sorry I could not travel both
And be one traveler
—Robert Frost
All the hands that you folded,
The roads you did not take
Raise so many questions
And leave a nagging ache
To question and consider
Is certainly wise
But looping your brain
Is sure to paralyze
I could’ve did that
And I might’ve done this
What was I thinking?
What did I miss?
Maturation and growth
Are built upon reflection
But you can drive yourself nuts
With too much introspection
by Richard W. Bray
We insulate our egos
And protect our reputations
By sheltering our hearts
With miles of insulation
Dignified decorum
Preserves our fragile pride
We guard our sensitivity
Buried deep inside
Guarding tender places
Embarrassed not to gush
We resist the inclination
To embrace instead of crush
Time to shed the armor
Getting in your way
Jettison your shackles
And tell someone today:
“I love cuz you’re beautiful
I love you cuz you’re flawed
I love you cuz you’re vulnerable
I love you cuz you’re odd”
Resisting apprehension
We stumble and we plod
It’s as close as human beings
Can ever get to God
By Richard W. Bray
All the other pundits say we have to be strong
So I’d look pretty stupid if I didn’t go along
Pundits work for think tanks so we know a lot of things
Strength means dropping cluster bombs on helpless human beings
All the other pundits say America must lead
It isn’t our concern if millions have to bleed
Our enemies respect us when we’re muscular and bold
Our paymasters reward us based upon munitions sold
All the other pundits say we must support our friends
Don’t obsess on means if you can justify the ends
Friends can chop some heads if they possess a lot of oil
Friends with good locations set their enemies to boil
All the other pundits say we must pay any price
And pundits live in neighborhoods and houses that are nice
Pundits tell you simple folk what is wrong and right
Pundits think that wars are great for other folks to fight
by Richard W. Bray
Love’s not easy
Love’s not free
It takes a toll on
You and me
I’m not stupid
I’m not blind
I know that sometimes
You’re unkind
Love’s not heaven
Love’s not God
Love is painful
Love is odd
I’m not a dreamer
Just a girl
I know that you
Can’t fix the world
Love’s a chance
For me to cope
Love’s a place
To perch my hope
by Richard W. Bray
Science is a tool
That advances certain tasks
But you won’t find the Truth
In a beaker or a flask
Science is a tool
It’s a process or technique
But science makes a fool
When it’s wisdom that you seek
Science is a tool
Like a hammer or a knife
Not a creed, nor a school
Nor a philosophy of life
Science is a tool
That can foster gross infection
In the minds of crazy ghouls
With dreams of mass perfection
by Richard W. Bray
To fight aloud, is very brave–
But gallanter, I know
Who charge within the bosom
The Calvalry of Woe–
—Emily Dickinson
I’m damaged and I’m blue
And I’m gonna damage you
The grief that grew and grew
Is the damage I can do
But I know it hurts me too
When I spread my hurt to you
Don’t wanna look within
At the hurt inside my skin
Or see the monster that I’ve been
Abusing kith and kin
Anger is my cage
But there is comfort in my rage
by Richard W. Bray
It’s a recurring deed
Not an aberration
The stupid bloody greed
Of the folks who own a nation
They bleed the land dry
With unstoppable predation
And loot and steal and lie
To increase their allocation
They will plunder every dollar
And suffocate the nation
If no one puts a collar
On their moral depredation
by Richard W. Bray
Take the worst thing you’ve ever done
And put it in your pocket
Don’t matter if you tell someone
Just put it in your pocket
Take the worst thing you’ve ever done
And own it every second
Like the dearest thing you’ve known
A memory that beckons
The worst thing you’ve ever done
Is you and you must love it
Find beauty in your frailty
You’ll never get above it
by Richard W. Bray
Puritanism: The haunting fear that someone, somewhere, may be happy.
—H.L. Mencken
You need to be punished
For thoughts in your head
Don’t act on your hunger
You’d be better off dead
You need to be punished
It’s your filthy stinking sin
Heaven’s not a promise
And you ain’t getting in
You need to be punished
I know who you are
You spoke with that guy
And got inside his car
You need to be punished
You’ll feel much better
I got a strap that cleanses
As your cheeks get redder
I need to punish
And make the world right
It’s my duty to destroy
Every hint of appetite
by Richard W. Bray
If I can ease one life the aching,
Or cool one pain,
—Emily Dickinson
Some folks hide their hurt
Under a carapace of cruel
They’d rather be an asshole
Than be anybody’s fool
It’s easy to give up
It’s easy to despair
It’s easy to bamboozle
And pretend you just don’t care
It’s scary to acknowledge
We’ll never find a cure
It’s daunting to consider
All the hurt in the world
Focus on the little toil—
Cool one pain
It’s all that I know
To keep one sane
by Richard W. Bray
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