safe on the sidelines
much too afraid to jump in
comfort is a myth

lottery ticket
waiting for the phone to ring
salvation is late

your ride isn’t mine
why do i rent your journey
i’ve one of my own

who the hell are you
that i should try to fit in
true to your standard

I am thinking big
I’ve gathered some grand ideas
Bits of light shine through

Then back to the now
Shiftless, angry, and strung out
Blaming all but me

I’m just a coward
with a dream and a few skills
scared shitless to try

It doesn’t matter
One day or a whole lifetime
When the vibe is right

I hadn’t seen you -
seemed forever and a day.
Then I heard you were gone.

Just another day
in paradise you told me
A place you could be

Free from the sheriff
And those who might seek to harm
Boy against nature

From the day we met
No judgments made between us
You came as you were

Here in this moment
mistakes past, future unknown
See me as I am

You asked nothing that
I accept you as you are
we are both good souls

Dear friends like you
Who just see me as I am
Are precious and rare

– For my friend Ron “Ronda Riviera” Wright

My true place to be
lay on the next block over.
But I never knew.

I chose to wander
too proud to ask directions
most could have given.

Living in the now
is useless, if not mindful
of the guide inside. (who knows when to ask)

In my early years,
my course was never steady -
to and fro like wind.

Sudden adulthood -
Youth wasted, indecision -
The game now for keeps.

Mistakes everywhere,
bankruptcy ensued, all kinds.
I slashed and I burned.

Illness, poor choices.
The fruit? A cataclysm.
Near death, I lay grim.

Like some mythic man,
I refused to die prostrate.
My mission was clear.

It seems that wisdom
is a sliver of pale light -
Waxing and waning

Be still, be mindful.
The light becomes a beacon -
forget; it grows dim

Age, pain, survival,
can teach important lessons -
If one can let go.

Let go of yourself.
Live for the rest of the world
Find the empathy.

 Park Avenue South, Charles Socci 2003

a fool will speak out
when no question has been posed
integrity lost

sage, humble and wise
will wait until the last word
perhaps not speaking

Who shall I become?
old dog watching things pass by
knowing more than me.

Mama didnt say
But there are bones in this fish
Chew it carefully

The air is foul here
Yet one must breath to survive
Plug your nose and laugh

Once my wine was pure
Now its filled with sediment
I filter the grit

No more golden haze
My light lacks natural color
Blue skies a memory

And so I move on
I filter, endure and laugh
What else can i do?

ideas that aren’t your’s
want for a path to follow
too frightened to search

accepting it all
believing without question
never asking why

reject all of it
do not accept what they say
they hide all that’s true

searching for the truth
its not the easiest way
but comfort will come

all is in plain view
one must simply look at it
squarely without fear

patiently waiting
as good patients always do
where is the doctor?

quite bruised and bloodied
he lay still on the gurney
a sudden ending

life’s not forever
though many pretend it is
death will always come

push yourself harder
the world might end if you don’t
as if that were true

ever longer days
I can barely even think
is today sunday?

the madness creeps in
never knowing when to stop
how much is enough

I’ve left the planet
I orbit some other mass
far out of your range

there are deep caverns
they remain absent of light
places you can’t go

a thousand feet down
you pump the oxygen down
so that I can breath

back to outer space
solar batteries are low
its time to come home

hello ground control
are we go for re-entry?
plot my safe return

does it yet matter?
we are now the best of friends
the way it should be

romance novels tell
of slender heroes wooing
no, they are not I

balding and chubby
proudly farting in my chair
you bring me dinner

off to the bedroom
for a special little game
familiar partners

what time is our show?
we really shouldn’t miss it
where is that ice cream?

where you are is home
my Venus and Nightingale
you are a blessing

those dark nights are gone
you brought the lamp of loving
and gave me new life