One More Time

I have no special message
I desperately want to display
I simply want to say my friend
I'm sorry it ended this way

I have no deep thought pondering
Tied to a lovely rhyme
I simply want to say my friend
Thank you for the time

I have no "aha" moment
To lay this clearly forth
I simply want to say my friend
For me it was all of great worth

I have no perfect ending
As I lay down to rest
I simply want to say my friend
I wish you all the best

Rhyme Inspired By A Good Song
"Sugar" by Dan Wilson

You're Gonna Grow Into Something That Death Can't Steal

Good Timber by Douglas Malloch

The tree that never had to fight
For sun and sky and air and light,
But stood out in the open plain
And always got its share of rain,
Never became a forest king
But lived and died a scrubby thing.

The man who never had to toil
To gain and farm his patch of soil,
Who never had to win his share
Of sun and sky and light and air,
Never became a manly man
But lived and died as he began.

Good timber does not grow with ease:
The stronger wind, the stronger trees;
The further sky, the greater length;
The more the storm, the more the strength.
By sun and cold, by rain and snow,
In trees and men good timbers grow.

Where thickest lies the forest growth,
We find the patriarchs of both.
And they hold counsel with the stars
Whose broken branches show the scars
Of many winds and much of strife.
This is the common law of life.

Post inspired by a RS Lesson, the changing
leaves and my own personal "root time"
And "Silver Trees" by Rocky Votolato
And "Sheltering Trees" by Newsong

Dear God

One thirty came and went
my emotions nearly spent
Into the ground I've sent
Regrets I never meant

'Fore the flower comes the seed
Staying here is what I need
See it out 'til I succeed
I will work until I bleed

I stopped counting the days
Heavenward I send my praise
In a desperate effort of displays
I mean more than these cliches

Flowers, cookies, love and notes
Cause a small lump in my throat
Keeping my sinking head afloat
In every step I will devote

It's been a long, hard set
But God's not done with me yet
And I will make a daring bet
These are the days I won't forget

Rhyme inspired by MTC Mornings
And by "Dear God 2.0" by The Roots

I’ve Seen A Lot Of Joy And I’ve Seen A Lot Of Pain

I have not been given the gift
Of saying the words that lift
I never know when to embrace
Or dry the tears from a face
But God has blessed me, you see
With a smiling capacity
I'll make you chuckle
When your knees start to buckle
I'll strengthen your tenacity

Rhyme inspired by Kennedy Wise
And by Say Hey (I Love You)
Michael Franti & Spearhead
(Cuz that song makes me smile)

Dear Satan

This is a long video, but I sort of love it. Powerful poetry. I encourage you to watch it.



link to the lyrics
Inspired by Mosiah 18:9

All That Talk, And Boy You Better Walk It

I hate dating.
It's Irritating.
Aggravating.
And just plain Dumb.

Inspired by dating
And "Put It In A Love Song"
By Alicia Keys and Beyonce

This Is Gonna Sound Like A Bad Joke

So what happens when what you wanted
Is what you have
And what you have
Scares you more than words
But what scares you worse
Is what you need
But what you need
Might not be there anymore

What happens then?

Inspired by unknown
And "Cupid's Chokehold" by
Gym Class Heroes

A Brutally Honest Post That I Should Probably Just Keep To Myself

Are boys like jeans?
Say you find a pair that you really like, but you don't buy them cuz you're not sure they're really going to make you happy.
You go home, and find yourself thinking about them and thinking about how you should've bought them and how you should be wearing them right now.
Every day when you get dressed you wish you could slip them on again.
Maybe you even go back to the store, find them and you try them on, but you realize they cost too much for you right then at that time. So you put them back on the shelf and try and rationalize that you don't really need them.
Later when you are in a more stable position and you can afford to take the risk and buy them and let them make your wardrobe complete and make you the happiest jeans wearer ever, you don't go back to the store to get them, because you figure it's probably been too long and you probably can't find them. Or they are probably sold out and some other lucky girl is wearing them already.
What can you do? Can you really go back? Maybe you've already been back..2 or 3 times and you end up in the same place every time.
Maybe the jeans will look you in the face and tell you to never come back again because they've moved on.
Are boys like jeans?

