untitled

in your absence
the stars--in agony--combine,
taking hostage the night.
in everlasting day
life dissolves without sleep.

'maybe he's an angel'

A man who gives me hope for humanity and makes me feel proud, for the first time in my life, to be an American citizen.
Born in Hawaii, I will be an American my entire life.
It it something that I must carry with me always, wherever I travel, and I am no longer ashamed of the country that is my birthplace.

Barack Obama's Victory Speech, November 4, 2008

HELLO, CHICAGO.

If there is anyone out there who still doubts that America is a place where all things are possible; who still wonders if the dream of our founders is alive in our time; who still questions the power of our democracy, tonight is your answer.

It's the answer told by lines that stretched around schools and churches in numbers this nation has never seen; by people who waited three hours and four hours, many for the very first time in their lives, because they believed that this time must be different; that their voice could be that difference.

It's the answer spoken by young and old, rich and poor, Democrat and Republican, black, white, Latino, Asian, Native American, gay, straight, disabled and not disabled - Americans who sent a message to the world that we have never been a collection of Red States and Blue States: we are, and always will be, the United States of America.

It's the answer that led those who have been told for so long by so many to be cynical, and fearful, and doubtful of what we can achieve to put their hands on the arc of history and bend it once more toward the hope of a better day.

It's been a long time coming, but tonight, because of what we did on this day, in this election, at this defining moment, change has come to America.

I just received a very gracious call from Senator McCain. He fought long and hard in this campaign, and he's fought even longer and harder for the country he loves. He has endured sacrifices for America that most of us cannot begin to imagine, and we are better off for the service rendered by this brave and selfless leader. I congratulate him and Governor Palin for all they have achieved, and I look forward to working with them to renew this nation's promise in the months ahead.

I want to thank my partner in this journey, a man who campaigned from his heart and spoke for the men and women he grew up with on the streets of Scranton and rode with on that train home to Delaware, the Vice President-elect of the United States, Joe Biden.

I would not be standing here tonight without the unyielding support of my best friend for the last sixteen years, the rock of our family and the love of my life, our nation's next First Lady, Michelle Obama. Sasha and Malia, I love you both so much, and you have earned the new puppy that's coming with us to the White House. And while she's no longer with us, I know my grandmother is watching, along with the family that made me who I am. I miss them tonight, and know that my debt to them is beyond measure.

To my campaign manager David Plouffe, my chief strategist David Axelrod, and the best campaign team ever assembled in the history of politics - you made this happen, and I am forever grateful for what you've sacrificed to get it done.

But above all, I will never forget who this victory truly belongs to - it belongs to you.

I was never the likeliest candidate for this office. We didn't start with much money or many endorsements. Our campaign was not hatched in the halls of Washington - it began in the backyards of Des Moines and the living rooms of Concord and the front porches of Charleston.

It was built by working men and women who dug into what little savings they had to give five dollars and ten dollars and twenty dollars to this cause. It grew strength from the young people who rejected the myth of their generation's apathy; who left their homes and their families for jobs that offered little pay and less sleep; from the not-so-young people who braved the bitter cold and scorching heat to knock on the doors of perfect strangers; from the millions of Americans who volunteered, and organized, and proved that more than two centuries later, a government of the people, by the people and for the people has not perished from this Earth. This is your victory.

I know you didn't do this just to win an election and I know you didn't do it for me. You did it because you understand the enormity of the task that lies ahead. For even as we celebrate tonight, we know the challenges that tomorrow will bring are the greatest of our lifetime - two wars, a planet in peril, the worst financial crisis in a century. Even as we stand here tonight, we know there are brave Americans waking up in the deserts of Iraq and the mountains of Afghanistan to risk their lives for us. There are mothers and fathers who will lie awake after their children fall asleep and wonder how they'll make the mortgage, or pay their doctor's bills, or save enough for college. There is new energy to harness and new jobs to be created; new schools to build and threats to meet and alliances to repair.

The road ahead will be long. Our climb will be steep. We may not get there in one year or even one term, but America - I have never been more hopeful than I am tonight that we will get there. I promise you - we as a people will get there.

There will be setbacks and false starts. There are many who won't agree with every decision or policy I make as President, and we know that government can't solve every problem. But I will always be honest with you about the challenges we face. I will listen to you, especially when we disagree. And above all, I will ask you join in the work of remaking this nation the only way it's been done in America for two-hundred and twenty-one years - block by block, brick by brick, calloused hand by calloused hand.

