Family Plot

Step inside
My newfound friend
Its the beginning
Not the end

There's a family plot
At the front of the house
Not a creature is stirring
Not even a mouse

The burial ground
Has been disturbed
Don't you worry
She's not perturbed

They say she wanders
Around at night
Giving the living
Quite a fright

The Curious Dr. Blackwood

Up on the bluff
In Bodie Town
The cemetery
Had disturbed ground

The body was found
Deep in a mine
Subject of experiments
To further his science

Dr. Blackwood
In Top Hat and cape
Took the midnight stage
So he could escape

He got away
Was never found
In the Walker River
They say he had drowned

At Home With The Aspens

There's an old house
Forgotten in time
Its lonely and cold
Looks so left behind

The old man who died
Had no kin to grieve
The house was his home
Grown over with trees

The Aspens have grown
Up through the floor
Into the windows
And out the back door

The house fully paid
There were no more bills
The tax collector sighed
For this house on the hill

Yet, She Taunts Me

She's always on my mind
My affliction
Just when the coast seemed clear
Like an addiction she re-appears

She's my only love
The only one who
Made me feel real
Now I feel healed

Her jaundiced eyes
A rude disguise
She loves me so
For the Devil told me so

She Haunts Me

She haunts me
Cuz I know she wants me
But why and what for?
I'd rather ignore

I just can't escape her
I don't know who made her
Could it be God?
Why is she so odd?

She whispers in tongues
Through tightly pursed lips
Her arms with bent wrists
And hands that seem limp

She has jaundice eyes
Looks down from on high
Unhealthy and cold
Died young I've been told

Your Eventual Ghost

If you have a conscience
Then you have a soul
That holds a place for
Your Eventual Ghost

We may not survive
Or live forever
But we are vessels
Place holding our soul

Our soul is our
Earthly heart
When we pass on
That's when we start

Chorus

When we die
We only start
Our Eventual Ghost
Comes from our heart

I was raised in the Episcopal Church, and have read quite a bit of both the New and Old Testament. While these were written by some old dudes a long time ago – I think a book of morals is a good thing. I also think any religion that is based on The Golden Rule is great. But sadly – I gave up religion years ago due to so much hypocrisy and those who use religion for their political and other money making devious ventures. On top of that – fundamentalists and in your face bible thumpers just plain suck. No wonder churches are closing down right and left.

There is still a part in me that thinks – maybe – just maybe – there is something that is bigger than us ant like humans and that maybe there is at least some Devine or cosmic force in the universe. I say this because I can look at stars and the moon at night or just the beauty of nature during the day – or perhaps witnessing a kind loving gesture by a human being and then some of my erstwhile faith is restored. But man, its getting harder and harder it seems.

Nature makes me feel like there is a God – and humans make me feel like there is a devil. Just kidding (not kidding) – there are some really, really bad humans that have polluted this earth the last 5 or 6 years. Parading as saints no less. Charlatans Jesus threw out of the Temple . . . Throw in gun violence – and what a misery stew.

Any way – none of us live forever – so I have been reflecting on what we are and what a heart and soul is. No definitive answers – but it is an interesting thing to ponder every now and then.

Familiar Ghosts

I thought a lot about how ghosts can be friendly and even loving. Ghosts are in photographs and the double entendre is the word familiar. Thanks Great Grandma Grace! Its a gift from a relative I never met but who has my mothers face. Quite the fantastic experience.

A Photograph
A Smiling face
A family ghost
Another time
Another place

A Photograph
A Family ghost
Here's to you
My friend
A toast

A Photograph
My Reflection
A Family Ghost
A distant town
A distant Connection

Old Places

Merriam Mansion – Newton, NJ
Old train stations
Haunted places
Come to life
In my mind

An old wall
Falling
Rusted sign
Fade with time

Photograph
Ghostly laugh
Old headstones
Buried bones

Chorus

Old places
Old stories
Cracked patina
Faded glory

The Moderns at Dingmans Ferry Bridge

Just below
A little ridge
Across the Delaware
Spans a tiny bridge

A peaceful river crossing
Dingmans is its name
Used to have a Ferry
That's its only fame

Some say its haunted
Its just quiet and still
For some its too much nature
That gives The Moderns chills