i am looking at the mountain
and wondering the grade
the trek that lies ahead of us
the waters we will wade

though beasts within the forest dark
still gnash their teeth with glee
i’ve got my trusty firelight
and you to walk with me

the road is long and treacherous
and so far we have marched
past smoke and plague and turbulence
and men with evil hearts

and though the path ahead of us
we scarcely can foresee
i’ve got my trusty firelight
and you to walk with me

so take we now, a moment
while uncertainty abounds
we’ll need to keep on fighting
but for now we can sit down

for when the slope ahead of us
reveals its true degree
i’ve got my trusty firelight
and you to walk with me

the first two sensations
were pleasure and pain
the first two emotions
were love and fear
the first two words
were yes and no

observe,
consider,
and act

does it hurt

or is it just loud?

lightning, thunder
rain, and sky
calamity abounds
but with release
comes inner peace
and life
from watered ground

we’ve spent so long
fighting
over who gets to
lead us
we never stopped
to ask
why our heart
isn't enough

an “apple core” is just
a story we keep repeating
to reject the
parts
of something
we can’t accept
eat the whole apple
seeds and all

the flame burns in the engine still
manhattan to western shore
’neath blackened soot and orange sky
the engine cries for more

we never forget, yet scarce recall
what history’s thrown on the pyre
still bound to the engine, desperate for fuel
—and everything’s cold to the fire

birds don’t defy gravity
they just know how
to play with
the weight of the world
without carrying it

as much as i know
i cannot pour
from an empty cup
i still find myself
waiting
on the mercy
of the rain