'Trying to hear,' 'Not merely vinyl and cd's' and four others

'Trying to hear '                    trgates, 2/18/2015

Trying to hear,                       
difficult enough.
Trying not to hear,
difficult too.
Chatter
within, without,
as I've heard it said,
"I was on the phone the other day,
and the person kept droning on, and on -
then I realized
I was the one going on, and on."
No need for a debate team here,
discussion and arguments abound,
all within the "corners of my mind,"
Legion, not inappropriate. 
Pause.
A stream's ripple,
another's words,
heard. 
Amazing. 

 

'Not merely vinyl and cd's'   a friend, George, as he closes his store  timothy r gates, 2/04/2015

the day of corporate
record stores, and
book stores
running independents
out of business,
are gone.
karma has hugged them.
they robbed mom & pop,
stores smelling like
books and vinyl
(Bibliophiles and audiophiles get this.),
love of these arts and creativity
no longer needed.
Some still support these eclectic beauties.
Few fly their own flag,
but some do.
'Checkered Records,' was the best.
Thank you George,
connoisseur of listening.
Blessings, many years!

 

'I'm every-person'      trgates, 1/31/2015

I'm white, black
yellow, brown
Jew, Christian
Buddhist, Muslim
Zen Buddhist, Atheist
Wiccan, Pagan
Hindu, Shinto
gay, straight
bearded, naked faced
normal, not so normal
(medically noted, not noticed)
loving, not so loving
one gender, another gender
older, younger -
and more
things, important things.
I'm every person.

Reflection through the prism lenses of many others, 1/27/2015
Suffering, after it fills itself drunk, finds another victim, hoping that their preying will be rewarded. More amazing, people who have been pressed down, left for dead, crawling out the other side often come to live grateful. Impermanent is the day's struggle, and so is the well drunk predator. The gift of empathy is often found. I'm amazed at such beautiful courage, daily.

 

Good morning,                     trgates, 1/25/2015
Sunshine,
hidden behind clouds.
Snowflakes may fall,
freezing as they hit the
ground, redundancies gift.
There are no clouds to be seen,
only blankets covering clear light.
Winter's gloom,
ice castles and snow angels,
a few more may offer.
Then Spring.
Welcome, my friend.

'Reasons are not excuses'                  timothy r gates, 1/9/2015


Cain murdered Abel,
and so goes the war.
David kills Goliath,
and his brothers,
both claiming geography rights -
so goes that Gaza property.
Rape of Nanking,
nationalists still claim,
"Our nation didn't rape that many women,"
no doubt this brought applause
when the Bomb was dropped on them.
Note: Nazis only wanted
Hitler's economic stability continued.
African businessmen,
contracted Africans
for American plantations.
Yet,
implosion is the first reaction,
burning and looting,
but not of their protagonists.
Some, still, claim,
WWII Holocaust camps,
and the millions gassed in them,
"These are gross exaggerations."
Everyone has a reason,
using them for excuses,
pointing the Garden's finger,
"The serpent tricked us."
And, so goes war.
Note: Be careful,
what you write, paint, draw, sing
could be used as an excuse,
claimed reason for murdering our children.
Be honest,
some folks just love to do war.
It is good for one thing --
the elimination of those you disagree.

 

'George Jones croon'              timothy r gates, 1/12/2015

Tom Waits lyrics.
Dylan, poetry,
both of them.
Iris Dement,
Appalachian harmony,
slides anticipated.
Jane Siberry,
haunting sublime refrains.
Janis, felt to the bone.
Ray, also, heart and soul.
Four Lads,
and the Mills' Brothers,
have always brought a smile.
Elvis and Hank,
weaned an empty page,
opened a pen's flow.
Sitting with my well spent Martin,
song after song,
from these years,
I sing their songs,
each with a story,
theirs, and mine.
Before I place my six-string into its
hard shell case,
a George Jones croon
falls from our eyes -
and we hang the wreath upon the
door.