WHERE I WAS GOING
I was walking down the road, the moon full of glow,
Late into the night, on my face something of a fright,
In the distance forever was waiting for me, I can see,
Where I was going such a long journey beneath my feet.
I saw where I had come from, where it was I had been,
I left behind many a friend, far from here and then.
The road has been long, splits and turns to everywhere,
I carry my burdens upon my shoulders, leave them in the end.
Keith Garrett
ROBBIE PARSONS
YOU’VE GONE AWAY
I remember you, Mr. Parsons, from such a long time ago,
You woke to a morning, nineteen seventy eight is when I met you.
A young man with a smirk on your face, a walk to school you go,
Skatefactory and parties on many weekend nights, your teenage life.
I have been told you did frequent friends church at one time,
The love of music, I heard you did sing Beth as a youngster,
That Popeye’s imitation of yours was not too bad with a laugh.
I remember you well in the afternoon of your life, some good times,
We were roommates, you, my brother, and I, we worked side by side.
Many adventures from city to city, in the heat and rain we traveled each day,
So many stories were told, memories of days in a town, Placentia.
Robbie, friend of ours, there was happiness and laughter, that was real,
At one time it was you who did join the Air Force,
What later darkness and torment hovered within your soul?
It’s late afternoon, the sun is going down, where went your smile,
Darkness falls upon the land, God has come and taken hold of your hand,
Do not fear as pain and sorrow are no more here, you have gone away.
In heaven may your smile be always bright, no pain beyond life,
Listen to your music, sing your favorite song, eternity is all yours.
Rest in peace, friend,
Keith Garrett
As he sat down in his rocking chair he began to speak,
With a smile, he invited me to sit and went about his story.
His life as a child at the beginning of a war for Independence,
On a farm in South Carolina, he lived with a father, brothers, sisters.
He went on to tell of adventures in the Summer just before it happened,
A big house, great times with family, working the farm each day was tiring.
He must have been about ninety years old now, the war and those days long gone,
A childhood recalled, swimming in the pond with a friend or two, the night’s moon.
He told me of this war being all around them, nothing would be the same, much change,
Tears in his eyes as he described that time and place where brothers and family died.
He sits in his chair today, many years away from there, he lives in that house today,
He sits in his chair on that porch where as a child he played, he told me of his life.
Keith Garrett
WRITE THE POEM
You have it in you, stories to be told,
It’s in your heart and soul, young or old.
Whatever it may be from the sky to the sea,
Thoughts from your mind, life, and times.
Write the poem, write about today,
Yesterday is gone, words about the sun going down,
Write the poem.
Keith Garrett
KILLER WITH A HEART
To be left alone, loneliness has its price, kills tonight,
Leave him in peace, no second chance for you will be.
His life is a dance from day to day, killer all the way,
For the money, a job well done never is this for fun.
You woke the demon when you killed his dog, stole his car,
Why couldn’t you leave well enough alone, now you’re done,
Killer with a heart, a look upon his face, simply leave him be.
Keith Garrett
WESTERN WORLD
What was it like many generations ago exploring a new frontier,
Starting a life where everything was so uncertain and dangerous.
Indians and bandits roaming the land trying to everyday survive,
The Indians living off the land, bandits taking all they can.
Building towns where a man or family can start a business for themselves,
Settling outside this town you choose to live and start a family of love.
You’ll have to rough it for a while longer as you have for so long now,
Waking to the morning light, at times cold as a hot cup of coffee will do.
Working hard from sunup till sundown with a dream in your heart,
A cabin with a fireplace, rooms built for comfort, a roof over your head.
The old west was more than a saloon with gambling, drinking, and gunfights,
It was about survival, the discovery of new places, and things accomplished back in a time.
Hardship and disease, many died, gave their lives for a better life, triumph and sorrow,
These people from the past paved the way for dreams and success here in our today.
The pioneers had more struggles than can be imagined, but also had to be tough and strong,
The old west is no longer alive but they did leave their mark, a path across the wilderness.
They survive and live in those today who overcome and succeed, worked through their pain,
The western world has changed, but the blood and souls from the past are buried, their spirits
May be among us in ways as they are also surely gone off beyond this world where peace is theirs.
Keith Garrett
TALE OF AN OUTLAW
Sit back and listen as I tell you this tale of an outlaw,
As a child, his future was uncertain as both mother and father were killed.
Hungry with no one to turn too he begged for food,
Slept wherever might be shelter, survived as a thief.
As he grew he then met those who lived as he lived,
Without skills of his own, he set out on a stolen horse.
He now was a thief and an outlaw, listen further,
With a gun, he did not own, he now robbed from those who did not steal.
Finally, he faced one who did not wish to give,
Murder was now his ultimate crime.
Hunted down by a sheriff and a posse, he was then caught,
Because he could not travel a road of good,
He now layed in the dirty street, dead.
Keith Garrett
FINDING FREEDOM
The search for freedom and a fight to keep it,
After thousands of years more is taken away today.
It’s all up for sale, we can barely walk in the hills anymore,
Dirt, water, and even air are not ours without a dollar.
We are not as free as we believe, we are allowed to do as they say,
All wars are not about freedom, most are of corruption and money.
Finding freedom when so much has changed is becoming rare,
We are losing it from every direction, before our eyes, and behind our backs.
The enemy appears to be us, look to our neighbor more than across the sea,
Look around people, we are losing our rights, finding freedom between what is seen.
Keith Garrett
HILLS’ OF FIRE
Keith Garrett
Look to the sky, watch as the smoke rises high above,
Beauty disappears as the heat consumes what was green.
Ignorance or wind destroys god’s masterpiece created,
A fool is the man who can’t see the gift put in front of him.
See the hills of fire, watch as the animals run, see their fear,
See all that can be seen through eyes of pain, of sorrow.
Hills of fire burn no more, fire of death be rained down upon,
Let life reappear, let the colors so bright be a sight.
Hills of fire and death, open your eyes, do you see,
Hills of pain, hills of sorrow, open your eyes, do you see.
Hills of beauty and laughter, open your eyes, do you see,
Hills of breath, hills of darkness, open your eyes, do you see.
Hills of danger and mistrust, open your eyes, do you see,
The glow in the sky, a scar for all to see.
Hills of eternity and life, open your eyes, do you see,
Hills of slumber, hills of strength, open your eyes, do you.
Take these hills of fire away, never again, there’s a price you pay.
ONLY SO MANY SUMMERS
SO MANY SPRINGS
The sun rises and the sun sets, I’ve seen this,
Will, there be another, I take it in as it’s my last.
Morning breaks, will this be the last time I awake,
Feel the morning, feel the beauty of the day.
I stand in the dark night, feeling the calm breeze,
A full moon rises, will this be the last dark night as I see the nights light.
The ocean and mountains are alive through time,
The clouds with their windblown shapes are forever in the sky.
Only so many Summers, so many Springs,
To dance in the sand, swim in the never ending waves.
To see daylight awake, to see the night close its eyes,
To feel the wind until it says goodbye.
So little time to make memories before we have to go away.
Keith Garrett
