They don't have ambitions
They don't have goals
They don't think about death
As they blindly accept their living roles
They say they live in the land of the free
Free to roam in their cage
That they better not ever stray out of
Lest their handlers go into a rage
They like to think they're number one,
Better than those who know where they stand,
While laying near the bottom of the pile
Keeping outsiders from lending a hand
They keep their illusions beautiful
within a life of chaos and pain
Living within in a paradise slum
They raise their children to do the same
They have no need for that pesky past
while projecting their future days
Keeping their present in a drugging fog
that blinds to their lives and their ways
They don't have ambitions
They don't have goals
They don't think about death too much
As they blindly accept their living roles
We keep our pity, contempt to ourselves
They would only see that as misplaced pride
We keep our changes within our own
While they live by keeping themselves inside
It's better to tow the social line
Then stray from their path and grow
They scoff at the ones who do just that
Not seeing themselves, in the shade of that glow
We have our share of our own problems
But that shouldn’t blind us from seeing outside
All of us out there as much as the next
Know full well their curse of pride
Try to be kind and understanding
While they make that a job, it's harder than hell
Trying to open the eyes of the blind
While they accuse you, of living in a shell
But go ahead and break that wall of glass
Go ahead and fxxx outside your weight class
Sex and relations shouldn't the game
They're supposed to be fun, but they're not the same
For a time, but if you do it long term
It's going to be a hard lesson learned
That every driver needs to get back over
And into their lane
for the long haul
The best you can do is record it all
And leave it for the growing youth
Keeping your pity and contempt to yourself
Shaping the world outside of their view
Make them think you're moving
While you're really standing still
At the end of the day, it's just a way of life
Keeping their intent under your will
It's easy when they have no ambitions
When they have no clear set goals
They don't even think about death too much
As they blindly accept their living roles
There's a picture slowly fading of times gone by
clouds turning gray in a piss yellow sky
Overgrown weeds, bits of wood here and there
When you left they asked why, you said “anywhere”
It's not that you never had love and attention
you just felt out place, in a different dimension
you got along well with everyone you met
but there was so much more you didn't understand yet
A trip without a compass, that's what you were
a dream without a plan made the road a blur
wrong turns along the way led to many good times
and what could have been right you turned into rhymes
Don't ask for any help wherever you stay
just do what you need and get on your way
get all the experience you possibly can
and don't worry about love, you're still a young man
The time will come when the house you build
will leave you stable, safe and fulfilled
but that time isn't now and time is never wrong
God looks out for lost ones among us
A trip without a compass, that's what you were
a dream without a plan made the road a blur
wrong turns along the way led to good times
and what could have been right you turned into rhymes
We all need some clarity from time to time
from a friend or a stranger when we tire of the climb
words of understanding can go a long way
for those, it seems, who were born astray
How does it feel, reaching out
When there’s no one to hold your hand
How does it feel to keep your peace
Because no one will understand
How does it feel to be all alone
In the world in which you live
How does it feel, surrounded by love
But you don’t know how to give
I know all about it, so many have been there
Where they feel it’s time to lay down and die
But even the blind among us can see
That it won’t kill anyone if they try
So how does it feel to look at us all
And realize you don’t have a friend
How does it feel, this misery journey
That just won’t seem to end
How does it feel, as age ascends
To always wake up alone
How does it feel to know you don’t have
What it takes to make a house a home
I know all about it, so many have gone
To that place where the tears run dry
But the few that made it to where they fit in
They found it easy to fly.
But how did it feel, having all those people
Love you all at the same damn time
How does it feel, that blank piece of paper
Is the only way you can make life rhyme
How did it feel, all that music
And the meanings that lyrics bring
How did it feel when experience told you
We’re all flying with borrowed wings
I know all about it, how could I not
I found long ago that tears run dry
Did I meet you there?, with souls laid bare?
Experienced and ready to fly?.
Can anyone look back, when given at last
What they once lacked, all that is real
You’ve just begun, do you walk or run
Or does it even matter
Now does it feel.