What began twenty-one months ago in the depths of winter must not end on this autumn night. This victory alone is not the change we seek - it is only the chance for us to make that change. And that cannot happen if we go back to the way things were. It cannot happen without you.

So let us summon a new spirit of patriotism; of service and responsibility where each of us resolves to pitch in and work harder and look after not only ourselves, but each other. Let us remember that if this financial crisis taught us anything, it's that we cannot have a thriving Wall Street while Main Street suffers - in this country, we rise or fall as one nation; as one people.

Let us resist the temptation to fall back on the same partisanship and pettiness and immaturity that has poisoned our politics for so long. Let us remember that it was a man from this state who first carried the banner of the Republican Party to the White House - a party founded on the values of self-reliance, individual liberty, and national unity. Those are values we all share, and while the Democratic Party has won a great victory tonight, we do so with a measure of humility and determination to heal the divides that have held back our progress. As Lincoln said to a nation far more divided than ours, "We are not enemies, but friends...though passion may have strained it must not break our bonds of affection." And to those Americans whose support I have yet to earn - I may not have won your vote, but I hear your voices, I need your help, and I will be your President too.

And to all those watching tonight from beyond our shores, from parliaments and palaces to those who are huddled around radios in the forgotten corners of our world - our stories are singular, but our destiny is shared, and a new dawn of American leadership is at hand. To those who would tear this world down - we will defeat you. To those who seek peace and security - we support you. And to all those who have wondered if America's beacon still burns as bright - tonight we proved once more that the true strength of our nation comes not from our the might of our arms or the scale of our wealth, but from the enduring power of our ideals: democracy, liberty, opportunity, and unyielding hope.

For that is the true genius of America - that America can change. Our union can be perfected. And what we have already achieved gives us hope for what we can and must achieve tomorrow.

This election had many firsts and many stories that will be told for generations. But one that's on my mind tonight is about a woman who cast her ballot in Atlanta. She's a lot like the millions of others who stood in line to make their voice heard in this election except for one thing - Ann Nixon Cooper is 106 years old.

She was born just a generation past slavery; a time when there were no cars on the road or planes in the sky; when someone like her couldn't vote for two reasons - because she was a woman and because of the color of her skin.

And tonight, I think about all that she's seen throughout her century in America - the heartache and the hope; the struggle and the progress; the times we were told that we can't, and the people who pressed on with that American creed: Yes we can.

At a time when women's voices were silenced and their hopes dismissed, she lived to see them stand up and speak out and reach for the ballot. Yes we can.

When there was despair in the dust bowl and depression across the land, she saw a nation conquer fear itself with a New Deal, new jobs and a new sense of common purpose. Yes we can.

When the bombs fell on our harbor and tyranny threatened the world, she was there to witness a generation rise to greatness and a democracy was saved. Yes we can.

She was there for the buses in Montgomery, the hoses in Birmingham, a bridge in Selma, and a preacher from Atlanta who told a people that "We Shall Overcome." Yes we can.

A man touched down on the moon, a wall came down in Berlin, a world was connected by our own science and imagination. And this year, in this election, she touched her finger to a screen, and cast her vote, because after 106 years in America, through the best of times and the darkest of hours, she knows how America can change. Yes we can.

America, we have come so far. We have seen so much. But there is so much more to do. So tonight, let us ask ourselves - if our children should live to see the next century; if my daughters should be so lucky to live as long as Ann Nixon Cooper, what change will they see? What progress will we have made?

This is our chance to answer that call. This is our moment. This is our time - to put our people back to work and open doors of opportunity for our kids; to restore prosperity and promote the cause of peace; to reclaim the American Dream and reaffirm that fundamental truth - that out of many, we are one; that while we breathe, we hope, and where we are met with cynicism, and doubt, and those who tell us that we can't, we will respond with that timeless creed that sums up the spirit of a people:

Yes We Can. Thank you, God bless you, and may God Bless the United States of America.

velvet

The Storm

The storm

awakens now

and in the night it plays

a symphony, exquisitely,

then dies.

a poem on l o v e

there is a wind that blows
from the depths of existence
and swiftly, surely, it conquers the heart.
enduring time and consequence
it rises from eternity,
and with the brightest light of joy,
with all-consuming might,
it blinds the fragile soul.

the lighthouse of life’s worn shores,
it steers the ship that's lost, to goodness.
it fills the heart so wholly that,
with its weightlessness,
it defeats both air and gravity
and lifts the life it touches
beyond all that is known.

older than memory, it is born among the stars,
who shed, and pour their awesome brilliance
into the powerful essence
that is an extract of life.
in boldness, the self is lost to its unsayable spirit
and joyful sound rings forth
from time and space unknown to us;
the resolute exploits of an entity –
the juice of happiness,
the ultimate truth,
that, without which, all is irrelevant.

as the stars would love

r.m. rilke wrote this in a letter. (i'm assuming it's about his wife).

