratch it off your bucket list, 
Kiss that one you should have kissed, 
Whate’er the fates allow, 
Do it now.

Take a chance 
When the wheel comes spinning round to 
Find romance. 
There’s a one for everyone so 
Set your sights beyond the sun, 
Never leave the race unrun. 
Do it now.

It’s okay. 
There’s no need to put it off 
Another day. 
There’s no time for mincing words,  
Wasting time would be absurd. 
You can argue afterward, 
Just do it now.

Lulu Storefront: http://www.lulu.com/dsmartin 

A Ballad of Nations

Here in this land where all are free 
To enjoy the triumph of liberty 
We celebrate a history 
Of constant faith and loyalty.

Beneath Her broad majestic skies 
A royal feast enchants our eyes
And every day brings new surprises 
Filled with fruitful energy.

We are one people, proud and strong 
With balance between right and wrong 
Who bravely sing our victory song 
For us and for our progeny.

When the storm clouds overcome 
And fate belays our dream, 
We’ll lift the torch of liberty 
Rejoicing in Her golden beam.

Kingdoms will fade and empires go 
In melancholic fits of woe, 
But this republic continues to grow 
To seek its greatest destiny.

And when it all is said and done 
We will look back on all we’ve won.

Lulu Storefront: http://www.lulu.com/dsmartin
Plays: http://sites.google.com/site/playsbydennissmartin/
Amazon Author's Page: http://www.amazon.com/Dennis-S-Martin/e/B004SXY4LG/ref=sr_tc_2_0?qid=1394055582&sr=1-2-ent

Fireworks Over the Harbor

Boom – Pop – Pow – Rumble – 
Flash – Sparkle – Ooh and Wow! 
Glistening off the black harbor waters 
Like flames on a mirror to hypnotize.

Dazzling the gathering throng 
With magical brilliance of wonderment 
In fervent celebration of 
Our cherished nation’s dazzling rise.

Glint and glitter, 
Flurry and flicker, 
The rockets shrill shriek of dismay , 
The burst and the blaze of 
The fierce cannonade. 
How can anyone dare walk away?

We are rows of corn 
Gazing into the skies 
To the rich psychedelic 
Feast for the eyes. 
And fantasy flourishes to extreme, 
Uplifting the soul… 
Inspiring the dream.

Lulu Storefront: http://www.lulu.com/dsmartin
Pays: http://sites.google.com/site/playsbydennissmartin/
Amazon Author's Page: http://www.amazon.com/Dennis-S-Martin/e/B004SXY4LG/ref=sr_tc_2_0?qid=1394055582&sr=1-2-ent

Night Shadows and Nightmares

Night shadows fall as 
The sun sings his curtain-call 
Eerily stalking in stark apparition. 
Should be a time for peaceful reflection, 

Soothing and still at the end of the day.

Soon eyes must close 

As sleep is a requisite. 
A full day tomorrow… must be refreshed. 
Cannot be slave to inane inconveniences. 
Won’t let clear nuisances get in the way.

But demons have other ideas and intentions. 
They skulk in the background ready to pounce 
At the first sign of slumber 
Dredging up images, 
Horrors, unthinkable, pulled from the past.

So long ago in a faraway place 

Nightmares that time can never erase 

One moment there, bright smiling face, then 
Gone in an instant without a trace.

Oh, God, how long must this wicked night last?

Lulu Storefront: http://www.lulu.com/dsmartin
Plays: http://sites.google.com/site/playsbydennissmartin/
Amazon Author's Page: http://www.amazon.com/Dennis-S-Martin/e/B004SXY4LG/ref=sr_tc_2_0?qid=1394055582&sr=1-2-ent

Pride

Pride is a peacock strutting his plumage, 
Climbing the ego escalator, 
Bubble-wrapped in vanity and 
Void of all humility, 
Vainglory arrogance taken to the nth degree.

Snobbery trumps self-esteem and 
Dignity yields to vain conceit, 
And honor becomes a stranger 
Begging quarters for a bite to eat.

But then…
Nothing’s wrong with hubris tempered 
With a skosh of self-respect, 
An ornamented mystery 
Where truth and logic intersect.

Pride in appearance, 
Pride in community,
Pride in the nation that we serve. 
Pride in our yearning for liberty 
Gives us the freedom we deserve.

Lulu Storefront: http://www.lulu.com/dsmartin 

N.I.M.B.Y. (not in my back yard)

Everyone agrees it’s a good idea, 
One that will reap a real benefit. 
Just don’t put it in my back yard. 
That’s something I simply will not permit.

Now, I’m not heartless, don’t you know? 
I feel compassion for those folk, 
But I don’t want them in MY neighborhood. 
My God! I think I’d have a stroke

If I had to associate, or 
Even pass them on the street. No. 
Let them find someplace where 
Indiscretion isn’t indiscreet.

What? You think I’m insincere? 
You say that I’m a hypocrite? 
My friend, I have you know that 
I am totally the opposite.

I don’t mind if you have your way. 
I’ll even stand as your vanguard. 
Go! Build the project of your dreams…
Just not in my back yard.

Lulu Storefront: http://www.lulu.com/dsmartin