A mindless leaf fluttered out of nowhere and perched on my sandaled foot. In the distance, a disorganized medley of birdsong made up an unrehearsed orchestra. Idyllic as it was, I was in the middle of a fairly typical snapshot of spring.

“Hostile vehicle moving to desired location, ”Ryan heard his spotter and put his handheld bible back into his shirt pocket. Ryan’s face was smeared with camouflage paint, and his rifle was covered in a rifle wrap, with his Ghillie suit covering the rest of his body.

He is anchored to the cold room’s center
By metallic, unused fetters
Reluctance is his parapet and it’s likely to collapse
He lies amidst rusted traps
He is the first catch.

Billions of miles away, the Oort Cloud orbited the Sun in silence. The cloud, consisting of thousands upon thousands of chunks of ice and rock, formed the edge of the Solar System, millions of miles past Neptune.

Among the freezing breeze of swastikas,
The only awakened robot
Was the word of the innocent.

II

She was of three hearts,
Like a sphinx,
Child, escapist, and thief.

III

I would say that by noon my
Heart really knew my purpose
My goals, the plan for rescue.
I would say that it’s better
To never regret, never take back,
Try not to be a brat.
I know that life is better when
One is not alone.

Just as wild and just as true,
I’m every bit as dark as you.
I would not show it on my face,
But I’ve learned your secret, silent grace.
Your gait is sure as the day is fair
And filled with ling’ring subtle air,
But I won’t let it fool me so;

Melodies of pandemonium
Fill my ears with a silent hum
Black is everything we have found
White is everything without sound
And as lunacy ensues without ceasing
And pain takes hold without releasing
Swirling colors cease to blend

Even now that she’s gone they won’t stop moving and knocking, I wanted to say How could you say that you love her when you won’t leave her alone, and Darl knows it and instead he sets fire to the goddamn barn. The goddamn barn.

Falling , falling down to earth
toward the place I was given birth
I close my eyes and count to three
A sad requiem for an unknown dream.
Why is it that people of this nation
Are only in it for the fascination?
Always on the run

Every so often there are nights when the veil between worlds is so gauzy and thin, that travel from one to the next can happen as easily as crossing a bridge. Some of these nights follow the rigid calendar journey of the earth, moon, and sun.

He carries his equipment
He carries his uniform
He carries his ammunition
And his weapons
But he carries much more
He carries his heart
His memories
Though most importantly
He carries his bandana with Psalm 91 printed on it

He woke up shivering, the cold hard floor having been his bed for the night. His brain throbbed as he pushed himself up, making it hard to remember what last happened. He held his head in his hands as he thought it over until an eerie sob bounced off the walls.

There is a stillness in the air
I can feel it everywhere

Heavy darkness
Airy light
Loud silence
Empty night

It seems as though with every
breath
There is a little bit of death