They don't have ambitions
They don't have goals
They don't think about death
As they blindly accept their living roles
They say they live in the land of the free
Free to roam in their cage
That they better not ever stray out of
Lest their handlers go into a rage
They like to think they're number one,
Better than those who know where they stand,
While laying near the bottom of the pile
Keeping outsiders from lending a hand
They keep their illusions beautiful
within a life of chaos and pain
Living within in a paradise slum
They raise their children to do the same
They have no need for that pesky past
while projecting their future days
Keeping their present in a drugging fog
that blinds to their lives and their ways
They don't have ambitions
They don't have goals
They don't think about death too much
As they blindly accept their living roles
We keep our pity, contempt to ourselves
They would only see that as misplaced pride
We keep our changes within our own
While they live by keeping themselves inside
It's better to tow the social line
Then stray from their path and grow
They scoff at the ones who do just that
Not seeing themselves, in the shade of that glow
We have our share of our own problems
But that shouldn’t blind us from seeing outside
All of us out there as much as the next
Know full well their curse of pride
Try to be kind and understanding
While they make that a job, it's harder than hell
Trying to open the eyes of the blind
While they accuse you, of living in a shell
But go ahead and break that wall of glass
Go ahead and fxxx outside your weight class
Sex and relations shouldn't the game
They're supposed to be fun, but they're not the same
For a time, but if you do it long term
It's going to be a hard lesson learned
That every driver needs to get back over
And into their lane
for the long haul
The best you can do is record it all
And leave it for the growing youth
Keeping your pity and contempt to yourself
Shaping the world outside of their view
Make them think you're moving
While you're really standing still
At the end of the day, it's just a way of life
Keeping their intent under your will
It's easy when they have no ambitions
When they have no clear set goals
They don't even think about death too much
As they blindly accept their living roles
There's a picture slowly fading of times gone by
clouds turning gray in a piss yellow sky
Overgrown weeds, bits of wood here and there
When you left they asked why, you said “anywhere”
It's not that you never had love and attention
you just felt out place, in a different dimension
you got along well with everyone you met
but there was so much more you didn't understand yet
A trip without a compass, that's what you were
a dream without a plan made the road a blur
wrong turns along the way led to many good times
and what could have been right you turned into rhymes
Don't ask for any help wherever you stay
just do what you need and get on your way
get all the experience you possibly can
and don't worry about love, you're still a young man
The time will come when the house you build
will leave you stable, safe and fulfilled
but that time isn't now and time is never wrong
God looks out for lost ones among us
A trip without a compass, that's what you were
a dream without a plan made the road a blur
wrong turns along the way led to good times
and what could have been right you turned into rhymes
We all need some clarity from time to time
from a friend or a stranger when we tire of the climb
words of understanding can go a long way
for those, it seems, who were born astray
How does it feel, reaching out
When there’s no one to hold your hand
How does it feel to keep your peace
Because no one will understand
How does it feel to be all alone
In the world in which you live
How does it feel, surrounded by love
But you don’t know how to give
I know all about it, so many have been there
Where they feel it’s time to lay down and die
But even the blind among us can see
That it won’t kill anyone if they try
So how does it feel to look at us all
And realize you don’t have a friend
How does it feel, this misery journey
That just won’t seem to end
How does it feel, as age ascends
To always wake up alone
How does it feel to know you don’t have
What it takes to make a house a home
I know all about it, so many have gone
To that place where the tears run dry
But the few that made it to where they fit in
They found it easy to fly.
But how did it feel, having all those people
Love you all at the same damn time
How does it feel, that blank piece of paper
Is the only way you can make life rhyme
How did it feel, all that music
And the meanings that lyrics bring
How did it feel when experience told you
We’re all flying with borrowed wings
I know all about it, how could I not
I found long ago that tears run dry
Did I meet you there?, with souls laid bare?
Experienced and ready to fly?.
Can anyone look back, when given at last
What they once lacked, all that is real
You’ve just begun, do you walk or run
Or does it even matter
Now does it feel.
WITH A SONG
Down in Phoenix on the southwest side
where your life is naked with nowhere to hide
there's a cute little number who doesn't belong
who pulls you into her world with a song
She can't tell you what's right
but she can tell you what's wrong
as distant to you as death is to life
but she knows how to breathe new meaning in a song
She'll let you come close and then she'll push back
she'll push you right back to where you belong
that wall is weathered, time-tested, and long
but she'll always be there for you with a song
So try not to take it all so hard
nobody knows if this will end soon
keep it all light and keep it running tight
keep it upbeat and keep it in tune
She really doesn't want to hurt anyone
but she comes first, and she keeps that strong
she never will let a man clip her wings
she will always fly high with a song
And she'll always be soaring above you, won't she?
