Time

Time
By: James Dubeau

Time
Has no meaning
When I sit here
By myself
Letting the seconds
The minutes
The hours
Tick on by
Unable to see the sun
Rise and fall
Through the closed
Window shades
Skews my perception
Of the day
With no goals
No objectives
No work
Today
Nothing has been accomplished
Before the day
Has wasted away

A Solitary Tree Stands

A Solitary Tree Stands
By: James Dubeau

A solitary tree stands
Off in the distance
Brown
Dead
Grandfather
To the life of late spring
Even in death
He stands mighty
Against wind
And weather
And time
Proving how strong
He was in life
Tornado bearing storms
Were not enough
To bring him
Crashing down
He stands
Strong
Tall
A monument
To be revered
By all who pass

Monday Morning

Monday Morning
By: James Dubeau

Eyes hang heavy
Legs are restless
As I sit here
Keeping the desk
From floating away
Slowly seconds pass
Tick
Tock
Tick
Tock
Away the time
Away the morning
Away any desire
To do anything
But sit
Staring off
Into space

Erin’s Errands

Erin’s Errands
By: James Dubeau

After class
The car is packed
Ready to leave
Headed out of town
For the week
But
Errands stand
In the way
A stop
At the drugstore
And one more
For posters galore
Before
A timely departure
Can be embarked
But
As things tend to go
Complications arise
Delaying thought out plans
The Pharmacist is out
On a lunch break
For ten
Or more
While the posters
Weren’t quite finished
Pushing everything back
Forcing timelines
To be redrawn
But
That is to be expected
When Erin is out
Running Errands

When I Knew Him

When I Knew Him
By: James Dubeau

When I knew him
We were both
Young men
Children really
Going though
The simple woes
That all do
At that age
As the years passed
We grew apart
As always happens
I deserted my friends
Left for college
When that failed
And I returned
I did not seek
Those friends
Which were left behind
As the sands of time
Buried them away
For a decade
Or so
But as the wind blows
Sand to obscure
Wind also blows
Sand to reveal
Slowly
Those lost friends
Are returning to me
One by one
In unexpected ways
But
When a hand extends
From the depths of sand
That might be
The only chance
I have to grab a hold
Bringing them back
Into my life
That one chance
Is what I had
With him
Instead of reaching out
Grabbing his hand
I let him slip under
Now he is gone
For good
And I can no longer
Speak to him
And say
We are still friends

Patriarch Patron

Patriarch Patron
By: James Dubeau

At the edge
Of the long
Wooden
Bar
He sits
Not an emotion shows
Upon his face
As music plays
And rowdy cheers
Float on by
His black suit
Masks his aging body
In dark shadows
His white beard
And head of hair
Seemingly float
A pocket watch
Glitters in the faint light
Silver chain
Reaches to his
Vest pocket
His eyes
Seem to study
The ticking hands
As I return
My attention
To my companions
He looks to me
A gleam in his eye
And then
He is
Gone

Time

Time
By: James Dubeau

Sand slips through my fingers
As each day hurtle past
My grasp tightens
Trying
Desperately
To hold on
But it is to no avail
Grains slip through
Cracks and crevices
Behind me
An old man laughs
At my foolishness
He tips an hourglass
Sending the sand
Racing through my fingers
No
I scream
These are good times
Let them last
With my youth
His only response
Is continued laughter
And tipping the hourglass
Even further
Hastening my sand
Sun and moon
Flash by overhead
Submersing me in darkness and light
Days
Weeks
Months
Years
Fly on past
Time and time again
I scream in pain
My soul wracked
In deep torment
The old man laughs
Red glows behind beady eyes
Returning the hourglass
To how it once was
Sand no longer flows
While a sliver of moon
Grinds to a halt
High above me
No longer the anguish of
A happy life
Speeding by
Ravages me
For now a darker place
Grips my soul
Turning it most foul
Make it grow fast again
I whimper
The good times are gone
Wasted so fast
Only death and torment
Surround me now
It is much too painful
So I beg of you
Make time fly
Once more
Bring me to good times
Then slow it down
Let me enjoy happiness
Not suffer prolonged anguish
Once more he laughed
Shaking his finger at me
While caressing the hourglass
You shall submit to my will
For I control that
Which you hold most dear
This daemon was right
Soon madness will grasp me
Twisting and contorting my soul
I fell to my knees
And wept

Thin Strip Of Sand

Thin Strip Of Sand
By: James Dubeau

Thin strip of sand
Adorned with goodies
From the sea
Crabs
Seashells
Seaweed
And least of all
My footprints
Marching along
The lapping waves
Single file
Footstep
After
Footstep
Clouds float on by
Sunlight filters through
Waves lap upon the shore
Again
And
Again
Each wave reaching
Beyond the last
Rolling through
Yearning to caress
And smother
Thin strands of beach grass
Upon the dune
Overlooking myself
And my empty everything
In the process
Of the sea’s desire
All the goodies
Will disappear
Crabs
Seashells
Seaweed
And easiest of all
My footprints
Would be washed from this
Thin strip of sand
Only proof
That this white sand
Has tickled my sole
Are my two legs
Standing ankle deep
In the mire
Watching it all
Be destroyed
With a smirk
And a grin

As Time Ticks By

As Time Ticks By
By: James Dubeau

Upon the counter
Wine sits chilling
Ice slowly melts
Into pooling water
Jazz pours over the stereo
With indecipherable lyrics
Beautiful lyrics
French lyrics
Cluttered coffee table
Books strewn about
Dodging water droplets
Condensation upon glasses
Couch lays open
And inviting
And comfy
Eyes close
As time ticks by

Three Minutes

Clip your toenails, download porn, eat a hot pocket, read a haiku

Get a phone call, tie your shoes, put on a clean shirt, find your keys

Warm up the car, wait at a stoplight, forget where you’re going, what you’re doing

Chug a beer, slam a whiskey, smoke a joint

Take a piss, wash your hands, make new friends, get a phone number

Kick off shoes, unbutton a shirt, unhook a bra, fumble for ecstasy

Forget a phone number, a name, a life

Rob a store, ruin a shirt, reload a gun, crash a car

Live it up, fall from grace, truly live, truly die