TO BE YOURS

I want to be the fierce and fiery dragon That chases away your enemies To be the sun that shines and guides you When you need to find your way I want to be the orange and yellow sunset When you need to find a bit of peace To be the moon that shines ever…

YOU’RE STILL HERE

My jaw clenches My fingernails Yearn to scratch At layers of skin My joints ache Rigidity laced Stand like a statue Hold still, hold still Breathe in slow Hold… maybe Forever if you can Fix your stare On a calmer future Moments past this Tick tick tick Final loud tock Exhale Open your eyes Look…

I FELT THE BLOSSOMS IN MY BONES

You guys, I just read an advanced copy of Nicole Lyons new book Blossom and Bone.  My mind has been swimming with inspiration all weekend.  If you don’t know who Nicole Lyons is then…. WHAT??? That honestly surprises me because I truly believe she is going to be the next big poet that our students…

FOLLOW THE BREADCRUMBS

We follow the breadcrumbs. We can plan for tomorrow all we want but the present has a way of challenging those plans.  When I started this blog several years ago I did not plan to be starting an international production company with someone from another country.  I did not plan to meet a man who…

LOST AND (UN)FOUND by Laron Chapman

  Many of us live with irrational fears (clowns, stage fright, spiders, etc.) They grab hold of us, paralyze us, and disturb our dreams. Some of us live with a different set of fears (the fear of sexual assault, the fear of violence, the fear of death, the fear of abandonment). Such fears characterize real-life…

WHEN THE SEQUINS FALL

I’ve been thinking a bunch about the last decade of my life. Much of it was captured right here on this blog. I’ve been absent lately. Life just had a way of demanding my attention. Holding me accountable. Changing me. Healing me. And as I look at the things I’ve written… I barely recognize this…

SEEKING JUSTICE

Whether it is a big news event or a very personal event justice is often complicated.  Separating truth from fiction is hard.  The media is very persuasive.  Our friends we know and trust can also be very persuasive.  We often forget there are two sides to every story with a whole lot sandwiched in the…

ISOLATION

When I experienced bad bouts of anxiety and depression I would isolate.  I still do.  Avoid socializing.  Avoid commitment.  Avoid stimulation.  I would escape into my own head and look for comfort there.  But I would never find it. When someone with depression reaches out to talk and they are scolded or told to just…

BLACKOUT

I used to blackout when I drank.  Not always but quite often.  Blackout doesn’t mean you act any differently than your inebriated self would act.  It just means you won’t remember what you did, what you said, or where you went.  Your memory was too drunk to record.  Therefore, no memory. Swimming motion Blurs the…

PAINTED FACES

What you chose to hide is a choice. What you keep from the world is a choice. There are decisions to be made and your choices will matter. Trust will be built or dishonesty and manipulation will be sown. You will hide things without even realizing it. In this way… we are all artists. It’s…