Down in that gutter where she doesn't belong
So far yet so close, like a ghost that might be there
and always inside you with a song
But try not to take it all so hard
nobody knows if this will end soon
keep it all light, and keep your alibis tight
keep it upbeat and keep it in tune
You'll always remember those eyes in the night
glowing up at you, you could do no wrong
you never have felt that kind of admiration
before, before you gave her a song
And you played her well, didn't you friend
you gave her heart a place to belong
you thought she would fly to places unseen
but she ended up grounded to you by the song
But she never could tell you how it was right
she could only ever tell you what was wrong
as distant to you as black is to white
she knew how to breathe new colors into a song
But try not to take it all so hard
if you ever meet again it won't be too soon
if that time is ever right, keep your alibis tight
keep it upbeat, keep yourself in tune
There's a place down here on the southwest side
where your life is naked with nowhere to hide
and there's a cute little number who doesn't belong
who pulls you into her world with a song
So shuffle the deck and do another read
take your time, and let the road take the lead
you know how you are, be it right or wrong
everything you do, you do for a song
And always remember that time in your life
when you were loved by someone, true and strong
reap it, sow it or throw it all away
it doesn't matter anymore
because everything now feels better with a song.
© 2023 Joseph Eric Roberts Jr.
Dark Memories
He was the one for all those years
helping you grow out of your fears
you couldn't have done it without his love
he was perfect for you, a hand in glove
But it wasn't enough as time had passed
Sometimes even the strong don't last
your friends, they tell you to pick up the pace
while the memories of him stream down your face
Of the days of laughter, the promise of love
with no end in sight, sent from above
you wonder if all that is lost in this place
while all the memories stream down your face
She was the exception to every rule
even the times she made you the fool
she changed you in ways you thought were dead
she lit up your heart with every word said
You loved her by day and held her by night
making it real, true and tight
more than you ever thought it would be
a love with the insight that lets you see
The days of laughter, hope and love
with no end in sight, sent from above
we were meant to be in that place
not here my love
not with memories rolling down our face.
DUET
How could you leave me? What went wrong?
Our souls were one, our love was a song
but now we're deaf in shattered skies
everyone I see......I see your eyes
I'm begging you now, please come back
I'll do anything at all that you ask
you know this wasn't meant to end
you were more than my love.......you were my friend.
In days of laughter, hope and love
this can't be the end, it was sent from above
we weren't meant to be in this place
darkened memories streaming down our face.
©2020 Joseph Eric Roberts Jr.
Show The Connection
It wasn’t love….connection was the goal
Something you only find in the soul
A feeling that will transcend all others
Do spiritual friends ever become lovers
So don’t think about them
Or what they say they can do
Don’t think of this world
This can only work between me and you
This life calls the unspoken to hide
Waiting for the next life to give it a ride
Everything happens in its own time
In their own song, story or rhyme
What you need is deeper than now
It’s a seed that time still needs to plough
I woke you up so you could see it clear
So I don’t get too far ahead of you, dear
This is bigger than you may know
In this place and time…you find….you grow
If it seems like a riddle, that’s ok too
Just know that this time, is when I found you
And made us ghosts to one another
Connected by feelings, not a physical lover
Laughing, crying, learning to be
Opening eyes so the other may see
Just another step through yet another gate
Leading to love and away from hate
find love to take it and keep it inside
Take what you’re given…...enjoy the ride.
Because what you need is deeper than now
It’s a seed that time still needs to plough
I woke you up so you could see it clear
So I don’t get too far ahead of you, my dear
©2020 Joseph Eric Roberts Jr.
Signs
The signs on the side
Show where you can go
How fast you can get there
And at times, how slow
The company you keep
Can be warm in bed
If you hold them close
Or let ‘em in your head
While the signs on the side
Remind where you’re going
But those unmarked roads
With just dust and weeds blowing
There are safe ways to love
And there are dangerous sides
You can drive what you know
Or the “no headlight” rides
There’s only one rule
On these roads, my friend
You need to remember
All the places you’ve been
‘Cause of all those signs
You read or ignore
There’s always one that gives reason
Every driver needs a home
Every wind has a season
You don’t want to end your trip
Where it’s cold, dark and alone
Find someone to share the ride
Whose light has always shone
“Cause you’re riding the loss
And wearing it well
Stringing that fence
Between heaven and hell
While the signs fly by
That tell where to go
While a tear is in the eye
Of the ones who drive slow.
© 2022 Joseph Eric Roberts Jr
The Other Side
The dead yellow sage, gray dirt
To fields of gold, pine
To mesa’s flat beneath silver and blue
It all gels into one sign
One foot in, one foot out
Just keep on gliding through
Navajo beauty in the rough
Glancing straight into you
So get lost in the music
Lost in the vibe
Where the pale air warms
Welcome,
Welcome to the other side
She said, “Joy only comes
From forgotten fear”
He said “Redemption only comes
From the bitter of a tear.”
