The Rumor Mill

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If someone told you something in a dream,

did you hear it from them?

It wasn’t the beating of my eardrums,

but the wind-chimes in my mind,

that really shook me.

As clearly as I heard that phrase,

Just like when I’m  awake,

I can’t quite place

a name to a face.

Some times my mind,

plays tricks on me,

some times,

it speaks outright lies.

To pursue,

embedded memories,

is not worth the energy.

Perusing,

confusing illusions,

only leads you back,

to the directory.

Ouroboros

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Today we will begin at the end,

Since it’s always just around the bend,

As a general trend.

I deal not in absolutes,

Color me an opportunist,

As I bask,

In the branches,

And wear whichever skin,

Suits me.

The serpent knew the truth,

Long before those other two,

Ate their fruit.

For better or worse,

You owe your state of mind,

To me.

Codebreakers

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There is simply no way

to not communicate.

But there are times

When direct quotations

must masquerade

as pointless noise.

Working backwards,

the cipher takes

a clear line

of thought,

ties it into

a Gordian knot,

and casts it in to the ether,

to be parsed out,

piece-by-piece

by one side

or another.

Brilliant mathematicians,

turned prospectors,

decrypt, ascribe

and sift for grains of truth,

or pertinent words

in the cloud of deception.

Brood Parasites

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The tools of the trade:

Cryptic plumage,

Hawkish mannerisms,

And a steady supply,

Of child soldiers.

The cuckoo lies in wait,

Standing stealthily,

Avoiding strife,

With her victim’s eventual lapse,

She strikes.

Though they care not for their neighbors,

They do have a knack,

For finding babysitters,

Despite their reputation,

As impolite guests.

The screaming chick,

Sounds like the clutch,

Of hungry children,

It jettisoned.

On the other hand,

In the other hemisphere,

The cowbird makes little effort,

To make its egg inconspicuous,

Instead it relies on mob mentality.

The mom pays a visit,

To her nest of choice,

Which will be destroyed,

At the first sign of resistance,

To their alimony.

If there’s any acrimony,

It isn’t apparent,

As the often very different parent,

Raises the imposter.

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IMAGE CREDITS: 

https://www.rspb.org.uk/birds-and-wildlife/bird-and-wildlife-guides/bird-a-z/c/cuckoo/

http://jasonking.net/site/brown-headed-cowbird/

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Scheduled Maintenance

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Tinkering is the art of incrementalism.

The heart grows fonder with each quarter-turn of a socket wrench,

I invest my time to top off her fluids when she’s running low,

Check the tread on her tires,

Pull out any dents,

Because she can’t do that on her own.

In return,

she gets me where I need to go,

and only asks of me,

that I put in the time.

She works for me,

and I her

I’m just happy to help.

Distortion

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distortion

The well-timed,

precisely aligned,

Cathode ray tube display

found in old television sets,

is thrown into disarray,

with the pole of a strong enough magnet.

Perception becomes reality,

then misconceptions set-in,

which threaten the image.

You have to get in,

to reset

and rearrange things,

back to parity-

a return to clarity.

When you come to

and see the true view,

you’ll wonder how you

made due

with skewed hues.

Polarization

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Touts may tempt you,

To don rose-colored glasses,

Shouting:

“We can help you draw,

The finest lines,

With no more glare.

Blot out all aberrations,

Lock them out,

So that the spectrum is laid bare.”

Beware of blinders,

There is no one-size-fits-all approach,

To perception.

Light ricochets,

Unpredictably,

But without the full range,

You cannot expect,

Clear sight.

Bad Vibes

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It turns out,

Saying “don’t be nervous,”

Is a great way,

To be counterproductive.

Fear is self-sabotage,

And more often than not,

Fired in an unexpected,

Barrage.

Like a bull in a china shop,

It raises hell,

And won’t stop,

Prancing,

And dancing all over,

Your most precious,

Fabergé eggshells.

The floor,

Wasn’t a great place,

To put those,

If I’m being honest.

But that’s not important,

Anymore,

Because it’s time to acknowledge,

These animals in the room.

Quick,

Go get some tweezers,

And glue,

While I patch up,

The kicked-down door,

So no more,

Come through.

 

Kowloon Walled City

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I’ve built you up quite a bit,

And I’m finding it harder and harder,

To leave than ever before.

If I could see in here,

I’d find unwound wires,

That cross-cross the cracks,

In the concrete,

And trickles of tap water,

That run down your façade.

But being off-the-grid,

Has it’s own advantages-

If walls could talk,

They’d tell you that,

We reach high here,

In spite of what we’re missing.

No sunrise goes unseen,

People stand on their balconies,

With nothing,

And also everything they need.

ATP

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In trying times,

deep down inside —

you will find that

you are, indeed,

strengthened by division.

To rouse the energy,

to walk to the kitchen,

you must first

burn some molecular bridges.

Not to worry,

it won’t be painful,

the connections themselves,

were tenuous at best.

Throw the planks,

into that churning,

eternally burning,

internal furnace

of yours.

Congratulations,

you have metabolized.

Now you can take action,

or perform mundane tasks,

whichever comes first.