DEATH IS NOT AN OUTLAW.........an original myth based on a reality

Death is not an Outlaw

They tell me 

That Death is not a handsome fellow

That he is skeletal and grim

 Favors long hooded robes

And shoes that make no sound

As he shuffles across hardwood floors

 Up creaky stairs

To stand in shadow by your bed.

They tell me

 That he's a thief

Coming to claim lives

And what is not rightfully his

A collector of souls,

Bagging them up 

To sell at market to the highest bidder.

I don't know if that is true

It could be rumor and innuendo

It could be myth and legend,

 A fictionalized character

And stuff pulled from nightmares 

Too many stories

And eating too late.

But I have my ideas

About Death

And what he does

For a living

It's quite the sad tale

To my way of thinking

 Not a career to be envied

Nor a path sweet to walk.

You see

I  believe I met Death

When I was young and foolish

And hadn't yet realized

How precious life was

It was just something 

I wanted to get over 

And be done with.

I had learned to rebel

Not out of spite

But out of necessity

There at the brink 

Of womanhood

Still clothed in childhood

In a world of

Perpetually closed doors.

One night in a starlit field

I lay and cried my sorrow down 

Into a clovered earth

My horse waited nearby

And all the world seemed silent 

To my ears

Except for the horse's nibbling

And the whisper of an owl.

"I wish to die tonight."

I said

And I meant it

Or at least I thought I did

What did I know of dying?

I was a girl who had never known love

Or the taste of a man's mouth,

The rush of passion

Or the sweetness of a touch.

"You don't know what you're saying, girl."

A voice spoke out of the darkness

And I sat up and gasped

And looked around

And saw no one

Just the horse

And the circle of the moon

Peeking behind a blue-white cloud.

"Who's there?" I asked

Afraid to speak

But more afraid to never ask

"Never you mind."

The stranger warned

"And keep your wishes

To yourself."

"What wish?" I wondered

And wished I hadn't.

For there appeared

Before my eyes

In the pool of moonlight

And the twinkling of stars,

A man,

Unlike any man I'd seen

A man

Made of nightmare

Stepping out of a dream.

His eyes were liquid

And full of sadness

His hair was long

And his breath was cold

Tall, he stood

And full of strength

Yet he gave the impression

Of a man

Near to death.

"What do you want?"

I whispered 

Into his beautiful face

And his eyes held mine

Then looked away

"I want you to live."

He softly answered

As the owl screeched 

And flew to a far-away tree.

"But I don't want to."

I shook my head

"There's nothing to live for

And nobody cares."

"I care." he told me

But 

I did not understand.

"I can only take your life

If you don't want it 

Those are the rules, the way it was

And the way it'll always be

I took my life

From the hands of the Giver

For I didn't want it

Till it was no longer mine."

"Who are you?" I shouted

As I ran to my horse

Preparing to gallop

And to never look back

But the horse wouldn't budge

As the man blocked the way

His hand on the bridle

And his eyes, glowing bright.

"Pray you never learn my name

Pray you never know

You are a child and foolish

As was I, eons ago

For my punishment is hard to bear

And my fate, a hated thing

Thankful be for the breath you take,

For every sad song you will sing."

And with that, he turned away to leave

Stoop shouldered, elderly

No longer young and beautiful

But an ancient, awful form 

His steps were slow and silent

And every where his feet touched,

 The grass turned brown.

Before he vanished

From my sight,

He lifted his hand and sadly waved

His eyes sought mine in kind compassion

With the sliver of a smile

Upon his face

It was then I saw 

That he carried two bags

One that was bulging,

Emitting terrible cries.

And one bag of gray

Sewn with threads made of sorrow

Swung from the shoulder

Of his raven black coat

That bag looked so strange

 Yet it looked so familiar,

That bag was empty

And I knew it was mine.

I cannot prove it

But I believe I know

That I met Death

On that star covered field

In the angst of my youth,

Many sad songs ago

My life, now a treasure

Filled with beauty and light

Given meaning and magic

On that terrible night.

And 

Though I offered him my life,

He did not take it

But rebuked me

Like a loving friend

Like a lover of my soul

Not as an outlaw or a villain

But as a hero,

Forever unsung.

So many times I since have wondered

What punishment he bore for that kind act

What fire he walked through

Failing his orders

How many sad souls

He did not deliver

How many empty bags, carried

At the end of the day. 

©by Voo

June 21, 1010

BECAUSE OF YOU

Because of You

There are days when roses seem sweeter

The sun shines brighter

And the roads you walk on

Rise up to meet your feet and glide you along.

There are nights when the moon sings

And silver stars shoot across the celestial canvas

Birds stay up just to croon you lullabies

And the world is a sweet and jubilant place.

I never knew that place before

I never felt like I could touch the heavens

Dance on daylight and run with the rain

Until now, because now, there's you.