Leaving King

Graham King suddenly finds himself alone. He went down to the station, thinking he could catch her with her suitcase on the ground, knowing he was right behind her. As the train doors close he sees her in the window, she watches as he waves, then the train takes her away. He stands in sadness for a minute or two, hoping, against all knowledge and logic, that the train might slow to a stop, reverse... that she would jump to the platform and run to him, and they would exist together always...

The first few minutes are perhaps the most difficult. He sort of loses himself in her departure, standing there for several long moments, not completely aware of his thoughts or surroundings. A train has arrived and travelers are rushing past him, tired and eager to reach their destinations. One impatient, highly-strung woman is annoyed at the apparent complete lack of consideration of the boy who stands at ease, blocking the way. Accidentally-on-purpose she drags the wheels of her enormous suitcase across his foot. This wakes him from his conscious slumber and, remembering where he is, he turns and moves sleepily forward with the flowing crowd. In his mind he repeats her name to himself as he walks, kneading each syllable until they melt together, forming a single sound; a perfect harmony.

He is on the street now, without any real idea of where he is going. It is late summer, an uncomfortably hot day. Though it is still morning he can feel the sun beating down upon the back of his neck. He had dressed in haste yet with thought; her favorite shoes of his land rhythmically upon the pavement. He wears a becoming white t-shirt, well-fitted jeans, and carries a light jacket in hand (he thought it might perhaps be cool today). His free hand is raised without direct intention, lands at his hairline, and travels the length of his head once or twice. He likes the feeling of his short hair against his palm, and the memories the movement conjures – memories of resting with his head on her stomach, of her rubbing his hair as he does now – are comforting.

The blistering sun creates mirages of puddles on the pavement. The humidity has made the air thick – Graham can imagine suffocating in the heat. The leaves find themselves without dance partners in the absence of a breeze. He is some distance from the station, now – the sidewalks have narrowed and are less busy. He watches his feet as they carry him, and he thinks of her. He thinks of all he shared with her. Remembering something that once made him tear with laughter, he giggles to himself then looks around nervously, afraid that he may appear to be mildly insane. He watches a car as it approaches him. The driver is a woman, clown-like (he briefly wonders how much her face cost), talking animatedly on a cell phone. As the vehicle passes, Graham is flipped off by who he assumes must be this woman’s son. Perhaps around eight, the boy gleefully bites his tongue and waves both middle fingers at the innocent stranger on the street. Graham is taken aback; he sort of scoffs, unsure whether or not he wants to laugh. In the moment of minor shock and confusion, he has lost sight of his happy memories. He thinks instead of their goodbye.

The previous night she had sat on the side of her bed and watched him as he claimed his jacket from its spot on her bedpost and put it on. He then presented himself before her and they briefly touched hands before he bent slightly and she raised her head to be kissed by him. They were different kisses, different than before – slow and soft. They made him feel sad and it suddenly dawned on him that she was leaving. He took a seat next to her and she stood in front of him. “It’s late,” she said. He looked up at her and then he wrapped his arms around her waist and placed his head against her stomach. She stood there, being hugged by him, looking down at him, loving him.

They kissed again. Graham smiled, “You smell like sunscreen – ” she half-giggled and shot him a quizzical glance, “I really like it!” Then, holding his hand, she walked him to the door. She watched him slip into his shoes, “I’ll miss you.” He stood, he pulled her into him and held her there for several moments, kissed her one last time, and then he was gone. As she stood in the open doorway, leaning dazedly against the frame, she came to know every piece of the universe.

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

Evey LaForte suddenly finds herself in adulthood. She sits with legs crossed and good posture, hands folded on her lap, feeling very self-important. She is dressed like an adult, like how she thinks adults dress. She watches passengers walk the platform and smiles pleasantly at passers-by. She can feel it; she is a woman now! She feels others know it too, and this knowledge somehow changes her, changes her behavior. She is like the little girl who dresses in her mother’s heels, pearls, and lipstick, role-playing adult.

