The Pursuit of Genius

A rhythmic tap of shoe on wood echoes throughout,
a tall suit materializes before you,
it hunches over the black piano, devout,
a stream of crystalline notes cascade, birthed anew,
under the slender hands of this lone prodigy,
skating the surface his hands scurry back and forth,
you breathe in and out with each rise and fall as he builds to crescend-

The note cuts through the air sharp and unwieldy,
a silence- followed by a crack of the knuckles, a clearing of the throat and
breathe in, out, rise, fall cresend-
he plummets his head into the pure white ivory,
intensifying with each note as he slam his head down, down, down,
the raucous sound worms its way into the ear clawing with sharp e’s
demonic screeching that stabs at your senses,
resonating with perfect clarity the death throes of a thousand stillborn mothers,
each note damning their souls to a personal hell.

Then silence.
Except, for the tiny singular
drip,
drop,
of blood onto the wood.
He is dead; the audience applauds.

I Will Not Write Today

I will not write today,
I will not write this week, this month or at all,
I will not scribble or scrawl
my feelings are not new or original,
my thoughts and musings hackneyed,
my hurt is felt by all,
one time or another,
my brother,
my sister,
why not just this time
let it go?,
let the feeling fade with my thoughts?
not immortalize it,
in failing words and inadequate verse.

The Life and Death of Music

Plug in,
boot up,
lie back,
listen.
the conductor’s tap cues you in,
tap,
 tap,
  tap,
the melody begins.
the first strains of music alude your ears,
until high above the cosmic chatter,
a simple strain of notes sound high above the ruckus,
the whole world listens to this fledgling note,
enraptured,
waiting in silence, breathing in, out, in, out-
thump, drum and stick join,
they beat out a rhythm as two lovers,
two made for each other finding unity,
connecting in wild ecstasy,
they lead the procession,
as many others entwine,
in a glorious cacophony of melding sounds,
that lead you beyond human boundaries ,
into the pulsing ebb and flow of bliss itself,
floating to the membrane thin edge between life and fantasy,
forever in limbo entranced by the cascading euphoria,
but slowly line,
by line,
note,
by note,
the intangible notes fade,
leaving a pale ghostly reflection,
that ebbs away with the applause,
blank you turn,
click,
lie back,
listen,
the conductor’s tap cues you in,
tap,
 tap ,
  tap,

I feel like we are just waiting for something to happen

an entwining glance

eyes bound by the possibilities

a smile breaks the surface

the white whale

dazzling across my vision

an omen

drawn in

we are cut-off

we are alone together.

alonetogetherdrawnindazzlingacrossmyvisionasmilebreaksthesurfaceanentwiningglance

an awkward glance

eyes locked in thought 

I see nothing

the void

perfect in its block white

an omen

pulled in

I am cut-off

I am alone.

alonepulledinperfectinitsblockwhiteIseenothinganawkwardglance

I glance

she wilts beneath my eyes

A grimace scars her face

A black cat

smirking at my hope

an omen

forced in

cut-off

I am nothing.