Probably not.
But that doesn't change the fact that it's been months, and I still haven't bought another pair. Or even tried one on. In fact, I don't even go jeans shopping anymore, because I always just end up comparing them to the ones I should've saved up for and bought while I could.

But Six Rings, And I Rise

Dear Daydream,
I apologize for not visiting
Life has become so structured
No time for wistful thinking
I haven't drawn a single figure
My books are dust collecting
No time for poems conjured

This letter is my only attempt
To make amends with your contempt

Your forever, but temporarily withheld friend,
Kasey

Rhyme inspired by a lack of daydreaming
And by "Daydream Believer" by The Monkees

No Need To Say Goodbye

The rain falls in pre-ordered satisfaction
As you drive slowly away from here
Leave me in my blood red mode of action
To face the day with little fear

The dissonace of sound doesn't bother me
No, freely I accept the notes
Pitter. Patter. Even God weeps, you see
The water soaks through my coat

Looking toward the evading heavens I pray
Remembering that my God is good
"The journey, the love, the people," I say
"Thank you, for the places I've stood."

Transitioning, knowing I cannot return again
A poison drink laced with good intent
Striking blindly into the dark with a steady pen
Unsure sadness wrapped in complete content

For most, the water stings on cold wet skin
But not for me, today, my friend
Though the greyness taunts and prods to win
The raindrops cause my tears to blend

Rhyme inspired by transitions
And by Regina Spektor "The Call"

Feel The Rain On Your Face

Let's talk about the rain
Cuz it's impossible to refrain
From this watery world of happiness
Where we come to forget our pain

With the excitement of a child
Without reservation we run wild
Kicking up the puddled streets
We skipped and sung and smiled

The rain holds today together
Frustration flees in this weather
But here and now the rain will fall
So let the heavens come nether

Rhyme inspired by the theraputic rain
And by Natasha Bedingfield "Unwritten"

Won't You Be My Neighbor?

My mind's blank
On this sunshiney day
I can't think
Enough to really say
How beautiful it is
On this sunshiney day
My head is in the clouds
And I like it that-a way

Rhyme inspired by Carrie Hampton
and the sunshiney day
And by Mr Roger's Neighborhood

A Neighbor's Song

You say, my friend, that you cannot find
A song, somewhere, with your name
It will surely not fit in a tune
Is the simple thing that you claim

Sorry to say, but I disagree
For I've heard your name quite a bit
In so many notes and so many beats
It just happy and perfectly fits

I saw you lift another's sad heart
With a hug and smile truly real
As lyrical beauty, a rhythm was born
In the way you made them feel

With boldness and conviction unmoving
A record of God, you did bear
Oh, such harmony, to my ears, I heard
The ballad of truth that you shared

My cupboard once empty, you filled
And the aching pains of my soul
Were then the taste of sweet melodies
In the music I ate from my bowl

Once struggling, I wept free, in your arms
You dried up my tears with your words
From you to me, flowed a lullaby
And I felt the strength of the chords

Often I've heard the fish is the last
To notice, in the water, it stands
I wonder, my friend, if it's not also so
For the instrument played by God's hands

Now, hear the rhapsody, He will play
Through your faith, this night and day long
It is the name of Heav'n that you praise
For His, is the name of your song

Rhyme inspired by Melissa Wells (A good Neighbor)
And by St Luke 10:29-37

You've Been There, You Understand

Like vines our lives are intertwined
With flowers blooming red
Like rope our lives are tightly coiled
The fibers wound and dread

Like strangers we have walked along
Not knowing that we could
Turn to eachother in our frustration
But alone we boldly stood

How frequent must this silly thing
Occur in our seperate lives
To find a friend we did not know
Would help us to survive

Perhaps, I venture, It's possible
That here and now exists
A person that is close around
And understands your twists

Like friends we talk and remenisce
About our lives before
And as we leave the bakery
My heart has been restored

For now I see that I'm not alone
In this journey that is hard
Thank you God for showing me
How to let down my guard

Rhyme inspired by long talks with Erin Haskell
And the irony of Rascall Flatts "Bless The Broken Road"

Someone Please Say...

