Seeing the Tree Through the Forest

The tree standing tall
amid the forest,
needing nothing but the
light of the sun, the mist
of the rain and the nourishment
from the ground;
never feeling the touch of
another tree against its own
rough bark; not attaching
itself to another;
standing completely alone
amongst the crowd of trees.


Copyright © 2002 by
Shawn Murray

You Can Never Go Home Again

The house I call home
now has a third floor
instead of only two;
a doorway where
the dinning room once was
and a bay window in
the living room.
The burn mark in the
rug where Daddy once
almost burned down
the house by using
gasoline to light a fire
in the fireplace
is now hard wood floors
and Mom and Dad's bedroom
is now half the family room.
The closet is a
stairway and my room
is an office. Mom and Dad
don't live there anymore
but the cubby hole
under the basement stairs
where I used to hide
is still there.


Copyright © 2002 by
Shawn Murray

Hate

the monsters in my childhood closet
seem to have swallowed me whole
or is it I who have engulfed them?
their angry, spiteful, vicious bile
regurgitates from within my soul
to spew forth hateful venom
attacking my foe's weakest illusion
of himself; or is he friend?
never again, nevermore.


Copyright © 2002 by
Shawn Murray

Questions

Who? What? Where? When? Why? and How?
Six simple words that turn our world upside down.

Who are you? Who am I?
Do we really ever have an answer?

What do I want? What do I need?
What makes the world go 'round?

Where are you? Where did you go?
Does anyone ever really know?

When are you going to stop playing games?
Do you know the games that you play?

Why does this always happen to me?
Why? And why not? Be happy with what you've got.

How do you stop your world from falling apart?
By living what's truly in your heart.


Copyright © 2002 by
Shawn Murray

Somehow

I don't know how to do what You ask me to do.
The harder I try the harder it gets.
It doesn't look the way I think it should.
It doesn't work quite the right way.
How can You be pleased with what I've created?
But somehow You are.

Even though it's so much easier
to sit back and do nothing
to complain and do nothing
to allow life to pass me by
How can You be pleased with the lessons I'm learning?
But somehow You are.

Delving into the intoxicating lifestyle
of the fast lane
to feel something, anything other than what I feel
to lose responsibility, to not care
what happens.
How can You be pleased with me?
But somehow You are.


Copyright © 2002 by
Shawn Murray

The Same Fire

A horse will run back into a burning barn
because the barn is where they feel safe;
no matter the flames licking their mane,
the smoke smothering their lungs
or the heat basking their coat,
in their frantic state of flight
they fight to return to the familiar,
all the while running from safety.

Copyright © 2002 by
Shawn Murray

Not Forever

in memory of
Dana Lynn Jeanette
1967-1986

I had forgotten

I've heard it said
that one person
out of every high school graduating class
dies
within a year after graduation

I had forgotten
until I heard the news

It was through a friend
who had recognized your name
but she hadn't been sure about the facts

Two people were injured badly
and rushed to the hospital,
but someone else had died instantly
from a crushed skull after being thrown from the car

I barely slept all through the night
praying that it hadn't been you
that had died there on the side of the road

But my prayers were too late,
the morning paper announced my fears
It was all there, on the very front page,
your colorful life was now just black and white

It was just nine days short of a year since graduation,
a day when all our hopes and dreams were alive
but your hopes and dreams soon died
as if they were the flowers
that had filled the funeral home

I remember the meetings we attended
fighting to start a S.A.D.D. chapter in our school
but the morning paper said that it had been a drunk driver
who lost control and struck your car which slid sideways
down a hill to be struck by an oncoming car

I see someone who looks so much like you
and memories flash through my mind

• your crooked smile
• working on the yearbook together
• watching you perform color guard routines at pep rallies and football games
• being mediator between two arguing friends
• whispering secrets during homeroom
• copying algebra problems at the last minute
• singing off key in the 8th grade chorus
• giving me advice when I was depressed

so full of life then and now so empty

In the yearbook you said your future plans were to go to school, get a job, get married and live happily ever after, only your happily ever after wasn't forever.

Copyright © 1986 by
Shawn Murray

Dreaming

I lie here watching her sleep
feeling her breath
her closed eyes moving slowly
I wonder if she's dreaming

A slight sigh comes from her,
as she smiles slightly
I smile back
I wonder if she's dreaming about me

I touch her cheek lightly
her eyes open slowly
a smile comes to her face,
I wonder if I'm dreaming

Copyright © 1988 by
Bruce McClure

Baby Boy

I held this new life in my arms,
a smile came to my face as he smiled too.
It might have been gas,
but I didn't know the difference.
I felt proud that the care takers trusted me
with this new life.

Don't drop him,
don't squeeze him too hard,
keep him warm and fed
they said
before they left.
Anxiety filled their faces
as they departed
for a night alone at last.

He starts to whimper
and cry.
Is he hungry?...no.
Is he cold?...no.
He made a mess.

Where's Mom when you need her?

