The Inertia of Phantom Power

Pneumatic Reduction

2006-11-08T18:11:00.000-05:00

All is well, end as well, break the bonds and run forth onto the field, poised to strike, ready to run free among the trees and swing for the fences, tears running down in grief, face black with anger, sorrow, day’s end come to soon, hand let go when most needed, rough time ahead, unknown quantities to be faced and accounted for, upside down world to turn back upright again, a kicked-over footstool, a book rifled through with torn pages fluttering through the air, why, why, why, fallen again, fallen.

Not well, fallen again.

Love Story #5

2006-11-03T09:50:00.000-05:00

“A Hundred Shades of Blue”

As I lie in bed in this empty room,
My thoughts come back to you,
And my world dyes a single color,
A singular shade of blue.

I try to get on with my life back here,
Just doing what I can I do,
But time is measured in eternal moments,
Each made up of a memory of you.

My body aches with a singular need,
For the tenderness that I once knew,
And even though such love leaves no mark,
I always end up black and blue.

Even if I have to wait a lifetime
For such dreams as these to come true,
My hearts strength will come from patience,
And I will watch the world turn in cycles,
A hundred shades of blue.

TB

Love Story #4

2006-11-03T09:48:00.000-05:00

"The Trampled Rose"

I held out a rose to you
When I believed the time was right,
Expecting you to treasure it,
And beg me to stay the night.

I thought it was romantic,
In a classical sort of way,
Of saying how I felt about you
With a love-smothered cliché.

You snatched it from my waiting hand,
And threw it to the ground,
Not even bothering to smell the scent
Given off by its delicate crown.

You ground it underneath your heel,
Like a cockroach on the floor,
As if to ensure its legacy
Would bother you no more…

But within those crimson petals
Was more than you could know,
A secret held in silence
Beneath all those sacred folds.

My rose was more than a desperate lure
To bring you back into my arms;
It was an offer of forever
From a heart that meant no harm.

With the falling of that rose,
My hopes sank to the depths,
Beneath the waves of disappointment,
Into a swelling sea of regret.

I kept that rose to remind me
That secrets are better left unsaid,
When all you have left are thorns,
And torn little bits of red.

TB

Love Story #3

2006-11-03T09:47:00.000-05:00

"Sung Out to You"

Every day I lie to the world,
And keep from myself how I feel,
But eventually my sweet memories
Betray me, and I’m forced to reveal…
How I miss all your kisses,
Our sweet reminisces,
The nights we spent alone in the dark;
I can’t tell you how much
I lived for your touch,
And how I miss it now that we are apart.

Every night as I lay awake,
I think about all the time left to me;
I get so depressed that I’m forced to confess
I’m lonely, and there’s no remedy…
How could you leave me this way,
In hopeless misery,
Just when our love was so strong?
I really can’t say,
How I get through a day,
But I have to somehow, now that your gone.

Do you miss me at all
When you don’t answer my calls,
Or maybe it’s easier that way,
To keep to yourself,
All the sadness you felt
When you decided to send me away…

I promise you, I won’t go on much more
With this pathetic old song,
But I have no choice when all I have is my voice,
I’m hurting, and it all feels so, so wrong…
How do you imagine,
That after a fashion,
I’ll survive this, and just be okay?
I really can’t guess
What will happen next,
But I know that I’ll miss you today,
I know I’ll miss you today.

TB

Love Story #2

2006-11-03T09:46:00.000-05:00

"All But One"

I miss you with my arms,
I miss you with my voice,
I miss you with my tears,
I miss you babe
‘cause I have no choice.

I miss you with these words,
I miss you in my hell,
I miss you with a passion
‘Cause I can’t help myself.

All I’ve got are pictures,
Your voice stuck in my head,
And every other feeling but this
Has burned out and gone dead.

I miss you every minute,
I miss you with my art,
I miss you with each beat
That ticks off in my heart.

I miss you every night,
I miss you every morning,
And I miss you now
Without any warning.

All I’ve got are pictures,
Your voice stuck in my head,
And every other feeling but this
Has burned out and gone dead.

I close my eyes each day,
And everything goes away…
Except this,
Except this.

I close my eyes each day,
And nothing is ever the same…
Except this,
Except this.

And I miss you in my arms,
I miss you in my voice,
I miss you mostly because
I have no other choice.

TB

Love Story...

2006-11-03T09:42:00.000-05:00

“Let It All Fall”

Let it all fall,
Let me help you let it go,
Forget all your trouble
That leaves you troubled so...

Let it all fall,
Let me help you let it go,
Forget all your trouble
That leaves you a troubled soul;

Stop fighting me off,
Stop fighting with your heart,
I'm right here waiting,
And I've been waiting from the start.

Let it all fall,
Let me help you make an end,
Forget all your sorrow,
And let me be your man...
Please let me, be your man.

Stop running, my love,
Stop running from my heart,
It's right here waiting,
And you can find it in my arms.

Let it all fall,
Let me catch you when it goes,
For all this time you've waited,
You were never once alone.

TB

The Inertia of Phantom Power

2006-05-28T09:24:00.000-04:00

When people love each other for so long. and they break away, there is always part of what they were left behind in each of them. This is a remainder of what they made...it has the power to hurt, to heal, and sometimes, pull those people together again. It is nothing you can see, but only felt. It is not a touch, but it is touching. It will reach into you and pull apart everything you've ever felt, and serve it up to you as raw as it was the day you felt it. The inertia of phantom power drives poetry, and it is the reason I still write.

Thomas Black

All poetry featured on this site is copyrighted under Thomas Black & Little Black Books.