Years go by as in a blender,
Nameless hate and voiceless splendor,
Longing for the true, and tender,
Wondering about the cruel —

Days go by in silent seething,
Boldly lying, barely breathing,
Life, a constant state of teething,
Playing dress-up, and, the fool.

Lyrics lived, and sometimes quoted,
Values overwrought, outmoded,
Bitterness that’s candy-coated,
Wandering out in the cool —

Palisades to wall out danger,
Love, a dog within a manger,
Mirror image now a stranger,
What was once a precious jewel,

Left behind and lost
In school