Spirited winds of their own will
Leave ghosts that learn to be still
In those gray rains, soft and clean
Slowly losing the hardness of being
So get lost in the music
Re-born in the vibe
Where the pale air warms
Welcome,
Welcome to the other side
© 2022 Joseph Roberts
They don't have ambitions
They don't have goals
They don't think about death
As they blindly accept their living roles
They say they live in the land of the free
Free to roam in their cage
That they better not ever stray out of
Lest their handlers go into a rage
They like to think they're number one,
Better than those who know where they stand,
While laying near the bottom of the pile
Keeping outsiders from lending a hand
They keep their illusions beautiful
within a life of chaos and pain
Living within in a paradise slum
They raise their children to do the same
They have no need for that pesky past
while projecting their future days
Keeping their present in a drugging fog
that blinds to their lives and their ways
They don't have ambitions
They don't have goals
They don't think about death too much
As they blindly accept their living roles
We keep our pity, contempt to ourselves
They would only see that as misplaced pride
We keep our changes within our own
While they live by keeping themselves inside
It's better to tow the social line
Then stray from their path and grow
They scoff at the ones who do just that
Not seeing themselves, in the shade of that glow
We have our share of our own problems
But that shouldn’t blind us from seeing outside
All of us out there as much as the next
Know full well their curse of pride
Try to be kind and understanding
While they make that a job, it's harder than hell
Trying to open the eyes of the blind
While they accuse you, of living in a shell
But go ahead and break that wall of glass
Go ahead and fxxx outside your weight class
Sex and relations shouldn't the game
They're supposed to be fun, but they're not the same
For a time, but if you do it long term
It's going to be a hard lesson learned
That every driver needs to get back over
And into their lane
for the long haul
The best you can do is record it all
And leave it for the growing youth
Keeping your pity and contempt to yourself
Shaping the world outside of their view
Make them think you're moving
While you're really standing still
At the end of the day, it's just a way of life
Keeping their intent under your will
It's easy when they have no ambitions
When they have no clear set goals
They don't even think about death too much
As they blindly accept their living roles
There's a picture slowly fading of times gone by
clouds turning gray in a piss yellow sky
Overgrown weeds, bits of wood here and there
When you left they asked why, you said “anywhere”
It's not that you never had love and attention
you just felt out place, in a different dimension
you got along well with everyone you met
but there was so much more you didn't understand yet
A trip without a compass, that's what you were
a dream without a plan made the road a blur
wrong turns along the way led to many good times
and what could have been right you turned into rhymes
Don't ask for any help wherever you stay
just do what you need and get on your way
get all the experience you possibly can
and don't worry about love, you're still a young man
The time will come when the house you build
will leave you stable, safe and fulfilled
but that time isn't now and time is never wrong
God looks out for lost ones among us
A trip without a compass, that's what you were
a dream without a plan made the road a blur
wrong turns along the way led to good times
and what could have been right you turned into rhymes
We all need some clarity from time to time
from a friend or a stranger when we tire of the climb
words of understanding can go a long way
for those, it seems, who were born astray
How does it feel, reaching out
When there’s no one to hold your hand
How does it feel to keep your peace
Because no one will understand
How does it feel to be all alone
In the world in which you live
How does it feel, surrounded by love
But you don’t know how to give
I know all about it, so many have been there
Where they feel it’s time to lay down and die
But even the blind among us can see
That it won’t kill anyone if they try
So how does it feel to look at us all
And realize you don’t have a friend
How does it feel, this misery journey
That just won’t seem to end
How does it feel, as age ascends
To always wake up alone
How does it feel to know you don’t have
What it takes to make a house a home
I know all about it, so many have gone
To that place where the tears run dry
But the few that made it to where they fit in
They found it easy to fly.
But how did it feel, having all those people
Love you all at the same damn time
How does it feel, that blank piece of paper
Is the only way you can make life rhyme
How did it feel, all that music
And the meanings that lyrics bring
How did it feel when experience told you
We’re all flying with borrowed wings
I know all about it, how could I not
I found long ago that tears run dry
Did I meet you there?, with souls laid bare?
Experienced and ready to fly?.
Can anyone look back, when given at last
What they once lacked, all that is real
You’ve just begun, do you walk or run
Or does it even matter
Now does it feel.
