Faded Smile

I see you

You're jaded

Your smile

Has faded

Tell me where to go

Tell me where to look

Cause there's no place I won't go

Nothing I won't do

To see your beautiful smile again

You brought a smile to my face

And now the one you had has gone away

Now it's my turn to put your smile

Back where it belongs

You try to hide it but

I see you

You're jaded

Your smile

Has faded

Tell me where to go

Tell me where to look

Cause there's no place I won't go

Nothing I won't do

To see your beautiful smile again

You brought light into my life

You protected me from myself

Now let me protect you

Tell me what it is that you see

When you close your eyes

You tell me lies

Saying everything's all right

But I can see you falling apart inside

You try to hide but

I see you

You're jaded

Your smile

Has faded

Tell me where to go

Tell me where to look

Cause there's no place I won't go

Nothing I won't do

To see your beautiful smile again

Forgotten People

Walking through the ashes of what used to be lives

Not a person alive in sight

They fought this fight everyday

Now theyve gone away years before their time

Committed no crime but living

Cried cries that will never be heard

Can you hear that sound?

Can you see that person begging?

Can you feel their pain?

Written in blood and tears are their tales

Tales you never thought could be real

Pain never thought one could actually feel

Living day after day in fear of dying

No air in their lungs

Suffocated by the explosions

Buildings falling

Ground shaking

This place they call home is breaking

Falling to pieces

This nightmare never ceases

Opening their eyes to fall into this harsh reality

No way to escape this

Can you take them away from their world?

Can you feel the pain in their lives?

Can you see that person dying?

Written in blood and tears is their tale

Tales you never thought could be real

Pain never thought one could actually feel

Step outside your world

Step outside your propaganda

Step outside your ego

Go away from from your home

Go see the child living alone

Shown from birth the ways of loss and destruction

Lose your false perception of reality

Leave the vanity behind

Stop the insanity and tell the tales of the forgotten people

Masterpiece

You never know when inspiration will strike

There you were dancing on the rooftop

Lit cigarette in hand

This pen is my paintbrush

I try to paint you with words

I try to capture your essence

But I fail

Searching my arsenal of words to no avail

Hair flowing like wheat in the wind

Eyes like burning ember

With each motion of the pen

My inability to illustrate became more apparent

Spent so much time trying to find the words

To get you across to you

Searching for eloquence

But there's so much elegance in simplicity

Take a seat behind my eyes

Take a peak, catch a glimpse

And see that you are a masterpiece

Words could never capture the beauty from your skin to your soul

Hasn't been that long since we met

But you've taken my heart yet I still feel whole

Connect

I put this pen to this paper

Each word I write to connect with each person

To commiserate

To restore your faith

When you feel alone

Put on your headphones

Let these words enter your head and work down to your soul

Fill the hole so you feel whole

So you're not alone

For those nights you look out your window

Wishing upon stars

As cars pass by

Close your eyes I'm by your side

Don't need to be anyone but who you are

Better days seem far away

But take this and make them come today 

You feel like you're living

Without a beating heart

Listen to this melody

And let the rhythm start

Culmination

Here I am

Staring at the man I used to be

Here I am

Staring at the man I have become

Remembering all the things I've done

All the battles I have won

And all the ones I have lost

I have fallen

And I have stood tall

I've  had everything

And I've had nothing at all

Here I am

Staring at the man I used to be

Here I am

Staring at the man I have become

All these things that I have done make me complete

These memories in my mind that will never recede

I have been blinded by optimism

And I have seen reality

I have hidden my pain deep inside

So no one would see

I have watched myself fall apart

And I have put myself back together

I have won and I have lost

The respect of many

I have seen and I have heard

The words that burn my being

Here I am

Staring at the man I used to be

Here I am

Staring at the man I have become

I have crashed and I have burned

I have  lived and I have learned

I have drowned in the abyss

And I have flown to the stars above

I have hated and I have loved

I have killed and I have died

I have laughed

And I have cried

Here I am

Staring at the man I used to be

Here I am

Staring  at the man I have become

All these things that I've done

All these things that made me

Who I am today

Untamable

There's a fire in her that cannot be put out

Though many have tried to tame it

In reality all you can do is fan the flames

For the spirit that lives inside her

Is as colorful as the setting sky

Take one look in her eyes

And you'll see a passion no one can deny

It is not something that can be contained

So I'll take a seat and observe from afar

And watch the magic spill out of her heart

High On You

I reached for the stars

And pulled one down to the earth

But it's just a flicker compared to your eyes

I've flown to the moon

But next to you is the highest I've ever been

Shell

I see through your shell

That painted smile

Persevering for those who don't matter

All that you hide away is stuck in your eyes

Come here and fall apart in my arms

I'll keep you together

Watch Her Fly

She has wings

Not visible to you nor I but

Trust that they are there

For when the fears, the doubts

Become overwhelming

She will fly above it all

You may not believe in anything but

Trust that one look at her and

You'll believe in magic

Sit With Me

Been a while since I've breathed this freely

Could you please sit and be here a while

Close your tired eyes

And I'll describe each star in the sky

As you fall asleep on my chest

It's with you that I wanna grow old

I wanna be what keeps you warm when this world gets cold

Happily Never After

I know I had a life before you

I'll get back to it once we're through

Like all good things

This will surely come to an end

It's right around the bend

But right now I don't wanna take my hands off you

Seeing the world through these enchanted eyes

I don't know if I can go back to

The world I lived in before you

But I've seen the end of this fairy tale

You go your way

And I go mine

To remain strangers with shared memories

Happily never after until the end of time

Dear Dreams

Dear Dreams

I hope you hear my calls

Hope won't answer

Faith is nowhere to be found

And Doubt  won't leave me alone

Dear Dreams you're all I got left

I know it's been a while since we last met

But Sleep  hasn't visited me in a while

And I don't have any other way to get to where you are

So I'm calling out to you

Free

A leaf blowing in the wind

Crossed my path today

Moving every which way

Not knowing where it would land at the end of the day

What would it be like to be that free?