Copyright © 1988 by
Bruce McClure

untitled

Do you remember?
Can you forget?
It's always there,
those feelings are rare,
and hard to find.
We're lucky to have them
once in a lifetime.

We were the lucky ones.
Can we ever be that lucky again?
Will we search forever,
or give up in vain
as our hearts break in disappointment
again and again?

Do we hear the cries of the others
late into the night?
Can we hear beyond our own tears?

Is it a blessing or a curse
to have loved as we have loved
and lost,
to wonder if we will ever love that way again?
Do we still harbour hope?
Do our dreams still carry us forward?
Or do we watch as our hearts, our dreams, slowly die
with each passing year?
Is it time to grow up,
to give up,
to become adults,
the adults we're expected to be
instead of who we wanted to be?

Copyright © 1995 by
Shawn Murray

Smile

dedicated to Cheri & Travis

you're often in my thoughts
your silly antics and
thoughtful gestures
still make me smile
then I remember
the pain
and the loneliness returns
threatening to overtake me
again
and I cling to the hope
that somehow I touched your life
in a good way
and that when you think of me
those thoughts
still make you smile

Copyright © 1995 by
Shawn Murray

untitled

A little dream comes swirling

along the tongue of the cold winds

A friend's laughter barely heard

muffled slightly from the rustling trees.

Yet many things step into mind

blocking the paths of the dreams so divine.

A touch of sadness for what used to be.

A hint of happiness glistens amongst the frown.

A spirit flows freely yet is not quite found.

Oh how cruel can the night be down the line of time.

Release from the old memories

yet haunted about time to come.

May the world stop for but a second

to give me, just me, another lesson.

Fighting yet set free from the bonds of eternity.

No walls, no regrets,

it's just the person who tries to fly

on the wings of the eagle.

Soaring high above yet resting too,

far below upon the surface.

Yet still no walls, my friend,

there is but many half complete.

You know you won't settle for defeat.

No not yet,

your work will forever need done.

More words need said,

affection and love must be shown.

So must the anger and the pain

but not only with the rain.

Listen carefully to your heart beat,

will both ties ever meet?

You must decide your destiny,

no shell must stop your from being complete.

Positive thinking, believing in oneself

will not lead you to retreat.

What has confused you so today?

Is it the snow, the cold, the rain?

Is it the train that clatters yards away?

Is is the silence that makes you pay?

Maybe the words unspoken,

Maybe life's path left unbroken.

Your feet must travel before they're bound

to the feelings of your heart,

your mind to make them sound.

Lessons learned, not forgotten,

escape to the inside for one moment

you take a look at the combination of the good and the rotten.

Remember the best foresees the shadows,

turns beyond the light to see both sides

and then decides.

Only reality will share the winds breath

and only then will your eyes see all

upon the white cold land

even the grip of the weakest hand

will grasp.

Which beholds the bond of life's forever band.

A band who plays mighty within the soul

and pushes out the darkness, black as coal.

Confusion is but in the mind

the truths sometimes are unkind

but remember all to be beheld of the dream

and soon I may once again awake and scream.

Many thoughts left half measured

yet many are in your heart treasured

a dream is only a dream

until you uncover yourself from the blankets

and awake with boldness,

fear is left behind in the darkness,

while truth is shown in the light,

which the sun has uncovered so bright.

Copyright © 1988 by

Cheri Campion

Ocean Passion

The hot sand burns our feet
Sending us to the waters edge

Your touch burns my skin
Sending me to the edge of desire

The strong wind blows through
my hair

Your fingers caress each strand
Arousal awakens within me

The surf hums softly in our ears
The sun gently warms our skin

Your words breathing softly in my ear
Warmly caressing my lobe, my neck
My body trembling with delight

The smell of salt air
The taste of salt water

Upon your lips, your cheek, your eyelids, your neck
Strengthens my taste of desire

The water explores the curves
of our bodies, embracing us
The current, demanding, pulls
us into the waters depths

Your hands exploring the curves of my body
Your arms embracing me, your lips demanding
Pulling me down into the depths of passion

The seagulls soar overhead
Letting out delightful cries

We soar to heights of ecstasy
Crying out in rapture


Copyright © 1988 by
Shawn Murray

Stars in the Same Sky

dedicated to Cheri

there are many things I'll always regret
and just as many that I'll never forget
the long talks
the longer walks
the rainy nights
the many fights
the sharing of souls
while we each became whole
only to watch it all crumble
as we stumbled through the rubble
we swore, nevermore
will we allow our hearts to break,
big mistake,
as we built our walls
again
our armour ever tighter
our fortress never higher
until we could no longer
even see the stars
in the same sky


© 2007 by Shawn Ann Murray

Childhood

dedicated to the child I used to be

my bed is high
off the ground
my feet dangle down
never touching the floor

the sun doesn't shine
through my window
the awning over the porch
puts a stop to that

the squirrels in the tree
next to the porch
run & jump
& play hide & seek
& never see me watching
longing to join in the fun

Raggedy Ann is mad at Andy
and they're both not speaking to me
and even my imaginary friend
doesn't want to play today

© 2003 by Shawn Ann Murray