The city is drenched in gold tonight
the sea is wrapped in silver, like my temples
my hands feel older now than ever
but my mind is so much surer
than back when I was younger
I’ve run from love when it got tough
my hair was bleached in boiling light
I helped as many people as I could
my thoughts were darkened in the wilderness
felt alone in crowds of smiling happiness
I learned to speak, to see, to feel this reality
I’ve understood, been understood
I’ve compromised, been compromised
I’ve judged, been judged
Fairly, unfairly
There has been a heaviness in my limbs at times
and there was a divine light that shone
from somewhere I never knew could be in me
I wronged and cheated with a pathological absence of care
which boomeranged around and sunk me in the end
it’s rough to open your consciousness to reality
Siblings, parents; undulating friendships
the push, the pull of love and life
in trying to align the poles in me
I was blind, but thought I was seeing
I was blank, but thought I was saying something
the painted stones I carved, I threw them out to sea
I’ve deceived, been deceived
I’ve contradicted, been contradicted
I’ve believed, been believed
Justly, unjustly
So, I take off my shoes
take out my headphones
I want this wave to wash all over me
The short hand, the long multiplications
I laid out all my working for you to see
trying to crack the code of something real
the combination of what is me
I’ve been taking thirty steps away
from where they forged my heart
I’ve been taking thirty steps toward the tide line
where I etched my childhood
drew a line beneath it and paused to watch…
The waves of youth lap out
the waves of youth
the waves
the…
[2011]
Thanks for reading.
[Written on the eve of my 30th birthday]
The Lighthouse 
Interesting poem 🙂
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Thank you. It does cover a lot of ground 🙂
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Oh the fickleness of youth!
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Indeed 🙂
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Soothing recording and a voice like waves. Gaining and losing again and again.
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Ah thank you for listening! Glad you liked the audio.
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A great milestone reflective poem enjoyed it very much!
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Thanks Cassa, so pleased to hear that. Thanks fo reading/listening.
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🤗
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Reblogged this on The Reluctant Poet.
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Thank you! 🙂
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Always a pleasure to read and share great posts with followers, My Friend!! Have a great day!
😊👍✨✨🎉
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To think that being 30 once seemed old! Nevertheless, I love the feeling of the poem, Tom.
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I know… crazy times. I think I was acutely aware of in being the ‘end of youth’ but that was partly because I did a lot of growing up around the age of 29 (finally). This is one of those poems where I can picture exactly where I was and what the room looked like when I wrote it, even now. I felt like I’d said what needed to be said that night. Finished about an hour before turning 30. Thanks for reading and for sharing your thoughts.
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