All you have to do is smile

All you have to do is reach

All you have to do is be

And Earth becomes Eden.

If I could write you a love song

All the lyrics would be 'you'

If I could paint portraits

All the faces would be yours.

If I could write you a book

All the stories would be unending

If I could inspire you with dreams

All the dreams would come true.

For these are the things

That you've given to me

These are the joys

That now decorate my days.

Because of you

Because of you

The sun shines brighter

Because of you.

©by Voo

Feb 24, 08

Sweet Baby by Prince my fave by him

If I ( a spur of the moment nonsense write that means nothing and everything)

If  I

If I knew what I never have known

I would go where I have never been

If I saw what I haven't yet seen

I would finish what I couldn't begin.

If I could taste what I've never eaten

I would smell what my nose never knew

If I could touch all the clouds in the heavens

I would sip and would sup on the blue.

If I felt all the feelings that fill me

I would run with the feet that can't stand

If I slapped everyone that needs slapping

I would slap all the faces of man.

If I loved all the people that loved me

If I kissed all the lips that kissed me

I would dance in the dark with myself and my heart

And I'd diss all the ones who dissed me.

If I counted to ten in the morning

I would add all the numbers so bright 

If I poured the sun out on the sadness

I would cover the ground with the night.

If I had all the money I don't have

I would spend all my money on you

If I sang every love song not written

I would know if those love songs were true.

If I flung my poor heart in the ocean

It would swim in the deep with the fishes

If a poet could be, I would write poetry

But I'm not but that's what I wishes.

©by Voo

Jan 30, 2018

10:45 p.m.

SITTING IN SILENCE TOGETHER

Sitting in Silence Together

Sitting in silence together

We shared our aching hearts

She with her unanswered questions

And me, knowing not how to start.

I wanted to comfort and love her

And she needed comfort and love

But I knew that what she was needing

Could only be sent from above.

I prayed to be His willing vessel

His hands and His feet on this Earth

But how do you speak to the grieving

Who'd lost what she'd found at that birth?

I searched for correct words to give her

I fumbled for just the right touch

I just needed to make her feel better

But my human words didn't help much.

And then I heard the Lord say to me:

Just be and I will do

Just let her know she's not alone

And I will work through you.

And so I sat there, silent

And let HIm speak through me

Let Him touch her like I could not

And see what she only could see.

Sometimes it's best to do nothing

Sometimes it's good to be quiet

Sometimes just to be present is loving

And shines like the sun in the night.

And so we sat in the silence

Grieving and asking our whys

And though I had no counsel to give her

She thanked me with love in her eyes.

©by Voo

  10:25 p.m.

Oct 8, 2013

Leslie, R.I.P. darling

You're with your daddy now

and whole

Dance With My Father
by Luther Vandross

NEVER SAY

Never Say

Never say that word again

The word I hate to hear

When you get bent all out of shape

And give in to your fear.

You know I’m here or you should know

By now through all of this

That I would take you in my arms

And soothe you with a kiss.

And even if I cannot be

With you when you need me

I’m still there in this heart of mine

I’d think by now you’d see.

That I would give the world to you

If only it were mine

And I would make you king of it

Beside me for all time.

This world is such a lonely place

And we all need each other

And I don’t mean to overwhelm

And I don’t mean to smother.

It’s just that in my heart of hearts

I feel too much to bear

And I know you feel too much, too

But you don’t want to share.

And how that scares me, how it hurts

To be shut out from you

When all your pain calls out my name

And I can’t comfort you.

I may not be a queen to you

And far from your ideal

But I am true and I love you

And all I am is real.

Can you not feel this hand of mine

Reaching in the dark?

That fire that blazed up long ago

Is down to just a spark.

The light has gone out of the world

Cause I can’t feel your love

And you won’t speak so I must seek

The face of God above.

On your behalf, more so on mine

Because I grieve for you

Pushing me out of your life

In all you say and do.

You said to just leave you alone

You said to go away

And all the sunshine left my skies

And became a cloudy day.

And you walked off and left me there

With nothing in my hand

And shouted as you walked away

Go find yourself a man!

Like you were not the man I love

Like you were not a man

Like you saw yourself as just a grain

In a universe of sand.

And you would never be much more

No matter what you did

No matter how tall you could grow

You’d be a little kid.

I wanted so to run after you

And show you, you were wrong

To ask you how I could sing again

When you're my only song.

But I just waited till you returned

And slipped back in the door

Knowing things were not the same

The way they were before.

You do not talk but you say so much

In your silence there’s a din

Of alibis from a heart that cries

The word I can’t hear again.

I cannot stand the word Goodbye

It tears my soul in two

You twist it in me like a knife

And make me bleed with you.

And though I bleed, I do not leave

Or run from you for cover

Because I know deep in my soul

That we could heal each other.

©by Voo

A Tender Lie by Restless Heart