The sight of Graham lamely waving at her from outside, and the simultaneous lurch of the train as it leaves the station, knock her back to reality. She can do nothing but stare at him, and it takes her a moment even to find a smile to offer. It is unsettling to be confronted by him; she made her decision months ago, and she is sure of it, yet as her thoughts drift back to him she smiles sincerely and feels like she’s falling. A part of her – perhaps the wisest part – knows that she should stay with him, but she stifles the voice of it.

It takes her until he is out of sight to disregard his ambush. She forces the thought of him from her mind.

With bold confidence she marches strongly into her future. She’s known it would come to this for some time – she never really saw it any other way; the life she envisioned for herself lies elsewhere, beyond Graham.

Landscapes flutter past and as she watches them she looks not fondly back upon the year she spent with Graham but instead, ahead to the future. With harsh, rather forced indifference, she separates herself from her past. She severs all ties to Graham and races surely forward.

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

He is at home, wishing she would call. He has no way of reaching her, and all confidence he ever had in her affection for him has now disintegrated, weakened by doubt with each day that passed without a word from her.

He feels vulnerable. He knows… in his heart he knows it – he has lost her. She will never call. He knows that the last image he will ever have of her is the sight of her in the window.

She is gone; she has left him.

silent rainbows

stolen kisses

loves me not

in her eyes

daisies

Remembrance Day Speech, 2006 (excerpt)

Unfortunately, the Christmas truce of 1914 did not mark the end of the war. It continued for three more devastating years. The battles continued, the deaths continued.
This was a tragic war of attrition. It was uselessly long; nothing was gained, and the losses were devastating. It went on for years because the participating countries refused to admit their failure, and retreat.
When the war did end, on November the eleventh of 1918, it was not truly over. The horrors lived on in the minds, memories and nightmares of the young men who lost their friends, their innocence and their world as they knew it, in the trenches of the Western Front.
The war was pointless, but the lives that were lost were not. The men who sacrificed their lives believed in what they were fighting for. Today, we honour their lives, courage, selflessness and sacrifice.
These men, these sons, fathers, lovers; they made tragic sacrifices for that in which they had faith. Country, comrades and friends, family. We must ask ourselves what we would be willing to experience, to sacrifice for what we believe in.
The lives which we remember today were full of optimism and hope. Faith. Belief. Trust. Courage. Honour.
War left these men changed. It left them hollow, mere reflections of their former selves. The horrors of what they experienced became a part of their existence. It was a horror that they endured not only during their time at the front, but for the remainder of their lives. Today, you are encouraged to reflect upon how horribly tragic war is, and acknowledge that war lives on long after the sound of the last shot has faded. Today we ask ourselves what the experience of war would mean to us, and we honour the lives that war has touched, and continues to touch to this very day.
T. S. Eliot, a famous modernist writer wrote a poem titled “The Hollow Men,” and in this poem, he begs that those who fought be remembered as the hollow men rather than wanton fools or worthless pawns.
During the moment of silence which will follow a reading of this poem, we ask you to remember, reflect, and honour the lives touched by war, and the sacrifices that so many have made.

The Hollow Men by T.S. Eliot

We are the hollow men
We are the stuffed men
Leaning together
Headpiece filled with straw. Alas!
Our dried voices, when
We whisper together
Are quiet and meaningless
As wind in dry grass
Or rats’ feet over broken glass
In our dry cellar

Shape without form, shade without colour,
Paralysed force, gesture without motion;

Those who have crossed
With direct eyes, to death’s other Kingdom
Remember us—if at all—not as lost
Violent souls, but only
As the hollow men
The stuffed men.

Between the idea
And the reality
Between the motion
And the act
Falls the Shadow
For Thine is the Kingdom

Between the conception
And the creation
Between the emotion
And the response
Falls the Shadow

Life is very long

Between the desire
And the spasm
Between the potency
And the existence
Between the essence
And the descent
Falls the Shadow
For Thine is the Kingdom

For Thine is
Life is
For Thine is the

This is the way the world ends
This is the way the world ends
This is the way the world ends
Not with a bang but a whimper

Valedictorian Speech (excerpt)

