Thus I Wrote

One to the east
And one to the west
The world spins
On some new quest
Things fall apart
The centre can’t hold

America is lost
Broken in two
Republican selfishness
Breaking anew
Things fall apart
The centre can’t hold

China arises
From its slumber
Values are questionable
But can’t ignore numbers
Things fall apart
The centre can’t hold

Europe straining
Between two poles
Holding centre values
Taking its toll
Things fall apart
The centre can’t hold

Britain a wrecking ball
Breaking away
A barking dog following
Republican America
Things fall apart
The centre can’t hold

100 years ago
Similar words were said
As wars ravaged
And many were dead
Are we turning into
New conflicts to behold
Things fall apart
The centre can’t hold

I’m on an island
Disconnected
But I see us evolve
Through chaos & time

To changing perceptions
Of new truths
Of new values
Of a new effective

We compete
Upon foundations
Of our culture
Hidden & taken for granted

I fear a crack
In the foundations
Of our culture
Hidden & taken for granted

I’m trying to focus
On stuff I can influence
On stuff in the middle
Of my little world

I’m trying to do
What I can do
The stuff in the middle
Of my little world

There is so much
That worries me
Outside what I can touch
In my little world

Tell me what to do
To avoid the distractions
Outside what I can touch
In my little world

We are optimistic
We believe
In a better world than is
In hope
In an arc
Towards justice
And a different way
To measure effectiveness
We are optimistic

We are optimistic
We see the same void
But we choose
A different way to fill it
We accept competition
And cooperation within it
An endless circle
We end and begin it
We are optimistic

We are optimistic
We believe in evolution
In constant growth and change
In truth and beauty
In a form that follows function
In everything interconnected
In decisions that consider everything
In accepting our small place
In the chaos of everything
In acquiring knowledge
And passing it down the line
In joining hands and surfing
On the ocean of time
We are optimistic

On a wild horse
Not broken yet
I’m thrown about
Holding on yet
No purpose, stuck
Magnified
No direction, stuck
Can’t ride

In the darkness
From the deep they rise
I see the ghosts
I hear their cries
Then I hold your hand
I see your smiles
I hear the ocean
I see the sun rise

I had a dream. I was on an escalator taking me into the future. I could not get off. Or go back.

My fate, my destiny was fixed. At the end was darkness. I was glad to wake up.

My challenge in the present is to distract myself from that paralysing vision. To live the best I can….for as long as I can.

I have my relationships, those I love. These are my priority.

I am “retired”. But I choose not to accept this as I feel that to be alive means I must add value. I must make things better. I must fix things. I must reinvent myself.

I’m creating a home. I’m learning a new language. I write and compose music. I travel.

But I yearn for more. I am restless for more.

I consider the problems of the age – Inequality, Housing for the next Generation, Climate Change, Innovation, Productivity, Communication, Politics and Democracy. Can I help create a new Politics? Can I help reduce Inequality? Can I help produce new Climate Change policies? Or are all these but distractions. In the end I am on the escalator. In the end I will add little value except perhaps to those I love.

I have dark days. I have good days. But what is life without struggle?

I remember a line in my song “We are Not Alone“…
“ I did not plan for this but now I vow to live it well”.

The giant heavy wheel turns slowly
And I smell fear in the air
And many must make decisions
With no sage to guide them there

The cycle of birth and growth
Is relentless, ruthless and blind
Evolution asks many questions
I can’t answer in my small mind

They’re complacent and blind to change
They pushed too hard and too fast
They allowed the weeds to grow
And now they choke the flowers at last

It’s 100 years, that’s a century
Since the world fell apart
There’s a feeling of something similar
And there’s a feeling of a start

Change is in the nature of things
I cannot control how things unfold
I feel things fall apart again
I feel the centre can’t hold