WITH A SONG
Down in Phoenix on the southwest side
where your life is naked with nowhere to hide
there's a cute little number who doesn't belong
who pulls you into her world with a song
She can't tell you what's right
but she can tell you what's wrong
as distant to you as death is to life
but she knows how to breathe new meaning in a song
She'll let you come close and then she'll push back
she'll push you right back to where you belong
that wall is weathered, time-tested, and long
but she'll always be there for you with a song
So try not to take it all so hard
nobody knows if this will end soon
keep it all light and keep it running tight
keep it upbeat and keep it in tune
She really doesn't want to hurt anyone
but she comes first, and she keeps that strong
she never will let a man clip her wings
she will always fly high with a song
And she'll always be soaring above you, won't she?
Down in that gutter where she doesn't belong
So far yet so close, like a ghost that might be there
and always inside you with a song
But try not to take it all so hard
nobody knows if this will end soon
keep it all light, and keep your alibis tight
keep it upbeat and keep it in tune
You'll always remember those eyes in the night
glowing up at you, you could do no wrong
you never have felt that kind of admiration
before, before you gave her a song
And you played her well, didn't you friend
you gave her heart a place to belong
you thought she would fly to places unseen
but she ended up grounded to you by the song
But she never could tell you how it was right
she could only ever tell you what was wrong
as distant to you as black is to white
she knew how to breathe new colors into a song
But try not to take it all so hard
if you ever meet again it won't be too soon
if that time is ever right, keep your alibis tight
keep it upbeat, keep yourself in tune
There's a place down here on the southwest side
where your life is naked with nowhere to hide
and there's a cute little number who doesn't belong
who pulls you into her world with a song
So shuffle the deck and do another read
take your time, and let the road take the lead
you know how you are, be it right or wrong
everything you do, you do for a song
And always remember that time in your life
when you were loved by someone, true and strong
reap it, sow it or throw it all away
it doesn't matter anymore
because everything now feels better with a song.
© 2023 Joseph Eric Roberts Jr.
Dark Memories
He was the one for all those years
helping you grow out of your fears
you couldn't have done it without his love
he was perfect for you, a hand in glove
But it wasn't enough as time had passed
Sometimes even the strong don't last
your friends, they tell you to pick up the pace
while the memories of him stream down your face
Of the days of laughter, the promise of love
with no end in sight, sent from above
you wonder if all that is lost in this place
while all the memories stream down your face
She was the exception to every rule
even the times she made you the fool
she changed you in ways you thought were dead
she lit up your heart with every word said
You loved her by day and held her by night
making it real, true and tight
more than you ever thought it would be
a love with the insight that lets you see
The days of laughter, hope and love
with no end in sight, sent from above
we were meant to be in that place
not here my love
not with memories rolling down our face.
DUET
How could you leave me? What went wrong?
Our souls were one, our love was a song
but now we're deaf in shattered skies
everyone I see......I see your eyes
I'm begging you now, please come back
I'll do anything at all that you ask
you know this wasn't meant to end
you were more than my love.......you were my friend.
In days of laughter, hope and love
this can't be the end, it was sent from above
we weren't meant to be in this place
darkened memories streaming down our face.
©2020 Joseph Eric Roberts Jr.
Show The Connection
It wasn’t love….connection was the goal
Something you only find in the soul
A feeling that will transcend all others
Do spiritual friends ever become lovers
So don’t think about them
Or what they say they can do
Don’t think of this world
This can only work between me and you
This life calls the unspoken to hide
Waiting for the next life to give it a ride
Everything happens in its own time
In their own song, story or rhyme
What you need is deeper than now
It’s a seed that time still needs to plough
I woke you up so you could see it clear
So I don’t get too far ahead of you, dear
This is bigger than you may know
In this place and time…you find….you grow
If it seems like a riddle, that’s ok too
Just know that this time, is when I found you
And made us ghosts to one another
Connected by feelings, not a physical lover
Laughing, crying, learning to be
Opening eyes so the other may see
Just another step through yet another gate
Leading to love and away from hate
find love to take it and keep it inside
Take what you’re given…...enjoy the ride.
Because what you need is deeper than now
It’s a seed that time still needs to plough
I woke you up so you could see it clear
So I don’t get too far ahead of you, my dear
©2020 Joseph Eric Roberts Jr.
I have been writing for fun all my life. At 55, I am now ready to sell a backlog of nearly 400 lyrics. They will be edited, polished and ready for the music before submitted. I am single with 2 daughters, 4 grandchildren and no plans in life other than selling my various writings.
