Thus I Wrote

You must value me
To want to spend time
We take our turn
To give in rhyme

Multiple transactions
Part of our interaction
And the credit we create
Builds the attraction

We rise some days
And others we fall
We give when we rise
We try owning our fall

If we value each other
And love enough
We can help each other
When the going gets tough

I’m not doing this for them
No it’s to explore
To find my place
In this world a bit more

I’m not doing this for them
No it’s to explore
Who I am
In this world a bit more

The world is so full
It’s a noisy place
I know I don’t add much
In this human race

I’m just a drop
In the big ocean blue
But you’re a sea for me
And I for you

I know it’s in the distance
Where the earth meets the sky
Sometimes I glimpse it
In the corner of my eye

And so I distract myself
With everyday things
With learning & entertainment
With words and with strings

Still, inexorably I’m pulled
Into the wilderness
To the twisted shapes moving
I see the twilight confess

And yet on the journey
When I hold your hand
Something somehow changes
I feel a meaning I understand

I was slowing down
I slept at wrong times
I forgot many things
I forgot my lines
And then I awoke
With you by my side
And a blinking blue light
…I’d nearly died

I remember being wet
They cut my pants off
I faded in and out
Many hours were lost
In my head was something
It was growing inside
My behaviour changed
…I’d nearly died

From friends and family
A love I didn’t expect
I ordered my affairs
For what might come next
I was glad to wake up
I shivered on the slide
I’d bled too much
…I’d nearly died

Then came steroids
Not much sleep at all
But very dark dreams
I passed out in a fall
The hospital staff
Helped as I tried
As I recovered slowly
…I’d nearly died

Too much to say
Too intense and raw
Over days and months
I struggled with it all
But you were there 
You held me when I cried
As you struggled to cope
Cos I’d nearly died

We met that evening
In the ICA cinema
We met that evening
In the ICA cinema
Your hands were so warm
My heart began to thaw

They say the darkest hour
Is right before the dawn
They say the darkest hour
Is right before the dawn
It’s been brighter since I’ve met you
Is my conclusion drawn

In the dark at the Green Note
Music floated in the air
In the dark at the Green Note
Music floated in the air
Later we kissed and travelled North
As you moved your hand through my hair

We swim in dirty water
Sometimes we feel sick
We swim in dirty water
Sometimes we feel sick
Some say we’re too sensitive
But I wouldn’t change us a bit

We travelled through London
We saw better by bus
We travelled through London
We saw better by bus
On to Brick Lane graffiti
I love many things about us

You’re in a black mantilla by my grave
In the black dress bought from money you’ve saved
You’re in black sunglasses dropping tears
You’re oblivious to quizzical glances here

Now throw in your red rose
To finish your design
And I’ll love you forever
…In the memories I’ve left behind
And I’ll love you forever
…In the memories I’ve left behind

You’re in a straw hat, as the waves they pass
You’re drinking Rosado, from a beaded glass
You’re in black sunglasses, hiding your fears
You’re oblivious to admiring, glances here

And the breeze it carries the sun
As the boats, begin to dance
As the stars align, one more time
…You have one more chance
As the stars align one more time
…You have one more chance

We acquire knowledge,
And we pass it on down the line
And we do what we can
As we pass through time

And even with our backs against the wall
There’s still hope for us today
We have no answers
But we still have stuff that we can say
And I know we have no answers
But we still have stuff that we can say

We love each other
With our beautiful fractured hearts
We need something to hold onto
We need someone’s hand to grasp

Get more great artwork from the We the People campaign on the Amplifier Foundation website. Build bridges not walls.

I awoke and I rose above
The detritus of the night
Half-remembered dreams
In the anxious half-light
I heard silent whispers
In the candlelight as they fed
And I saw the forgotten many
In the mansions of the dead

I watched her as she talked
And I saw her emotions flicker
I thought and I wondered why?
Do her angels and demons bicker?
I saw a cloud of sadness float by
I wondered what does it teach?
What hand is on her shoulder?
And from where does it reach?

In the night I feel her
Breathing love and affection
And her legs they wrap around mine
Is she seeking my protection
My prayers are like incense
They rise quietly above her head
As she searches for the answers
In the mansions of the dead

You must go now, you must protect yourself
You can see a better future, for you, from the shelf
In your head, you had a dream of me
But I was nervous competing, with someone I couldn’t see
“Don’t worry, we need no scripts”, you said now, didn’t you?
Ah, but it’s all over now between me and you

This pain is real and I ain’t made it up
I didn’t drink for a long time, but you held the cup
I never felt, anything quite like this before
When we met I was nervous, about what I wasn’t really sure
When you held back, I tried, to push on through
Ah, but it’s all over now between me and you

I wear my heart on my sleeve now, or so I’m told
I want it all, or nothing at all, it’s time to be bold
You seemed to get me, you said that we were twins
We gave and wanted love and to be the best at everything
We talked of plans and starting our lives anew
Ah, but it’s all over now between me and you

I forgot the lessons, that you tried to teach me
You want loyalty, and you want love unconditionally
I know now that you’ve set the bar way too high
And you ran when you saw that I would not comply
I would’ve liked one more chance, to make, our dream true
Ah, but it’s all over now between me and you

I remember all the messages that you sent to me
All those pictures and words are seared in my memory
But now we’ve fallen, into a dark silent abyss
Was our deep connection so easy to dismiss?
But are all such questions, now,  just wasted on you?
Ah, cos it’s all over now between me and you

You searched the world for me
And then you found me
And then you liked me
And then you showed me your heart
And then you called out to me
And then you invaded me
And butterflies arose in me
And our love affair did start

So…Breathe, Breathe and let it go
I’m down now on all fours
My head is on the floor

You rose up to meet me
You suddenly reached out for me
You  connected with me
Somewhere deep in the heart of me
That night you were so serene
That night you were a queen
That night you somehow fitted me
That night your words they captured me

So…Breathe, Breathe and let it go
I’m down now on all fours
My head is on the floor

I was falling into the sea
But then you caught me
You began to heal me
You began to love me
And then we were smiling
And then we were loving
And then we were living
But then we were dreaming

So…Breathe, Breathe and let it go
I’m down now on all fours
My head is on the floor