I'm starting small with this count
Because today it seems hard
To think of things that I can say
Allow me to let down my guard

But a list is needed for my sake
Of things that I'm grateful for
Cuz today is a day that is tough
Hardships, I labor to ignore

I'm grateful for eyes in my head
That see the things God has made
And for the church of my youth
That now helps me not to be afraid

I'm grateful for feet on my legs
For a knowledge of God up above
I'm thankful for arms that extend
To give hugs to those that I love

I'm grateful for prophets that teach
Of God, Jesus Christ and The Plan
For parents and teachers and prayer
That help me to know that I can

I'm grateful I have a place to live
A job that barely gets me by
For gloves and hats and sidewalks
For the strength to not ask "why"

I'm grateful for macaroni and tuna
In my cuboard so empty and bare
For sweaters and socks and brothers
Neighbors who show me they care

I'm grateful for sunshine and mountains
For good books, hangers, and phones
For showers and paychecks and photos
So grateful for muscles and bones

I'm grateful for experiences that try
My faith in my God that I trust
For snow storms, train cars and forks
For running 'til my lungs want to bust

I'm grateful for very simple things
If you look at the grand scheme of life
But how I need these trustful effects
If I'm ever to look past the strife

Rhyme inspired by Erin Haskell
And by Natasha Bedingfield "Happy"

Brought To You Courtesy Of The Red, White And Blue

My red, white and blue poem
Will surely show it's time
That our good friend America
Got its first real freestyle rhyme

I'm not in the armed forces,
The navy or reserves
I don't go out and battle
For the liberties preserved

But I'll support our boys in blue
Until my dying day
I'll stand with my hand to my heart
When that grand anthem plays

Cuz, Liberty does not come free
I'll start down at the ground
And I'll work up to the top
'Til I hear sweet freedom's sound

I'll even work to let you have
Your differences and complaints
Against my country 'tis of thee
And I'll pose no harsh restraints

I'm a blue-jeans wearing kid
With no I.O.U. from Sam
If you don't agree, well,
Sorry, that's the way I am

Rhyme inspired by hearing the
Star Spangled Banner over and
over again as I watch the Olympics
And by Toby Keith
"Courtesy of the Red, White and Blue"

Couldn't Keep To Myself Enough

The subtitle of this blog is "If you can't talk about it, Freestyle." But it seems that we have come to an impass, because finally I have something I can talk about.

Timing.



Our lives are like a line of dominoes
Push one down and watch the others flow
The difference is, you don't really know
Where you'll end up or where you'll go

Not that I'm saying that we have no control over our lives and that all we can do is watch the pieces fall, but if you think about all the influences in your life that have come together to make you the person that you are, there is a lot of timing that goes into the process.

Then how is it now that I have to care
About where I step and for what I prepare?
Why is it that I'm living on a prayer
That somehow, someway I'll get somewhere?

You see, the misunderstanding is recalled
That I cannot change the place where I fall
But oh how foolish this assumption crawls
Back to its author so faithless and small

It is weakness to choose to believe that our lives have an outcome that we cannot change because it is led and defined by forces outside our control; to put God in a position that discounts your own choices. However, it is also weakness to choose to believe that you do not need a God and that you are the only one in control of the outcome of your life.

It is true that a domino needs some nudging
How hard and when is what we are judging
It's a fine line we are continually smudging
Of when it's our turn,& when it's God budging

The strength of faith comes in realizing that we don't hold all the pieces and we don't call all the shots. Though ultimately the decision to act lies in our capacity, it is strength to rely on God to know what it is that we must do with our agency, and even greater strength to do it.

Rhyme inspired by the realization that I do not live
in Provo to work, but rather to build relationships.

And by the Music Video by Relient K "Who I Am Hates Who I've Been"
(Video not chosen entirely for the message of the song, but rather for the video itself. If you would like, watch the video without the sound. It will deliver the same effect)

The Sophomore Slump Is An Uphill Battle

Every time I start a rhyme
I sit and stew, without a clue
Of what I want to say to you

It's a shame that I cannot blame
This writer's block of shock
On a gushy, brainy keyless lock

I look around and to the ground
From my bed, I scratch my head
The runes at my wits must be dead

"Think! Think!" I say and blink
"Gotta be a thought I've fought
That may just like to be caught"

It makes me grieve as I perceive
The reason for my adroit treason
The deficiency of verbal season

