I Am the Captain of My Soul

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I am the captain of my soul, as such I must decide
My heading for this journey across this ocean wide.

I am the captain of my soul, I strike a pose so dashing
Then slip upon my hubris and into the waves go splashing.

As soon as I get back on board, and dry my hair and pride
I’ll check my charts and compass too, and once again decide.
 
I am the captain of my soul, though she can be capricious,
her gait is like a bucking bronc with streaks of downright vicious.

I’ve tried to  reason with her but she finds me rather droll
because I wear my captain’s hat and think I’m in control.
 
I am so the captain of my soul. Not you, darn soul, but me
And I’m going to hold my breath until I’m blue or you agree.

But she just laughs and sends a gull to poop upon my hat
That’s not why it’s called a poop deck, I tell the flying rat.

I am the captain of my soul I whine and stamp my feet
Till finally she humours me and gives me back my fleet

And I don’t know how long this time she’ll let me pose and strut
Before she finds it funny and she dumps me on my butt

I am the captain of my soul, I whisper from the bowsprit.
I am the captain of my soul, as long as she allows it.

 

#53

Valentine’s Day 101

lindastudleyLeave a comment

Today we’ll play at Valentines
I’ll be yours and you’ll be mine

We’ll send each other a long stemmed rose
and cards with someone else’s prose.
 
We’ll eat our dinner candlelit,
sit closer than we usually sit,
 
and when it’s over we’ll revert, dear,
to who we are the rest of the year.
 
For I will be your heart’s desire
and you’ll be what sets mine afire.
 
We’ll laugh and toast the day in wine
because we know that Valentines 

are for beginners, not old hands
like us who know that true romance

is something that needs time to grow.
We reap the fruit of love we sow.

 

#52

Keys

lindastudley2 Comments

Keys on maps provide translations
of the symbols and squiggles and shapes.
Keys to doors provide access
to a places where we can be safe.

Keys to tests provide answers.
Keys on cans provide spam,
(or sometimes herring or sardines,
or large, jelly covered, cooked hams.)

Keys to hearts provide insights
into who we were and are.
Low-key, high-key, off-key, on-key
Please don’t key my car.

Keys on musical instruments
provide music (if not off-key).
Keys to archways keep their stones
from falling down on me.

But the keys on my computer
are the ones I use the most
to send my words around the world
Whenever I hit “post”.

#51

Motivation Matters

lindastudley4 Comments

Join a million simple bacteria together
create a powerful organism – capable
of destroying life
with cold, calculating efficiency.

Join a million simple fears together
create a  mindless mob – capable
of leveling civilization
with overwhelming momentum.

Join a million simple computers together
create a super entity – capable
of executing difficult operations
with speed and ease.

Join a million simple hearts together
create an irresistable force – capable
of performing miracles
with compassion and foresight.

 

#50

Transitory Transit Authority

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My train of thought
is boarding very slowly today.
The letters on the ticket
spelling out my destination
are smaller and slightly out of focus.
 
When I finally climb on board and take my seat
the train refuses to move forward.
Perhaps there’s something blocking
the tracks ahead – painful
memories, useless trivia, or
dream residue.
 
I could have flown instead but my
plane of existance was booked solid
with bean counters and disgruntled
looky-Loos.
 
Next time I think I’ll just launch a canoe
into my stream of consciousness
and drift away, not caring
where the current takes me.

 

#48

You’re Part of the Dysfunctional Family of Man

lindastudley2 Comments

I had a thought the other day
about all the people who lived before the Christian religion
got organized.
Where did they go when they died?
Did they default to Hell
or get grandfathered in to Heaven?
Or did they have to hang around in some sort
of purgatory – God’s waiting room – until He got all the rules
figured out
and carved in stone.
I think He should have carved them in stone a lot earlier.
Like before He had kids.
And added one about not eating those apples,
Maybe Eve didn’t realize it was a ‘rule’
Thought it was just a guideline, although,
why did He put the dumb tree there if He didn’t want
them to eat the fruit?
If you had kids, would you leave the Tylenol lying around
(without a childproof cap) and just tell them “hey,
Don’t eat these”
Come on! What kid can resist that?
And then get all pissy and kick the kids out of the house
and pretty much ignore them for centuries.
(with occasional frightening visits disguised as a burning bush or to flood the world)
Then He sends his “real son” (so what, the people He created
weren’t His children after all – were they ‘adopted’ or something?)
To straighten the dumb adopted kids out.
Sounds like God created the first dysfunctional family to me.

 

#47

Life Imitates Crossword Puzzle Clues

lindastudleyLeave a comment

What’s an eleven letter word for that feeling
you get in the pit of your stomache when you know
you’ve bitten off more than you can chew, swallow, or process?
Starts with a ‘T’?
 
You know, the word that hints
that maybe you should change your name and
move to another city because you
just know this isn’t going to end well?
You may want to dye your hair too.
 
There’ an ‘id’ somewhere near the middle.
Figures that’s where the ‘id’ would be.
Right there in the middle,
demanding attention and immediate gratification. 

Ah, yes, ‘trepidation’.
From the Latin ‘trepidus’, meaning anxious.
Someone is scripting my life from crossword puzzle clues.

 

#46

The Speed of Sound

lindastudley2 Comments

I have been told that the speed of sound
traveling through the air
is a mile in five seconds but I know
some sounds travel faster.
 
Like the sound of a tear
hitting the pavement, an open palm
striking a cheek, or
squealing brakes.
 
Some words travel faster too,
‘goodbye’, ‘never’, ‘inoperable’.
 
Or maybe they don’t travel faster,
they just  travel further, straighter, hit
the intended target harder than other sounds, and
explode on impact.

 

#45

Outside of the Box

lindastudley5 Comments

You tell me I should think
outside of the box but really 
you just want me to climb into yours
and think the same way you do.
 
I have been outside the box,
mine, yours, everyones.
It’s a nice place to visit but
I haven’t perfected living there yet.
But I will, one day.
 
So don’t talk to me of boxes in vague
exhortations to creativity.
All you’ve done is paint some interesting pictures
on the walls of your box
mental murals – trompe l’oeil candy.

#44