By The Guppy
Date: 1 November 1999

a thousand words

breaking down to the heart of it
we all have parts to play
we all sit and stay from time to time
some bark with bladed bouncing words
taking names and repeating all they've heard
some think their thoughts out loud
in droning tones that muffle other sounds
some are muzzled by their masters
some are slow at catching on
others seem to do it faster
some just fake and forget about the point you tried try to make
some are better off not knowing anyway
we all have our reasons without rhyme
we're all caught in the present tense of time
we all make planned escapes by dark
some take their time
some take their mark
looking for another grand remark
waiting for a gun shot to release them from their starting blocks
some lovers end up making better friends
some friends turn out to be lovers in the end
some blessings are curses in disguise
some blessings are overlooked by overshadowed eyes
some write you off before they even understand
some unconditionally offer helping hands
some offer homes
some offer plans
some take a little bit more than was ever bargained for
we all bury bones around our yards
we all deny defects in the cards we hold when playing for keeps
we all play for keeps
some soldiers had their last regards carried away
long before the time that taps was played
some are good at making shadow puppets on the walls
some give too much
some take it all
we all change horses in midstream
some fear crossing streams because of being pulled down by drowning horses
some are just remorseless
some think that the dawn waves goodbye to the darkest hour
some think that the dawn bids hello to a brand new darkest hour
we all have thoughts best left as such
we all are sensitive to touch
we all love scratches behind the ears
we all whimper when facing what we fear
each and every one of us is on black velvet
framed
and hung on someone else's wall