I embark to look through books
Frantic search of a brew so new
Only to find a mangled haiku

Up my hands must go, I bellow
Acuity must flux with this crux
Leaving all design to dim clucks

I quit

Rhyme inspired by nothing at all
And by Jason Mraz "Wordplay"

You Gotta Trust Heaven Will Do Its Part

Seven Hundred and Twenty One Days
Is the name of my patience and length
Seven Hundred and Twenty One Days
Is the source of my emotional strength

Seven Hundred and Twenty One Days
Wasn't done all in one single round
Seven Hundred and Twenty One Days
One day at a time is how 'twas found

Seven Hundred and Twenty One Days
Of hurting and crying in the night
Seven Hundred and Twenty One Days
Until everything was just right

Seven Hundred and Twenty One Days
Of purpose and progress amazing
Seven Hundred and Twenty One Days
Of heaven-sent pleading and praising

Seven Hundred and Twenty One Days
Of people who've cared and extended
Seven Hundred and Twenty One Days
Of friends so so needed and splendid

Seven Hundred and Twenty One Days
Is all in the past as we speak and say
Seven Hundred and Twenty One Days
Will still be followed by yet another day

Rhyme Inspired by Seven Hundred and Twenty One Days
And by April Meservy "Not Going Under"


April's Music/Website

Keep Thou My Feet

Thou didst make my knees to bend
My arms to fold and praise
Thou didst make my eyes to close
My lips to speak Thy grace
Thou didst make my head to bow
Thou doest know my case
Thou didst make my very flesh
So I'll worship all my days

Rhyme inspired by feeling good to be good
And James Conlee "Lead Thou Me On"

For It Won't Be Long Till I'm Gonna Need Somebody To Lean On

All sizes become relative
When you start seeing the imperative
My lips form to the fricative
And there I go with the positive

It's so much more than a passive
Desire to be a very active
Part of the solution held captive
By a million and one things negative

For when you are so pensive
I can see your massive
Capacity to freely forgive
It's all written here in cursive

Your dealings so persuasive
Most likely will not outlive
A friend whose genuinity is native
And who's so willingly attentive

Rhyme inspired by a very sincere compliment
without any motive.
And by Bill Withers "Lean On Me"

One, Two, Three, Four, Five, Six, Nine, or Ten

One, Two, Three, Four
It's true that, you, I do adore
Five, Six, Seven, Eight
For you, death, I would debate
Nine, Ten, Eleven, Twelve
I would face a thousand elves
3teen, 4teen, 5teen, 6teen
I'd paint the Chapel of Sistine
7teen, 8teen, 9teen, Twenty
I've give you all my Good N Plenty's
Let's skip ahead a little more
To 33, maybe even 64
Eigty, Ninety, One Hundred and One
My love for you has only begun

Rhyme Inspired by Michelle Godfrey
And Feist "1-2-3-4, Tell Me That You Love Me More"

You Know How I Feel

Honesty is overrated
It's doesn't change a thing
The only effect it really has
Is to make your insides sting

Not that lying is my choice
When faced with truthfulness
But faking that so often happens
'Tis the culprit of this ruthfulness

But on reflection I must say
This is a false assumption
And now a verse or two will fix
My over-zealous gumption

Yes, honesty can be used wrong
By those who do not treasure
A simple truth that brings to light
An unappreciated measure

But if for instance, I may venture
To be honest spoken here
You'd find out that honestly
I hate to wear cashmere

And then if I were to be brave
And speak what's on my mind
"Provo is my nemesis"
Is likely what you'd find

On the pages of my mind
You can read all day
And quickly see that it is I
Who has weakness to disobey

You'd see my faults so clearly then
In their honest light
You'd see that I cannot deny
The simple beggars plight

Every mark upon my soul
To which I have mended
Will tell you straight and honestly
Many I've regretably offended

Kindness which is always known
But devalued and disregarded
When honestly is reviewed
The actions are safeguarded

So why oh why cannot we choose
To adore and appreciate
A charity that is giv'n to us
Instead of choosing to berate

Honesty does have some purpose
I must honestly confess
It frees the soul and takes a flight
It allows one to express

Rhyme Inspired by honestly faking it
And by Michael Buble "Feeling Good"