The Elusive E.

The people stalled their conversations. The drinks sat back onto coasters. Everyone but me had read the reviews And saw the stars printed on posters.

That night was the only performance And apparently once in a life time. The curtain dropped to the floor suddenly And was replaced by a dream of mine.

I heard the soft voice of a younger lady She sang slow melodies I'd never heard Something about them was so familiar, And I hung on her every word.

I saw stars in her eyes that had long ago faded Still a twinkling but light years away. She sang of a villain; remembered forever While her hero; less than a day.

We spoke briefly between drinks afterwards She told me secrets in books backstage. She wrote lyrics on bar napkins while at work And told me the stories that filled every page.

I walked past that bar where she still works and thought of all the things I could say To help her write songs that would make her smile And make me the best part of her day.

I passed a glance through Victorian windows But never saw the whole way in. The oily glare of forgotten finger prints Obscured the girl within.

I entered and stared across the bar at her. Into the face I loved and then told. But what she replied was merely subjective And our potential had already been sold.

Soon

http://500px.com/theelusivee

The Shadows grew of a friend I once knew Across fresh drawings in tarmac. We were kids of the block, and I take stock In remembering things from that far back.

I removed her picture because I thought that I'd miss her. And placed it face down in a drawer. But the hurts always growing from the never quite knowing The friend who I wish I knew more.

And many years later. I tried to hate her For leaving me the way that she did. But I can show no remorse for life running its course And in my mind she's still just a kid.

So if I ever expressed anything less. Than the absolute purity of young love I apologise. In every tear that I cry And I hope that she sees them from above.

Over the high roof hangs black clouds as proof That from a shoot has grown a stalk. And still to this day, the rain washes away The many people she drew in chalk.

The Shadows grew of a friend I once knew Across fresh drawings in tarmac. We were kids of the block, and I take stock In remembering things from that far back.

On your doorstep I'd say “Can you come out and play?” With hopes of drawing people on concrete. You'd always say “yes” and in me you'd confess The trouble with us having to be discreet.

We played where we liked. On pitch or on bike. Until the street lights came on and grew cold. We were just two, me and you, But you were denied the chance to grow old.

I still remember the clothes that your dear mum chose So you'd be easy to spot in a crowd. And I'm sure she still sees. Your face and grazed knees From the fun that she never allowed.

Over the high roof hung black clouds as proof That from a shoot would grow a stalk. And later that day, the rain washed away The many people you drew in chalk.

We Will Become Silhouettes

http://500px.com/theelusivee

My heart quickly melts When I hear your name But it doesn’t stop And bursts into flame.

You watched it burning Then die at your feet But it catches the gloss With it’s smouldering heat.

A flame wraps up to Your pedestal, high. Turning to face me You want to ask why.

But it’s too late to Try and explain. Just sit back, relax And enjoy this pain.

Soon there’ll be nothing Just embers in silence. Gone will be the days Of hating and violence.

Through the roaring of flames And blackest of smoke I see you sputter In spasms and choke

Until the flames reach The roof of the sky. Soon I can laugh, roast marshmallows and cry.

High and Lonesome

http://500px.com/theelusivee

I like to come here - This is where the sound of the pacific ocean calmly lapping against the sand sings louder than any noise this city can muster. Tonight these waves are all mine and after each crash they tap out the rhythm of my evening. Skimming across every one, in almost perfect timing, is a thought that skips further away from me towards the sinking sun.

I breath deep and can smell the vastness of the salty heart; so deep, so honest and such a mystery to me. I keep my feet firmly in the sand knowing how easily I could be dragged into the rolling torrent and drown. I stay wondering how deep the shelf of our world will drop. The ocean is just one more thing I know nothing of despite all my study. I want to write down my deepest questions on paper or whatever I have in my pockets and stuff them into the empty bottles accumulating at my side. They soar - throwing them far out towards a distant island in hopes of them returning to me one day, the answers inscribed within and then my solutions can come to me, rolling with the fresh rhythm onto shore. In this fantasy I knead, I find a bottle of yours one evening and give you my best advice and throw it back into your hands. Wherever you are…

Kings and Queens

http://500px.com/theelusivee

Nocturne

http://500px.com/TheElusiveE

You Read My Mind

http://500px.com/TheElusiveE

At 30 miles per hour the urethane lost all grip. I have grazes on my knees and a swollen bottom lip. He says “Nothing makes you feel more alive than road rash” Licking his lips and wiping Sweat from his moustache.

I don't agree from the floor and look out towards the lake. From up here it looks perfect. So beautiful. Almost fake. I'm sweating from shot nerves and the unforgiving sun. He said I'd be a winner. He said this would be fun.

Rows of foundations line the roadside where we're stood. Ree-bar and a mail box don't make a neighbourhood. I should hear kids on lawns Not my knees and their screams. He rides off and shouts back to me but I don't catch what he means.

My wounds weep in the heat and I'm reminded of riding bikes For the first time in fields and abandoned construction sites. With my brother pedalling faster than I ever could. I never gave up chasing him throughout our childhood.

Now I'm on a mountain, dehydrated and alone. My apartment is down there somewhere but won't call it a home. The view up here is something you have to see to believe... I think maybe he was right about the rash covering my knees.

The Great Salt Lake

http://500px.com/TheElusiveE

My toes are in sand. Not too coarse. Not too fine.

My knees meet an ocean. A fresh chill; An open mind.

My jeans are rolled up. Not one sound Of passers by.

My eyes stay fixed On horizons; My infinite line

Thin Air

http://500px.com/TheElusiveE