tarnished silver

can be cleaned

with a liter of water

a spoonful of baking soda

and a square of aluminum foil

brought to a boil

on an old stove top

in the suggestion of spring

drop silver

piece by piece

like history’s doors

coming to a close

let the water roll

absolution at Easter

one minute

for every transgression

pluck the silverware

hot and bright

rinsed clean of sin

I am amber, born from a cut

Pain but no mouth to scream with,

And my imperfections only

Serve to make me more perfect.

I am coal, laid out along a seam

Silent in the crushing dark;

Take a match to my hard skin

Because it's what I was made for, right?

I am ice, drop me and I'll shatter but

Don't delude yourself, you can't thaw me.

I am arctic, and harsh enough to hurt

Anyone foolish enough to handle me.

Turning back, I hear the bells

Ringing and I know that

I've gone off track, so far

I wonder if it's too late

And whoever's waiting for me

Is tired and gone home already 

I guess in the end, it's not 

Much to worry, I hear

A tick somewhere, and

Belated, a tock over there

What I think I know

Isn't anything to be proud of

Growing pains made for long strides but no

Sense of direction

I hope I'll make it, no such

Thing as travel time for me but

Maybe as I walk, my feet will tell

If it's all a waste of a clock

Kill some of these spaces of life 

My hands are broken but can

Anyone see past the second line

Jerking between minutes eighteen and

nineteen?

Eventually, dust will collect inside and

Out and my numbers will fade but

The gears will turn and I'll still go

Stuck forever on this path with

A destination delayed until

The moment a decision is made.

Car crash, falling debris

Tripped on an uneven pavement

Scraping a knee

Different kinds of accidents

3 things are said to be causing them.

They say,

First is, “I didn’t think.”

Second, “I didn’t see.”

And third,

“I didn’t know.”

I can attest to this.

For I’ve been in one.

First, I didn’t think.

I didn’t think that meeting you

Would lead to the start.

The start of my sleepless nights,

Shortness of breath,

And heartbeats suddenly surging ahead.

Second, I didn’t see.

I didn’t see that you’ll have that effect on me.

You

Who I never really noticed.

You

Who I hadn’t interacted with.

You

Who I didn’t find interesting back then.

Most importantly,

I didn’t know.

I didn’t know that I was already drawn to you.

To your eyes,

Your smile

And the way you think about life.

Before I knew it.

I was already in an accident.

For I’ve accidentally fallen in love

With you.

apologies for all the times

I cared enough to bleed,

and wet the blanket,

make the night colder,

but I've never been good

at this.

it's always less disappointing

to those that never learned

my middle name.

I suppose the secrets out,

truth is spilled from

the vein of reality,

the beats are weak now,

but I still have enough

pressure in my blood

to wait for,

hoping that I wake

from all I've ever been.

in time you'll see,

this is all I have.

If I don't lie down with you here,

in words,

between sheets of our papyrus,

will you scan over me, to the periphery?

Your demand is my supply--

sex still sells,

and I'm fresh out.

Your wandering eyes,

I'm left alone, to spill out

hand to quill.

I'm not sure

       What to say

Not looking forward

        To the next day

Pills not helping

        Crush them up

Half fucking empty

        Touch the cup

Sick of this tired of that

        Crawling skin waving bat

Fucking up reckless

        Sick and helpless

Buried alive

        Worlds do collide

Keep on wishing

        Shooting stars

As I'm fishing

        Snagging Mars

Nothing ideal

        It's preposterous

Numb yet I feel

        So lost in this

Thinking about death

        An awful lot

As if my last breath

       Was a blood clott

If life is Broadway

       I'm not a dancer

I'd rather not say

       I think this is cancer

My only conclusion

      Before I'm in the ground

Is to hope for profusion

      My written voice passed down

Daniel

Jacob

Dabney

And

My

Blah

Fucking

Blah

06-24-16

Blood runs cold in space

We fools have holed

Our spaceship earth

We've killed our only Mother

The planet of our birth

-DeRicki

(Response to @Vincent_Cross "Food for Thought #4")