To cut my strings and let the wind guide me

The Story Goes On

I'll be patient

I'll wait

I'll do whatever it takes

You went that way and I stayed here

But I've seen the map, we'll cross paths again

Until then I'll

Stay in this land of make believe

Where you didn't leave

Where next you I still sleep

I don't know how this story goes

But I know it ends with us happily ever after

Even the most mundane things with you

Are sweeter than any fantasy

I wanna go on but I'm stuck on the page where we first kissed up on that rooftop

I'd say you're the girl of my dreams

But even she doesn't compare to you

You are my every wish come true

Every question answered with just one kiss

I'm jealous of the rain that slides down your skin like my lips used to

I'm jealous of the wind that runs through your hair like my hand used to

I'm jealous of the pillow upon which you rest your head when it used to be my chest

The hands on the clock sit still

As I count the moments until the next time

That our story will go on

Movie Scene

I take your hand

You take mine

I'll give you my heart

If you give me yours

And the flashback starts

Just like a movie scene

I saw you dancing there

In the corner by yourself

All eyes on you and no one else

Perfection in a black dress

Not a single breath left in the room

I don't know where you came from

All I know is that you're here

Call it chance

Call it fate but

I traced the scars and pieces of my heart back here to you

I know you're broken too

I know what you've been through

I'll give you the pieces of my heart

If you give me yours

I'll put you back together cause this love is ours

Rebuild

Walking alone was all I’ve ever known

Until you came along and gave me your hand to hold

One smile made me weak                                                         

One kiss brought me to my knees

My mind said no, but my heart said yes

Now I’m here cleaning up the mess

Sun leaves and the moon arrives

I guess it must be night

Haven't slept since you left

Here I stand broom in hand

Picking up pieces of my heart

Memories scattered all over the floor

The door still open from when you came and left

In and out just like a hurricane

You broke down my walls

Leaving me open and cold

Time to rebuild, to start over without you

I’ll start with the pieces of my heart

I don’t know what goes where but

I’ll rebuild the walls

One brick at a time, but no door

So you can’t get in, and I can’t get out

Sun leaves and the moon arrives

I guess it must be night again

Haven't slept since you left

Here I stand broom in hand

Picking up pieces of my heart

Memories scattered all over the floor

The door still open from when you came and left

In and out just like a hurricane

You broke down my walls

Leaving me open and cold

I don’t know if it’ll ever be the same

Cause something’s missing here and it’s you

I’ve got the pieces of my heart

But it was you that held it together

I’m building the walls, but your name is etched on every brick

Sun leaves and the moon arrives

I guess it must be night

Haven't slept since you left

Here I stand broom in hand

Picking up pieces of my heart

Memories scattered all over the floor

The door still open from when you came and left

In and out just like a hurricane

You broke down my walls

Leaving me open and cold

Stand With Hope

Death came here today

He came for the end of love

For the end of humanity

Hope came and stood in Death's way

He spoke of the value of lives

How we all bleed the same shade of red

Of how the soul has no color 

As bleak as it all may seem

The human spirit will prevail

And shine light on these injustices

Show us the path back to innocence

For we've gone astray

So come forth Faith

Come forth Dreams

And stand with Hope

Let Death come for the end of hate

Let us resurrect humanity and love

Traffic

Staring at my steering wheel when our song came on

Sitting in traffic backed up on Lake Shore

Backed up like the blood in my veins

Cause my heart hasn't had a beat since you left

The only thing getting through are thoughts of you

Sitting bumper to bumper inside my mind

The road paved with good intentions and broken promises

The words I wanna speak

Sit single file at the tip of my tongue

Waiting to take their exit

I finally start moving

And just when I pick up speed

I pass by where we first kissed

I collide with the reality

That I'm stuck in place

The world may keep spinning

But I'm not going anywhere

Deeper

I wanna dive into those eyes

Swim in your thoughts

Soak in your true essence

Climb the branches of your memories

And converse with your soul

Moving On

Everything you gave me

Is in a box burning in the rear view

Driving through memory lane

One last time before I leave it all behind

There's the coffee shop where met

You walked in it was like a movie scene

Everything faded out of view

The only thing my eyes saw was you

There's the pool hall where we had our first kiss

The rain was coming down

Looking into your eyes

The world around slowed and I knew that this was it

The love people only dream of

I can still feel your hand reach for mine

I can still feel your head on my shoulder as I drive

There's the place we used to park

And spent hours talking, kissing, loving

Inside these four doors was a world that was just ours

There's the pizza place we went almost everyday

I can still hear the sound you make when you're full

There's the bed we spent so much time in

I still lean over to kiss you when I wake at night

Only to find you're not there

There's the place we spent our first Valentine's Day

The docks overlooking the shore

Looking into your eyes

Loving you more and more

As I drive away

I'll leave pieces of my broken heart

So you can find your way to me if you so choose

Call me a masochist or whatever you wish

But I know I'll never find a love like this

Until then I'm moving on

I'm leaving New York 

For the Second City

For a second start

Everything you gave me

Is in a box burning in the rear view

Driving through memory lane

One last time before I leave it all behind