Noise around me

I'm trying to focus, trying to write
trying to rhyme but things aren't right
there's noise and chatter and coughing and chiming
there's a family of five, and someone else crying
each word that I wrangle to rest on the page
it's an awesome achievement on this sonorous stage
because the dog is barking, a grandma is whining
it's the sound of hundreds of people unwinding
all played to the soundtrack of inoffensive pop
all of it designed to make my lines stop 

so I leave
I go for a walk
I slowly breath
no need to talk

I love conversation
just not all the time
I need hesitation
and the space between rhyme

but it's time to turn
there's work to repay
I will once more return
to the noise of the day

Culture conversation

They think it's a culture war when it should be a culture conversation
They think they need an army when we just want deliberation
Yes I understand that the world today has seemed to change
But it's ok to live somewhere that some parts of it seem strange

It's not asking you to get on board and take part in every dance
And there are honest conversations about the right way to advance
But you seem to want to turn one side of society to mist
When all that side is really wanting is simply to exist

Not every film has to be for you. not every book, not every song
I understand that we all need a place we feel that we belong
But that place is not everywhere, every place, all the time
People who are different should not be thought of as a crime

And while there are nuances such as beliefs that cause others harm
And while I'm not suggesting we should all walk arm in arm
I will stake my claim that we should not wage a culture war attack
Although if one side brings the fight, the other must unfortunately fight back 

A one-sided war will only ever end in a certain way
What do you think will come of this artillery display?
Yet I know there are those who wish us to share seats at a table
You are but one person, but please, join us if you're able.

The power of History

What a gift we have in history
To record the days gone by
Rely on more than the electricity
That flows behind the eye

To not be just moments
Single points on a line
To unanchor our events
To spread them across time

Then read a page millennia old
A glimpse into the past
Revisit a tale worth being told
Be grateful such tales last

Learn from errors never seen
Study cities that are long gone
Decipher what some ciphers mean
To guide us as we go on

Appreciate those who came before
Relate to people you'll never know
We have history's power in our paw
Though we are but fish within its flow

A rhythm on this Earth

There is a rhythm on this Earth
There is a beat that flows
Some people dance from birth
And follow where it goes

And, well, then there's other people
And by other people I do also mean me
Who don't feel this beat at all
We don't hear the symphony

But I can dance to it sometimes
Just for a little while
I can translate the rhymes
I can be in denial

Then I will fall back
Grateful for what I could do
Do you hear the track?
Do you dance to it too?

There is virtue to your own way
But it's tough to do forever
So let's find our beat today
And dance to it together