And Then What

The key is
to listen when the music plays,
and dance when you in the rain
and sing when the song cries.

Never stop this –
not even if the band stops playing.
Just keep dancing.
Never give up
or give in.

No. By all means
Keep the music alive and well
and let this play
and let this keep beating like a drumbeat
that pulses in your heart

The truth is
symptoms are not the problems
and therefore
treating symptoms becomes nothing else
but a costly cycle.

I say this,
in which case the rich get richer
and the sick get sicker
and meanwhile
someone out there is sampling on justified doses
or chewing on Xanax like candies
or elsewise, someone is following prescription
that the system allows
unless, of course,
you don’t have the proper health insurance
in which case, let’s face it –
you’re shit out of luck!

Meanwhile all we want to do
(or anyone else for that matter)
is to feel better,
or a minimum
Most of us are just trying
not to feel worse.
I’m telling you this with no uncertainty
somedays, the skills of simple survival
is a really good trick.

And well,
in that case, I see how people stand in line
while the wonders of malpractice
run its course
until, that is,
something else comes along
to take the pain away.

All hail the Gods of Symptoms
for they love us too
and they love us more than
the True Gud
because, of course,
the first taste. . .
. . . is always free.

I mean,
how else can the Devil trick us
into believing he is the one
untrue god?

And by the way
no mask can guide us
or hide the pain,
no matter what the dosage is.

I have hidden behind
too many remedies
to believe that solving symptoms
can cure the underlying problems
or euthanize the mind enough
to forget myself, or
to forget what took place.

The idea is to live as best as you can
but put simply,
the idea is to live well
and to live out loud
but yes, “buyer beware”
because short lasting remedies
can often trick someone enough
to live outside of their means
to which I ask,
is it true?
Or in hindsight,
do the ends really justify the means?
Or wait. . .
No
Were the ends meaningful enough
to justify the paths that we took . . .
So, I ask out loud
was all worth it?
Was it all worth the price of gas
to get from there to here?
Was it worth it
to get where you are now?
Scars and all.
And above all else;
where are we now anyway?

Is this what we planned?
or expected?

Whereas the plea of all for one and one for all
was deeply as meaningless
as the once meaningful hope
that you swore by which is, of course,
something that you swore upon
before you looked around and realized
this was never the life you wanted in the first place.

The key is
to smile . . .
Smile
even if there is nothing to smile about –
and I say this loudly
because long ago,
I swore that I would never allow
anyone to take away
or steal my smile.

I swore
the day that someone steals my smile
is the same day
that someone has stolen me.

And yes,
I have been stolen
Stealing me was their genius move
to take from me the only will I had left
which is more than to just
“Live and breathe.”
Stealing me was their way
of “getting even,” let’s say,
and by robbing me of my dignity
I found myself in the land of awareness,
and aware enough to understand
where I want to be –

As in,
elsewhere,
or forgiven and safe
as in secured
by the hands of The Almighty
and saved by his salvation.

Delivered from evil
strayed from temptation
to live and to love
in the Kingdom, the power
and the glory
forever and ever.

The key is to be your best
even when you feel at your worst
because the truth is
YOU are the keeper of your secrets
and YOU
are the only person
who can save your life
on a daily basis.

The key is
to break the chains
which hold you back and release yourself
from all that will keep you
from moving forward.

So, move!
Go.
Run if you have to.
I don’t care what it takes.
Run.
Go!
But do not run
just to run away
No.
Run with intention.

Run with a destination in mind
because otherwise
any port in a storm
becomes just another port in the storm
and thus
this is what your life becomes
when you settle for less.

The key is
to stand up,
no matter how tired
no matter how many accusers there are
and no matter how many votes are against you –
I don’t care what the scoreboard says.
Act like you know
and be the champion.
Get up now
Stand up where you are
Go. Be. And Do

The key is
to keep going –
Keep going even when you found your spot
or when you enjoyed the spotlight
or found your special place in the sun,
and even when you find happiness,
still, keep going.

Keep moving and keep training
even if it hurts
Do this, every day.
Even if you’re tired
and even when you found rest
or a nice place in the shade, be mindful
not to give way to complacency.
Do not forget what it took
to get you to a better place
because nothing can be kept clean
if it is not washed
or maintained.

The thing is,
no one is coming for you,
at least not like we thought.

There is no voice
that will scream for you or advocate for you,
and no one but you
can voice your truths.

No one can save you.

However,
this is not to say that there are no miracles
nor will I say that there are no heroes
and yes, I agree.
There are Angels on Earth.
I know because I have a picture of her
(my angel)
but truth is truth, in which case; there is only one truth
and the truth is “faith without work is dead
or so it says in the book of James.
Therefore, do not stop
or settle. Not now
nor ever again.

I have settled
I have quit
I have lost
And I have lost hope too.
I have sunk and drowned
and died alive
more times than I dare to count.

But then again,
I have been reborn every morning
which means today marks the chance
to give my life another shot

The key is
I can never allow the unwanted to become my identity
but instead
the key is to allow the unwanted to be my motivation
This is my right
– to never revisit where I was
– to never trade, and never settle
but more,
the key to life is
never allow my dreams to be deferred
and therefore,
so long as I live and breathe,
I know that my dreams will never die
(again)