This is it: the end. The final breath before the plunge. And as we rest unsteadily at the edge of the quivering board, we must understand what it is we will cherish. We must understand what it is we will take with us into the deep waters that await us below; what it is we will take with us into the future.
We entered Traf five years ago, unsure of ourselves and full of self-doubt. The journey has been long and trying, and this moment, right here, right now, is where it has all brought us. Aristotle once said, “the roots of education are bitter, but the fruit sweet”. Five years later and here we are, enjoying the sweet fruit of our labour.
[. . .]
E. E. Cummings once said, “it takes courage to grow up and become who you really are”. This is what we have done, and while we might not remember how to map the Trig Circle, we will always know who it is we are, and how we were transformed by the journey each and every one of us has taken at Traf. This has been the year of laugh fests. Of yearbook editors!, of mildly tormenting the sec one through threes, of “x days ‘till grad!”, of breakdowns, of sleepless nights, of “When It’s Best”, of Math 526, of Common Knowledge Class, of comrades, of Bringing Greatness Back, of o. o. hello!s, of minor insanity.
Our minds are now adorned with memories of good and bad, of our own absurdity and silliness which made Traf so glorious. I can’t remember it all, I can’t remember the details; there is a general feeling, though, which I will always cherish, and as I stand here before you now, I feel an overwhelming sense of pride. I am proud of you, of us, and I am honored to be graduating alongside all of you.
It is time, though, to look towards the future. To open a new book, inhale the scent of its fresh, untouched pages, and begin a new chapter of our lives. My words of wisdom? To quote Robert Byrne, “the purpose of life is a life of purpose”. Love what you do, do what you love, and don’t get caught up in the madness.
What saddens me most is the knowledge that bonds may be severed, that we may slip into our futures, forgetting that which we cherish today.
And so I plead with you, remember. Remember your teachers, for they had a far larger role to play in your coming of age than you may realize.
And remember your classmates, for you are a reflection of them.
Go, now. Go, pursue your dreams, laugh, love, cry, win, lose, live.
This is it: the beginning.

je t'aime...

BeautifulSam said this to me once.

Dissolving

The end is coming. He is coming, I know it. I can feel Him. He is in the crippling cold, the gnawing, constant pain. I am so worn out. I am so tired, I’m tired of doing this – of seeing this, every day. The blank walls scream at me in colourless agony. The food – the jiggling Jello – mocks me; I have been reduced to a state of infancy. The scent is one of sterilization, of illness, of old age, of stale bodies.

I take a deep breath and close my eyes again, resting, listening. The nurses beyond my door exchange tales of flirtation and indulgence. It is strange to think that Life will carry on without me – and what has been my part in it?

Suzie’s in the corner, her face pulled awkwardly against the hand that supports it. She is sleeping, her hair falls across her youthful face. I rub the side of my own and try to relive the memory of youth. This body is foreign to me. It is frail and breaking. I want to sleep. I want to sleep again, to feel that blissful calm take over… I close my eyes.

A stabbing in my chest brings me back. I am scared, I cannot breathe – I can not. I try, I gasp and gulp at nothingness. I am suffocating. Suzie is at the bed, she yells to the hallway. I can’t make out her call. I stare with wide eyes, yet see only darkness. I am lost, pulled deeper. He has me. I thrash and pull and reach for the surface, but it is distant, it is nowhere – gone. Panic takes over – but then, an iridescent peace…

Through the darkness, she appears, bright, and young, and beautiful. I feel a sort of helplessness as I approach her, overwhelmed by her, weak with joy and disbelief. She is here! She is back!

I can feel life as I know it end the moment I reach her, and take her in my hands. She folds into me, becoming a part of me again. I embrace her wholly as I inhale the scent of her perfume.
I pull back from her. We are young again, young and whole, lively and joyful. She smiles at me – the very kindest smile. She’s so beautiful it hurts, and she glistens now, and glows, and sparkles, as never before. She smiles at me, and holds my neck, lightly tracing my hairline with her delicate fingertips.

I can feel it all. I can feel our shared life – every moment of it, every breath. Things I had forgotten long ago now come rushing back to me. I had forgotten the beauty of her eyelashes, the softness of her touch, the smoothness and warmth of her skin. She is breathtaking – I can see Time in her eyes. She intertwines her fingers in mine, kisses me, and, as though slipping into a lovely dream, I feel us dissolve into eternity.

patrick.

pat's drawing

pat drew the original in pastel, i edited it in photoshop.

Reincarnation (excerpt)

He is the chipping paint.
The over-turned chairs;
abandoned possessions.
I can feel him; he is a part of it all.
I can feel him in the air.
In the walls.
In the windows’ missing panes,
the uprooted carpet - the bare floor boards, exposed.
He is the ageing wood.
The territory, over-run by nature.
The fixtures, reduced to their elements
- returned to nature.

guitar.