BE NOT HERE

Disappear, go away and leave me alone,

I don’t need you anymore, you bring nothing.

My energy is being drained, a piece taken away,

You’re out there but I need you not here.

Be not here whoever you are, stay away,

I’ve seen you in too many places around this world.

You’ve done much harm to me fore you are them,

You don’t have a place in my life, a disease you be.

Not to be trusted, worn by you are many faces,

Many faces you are, which might be the right one,

Be not here and I won’t have to wonder who you are.

Keith Garrett

BE A FRIEND

I only ask that you listen when I speak,

In return, I will give you both ears kindly.

Be there when I am in pain and need a shoulder,

I’ll be there to catch you if in time you do fall.

Please do not stab me in the back, no talking about me,

For you, I will speak directly to you, also if I’m angry.

Understand that there is in me no perfect piece you’ll see,

I know you are a person with human flaws, that’s quite okay,

Be a friend to me and a friendship we will share, I do care.

Keith Garrett

AWAY FROM IT ALL

Life as I know it left far behind, stored quietly,

Kept in my mind somewhere but not forgotten.

On an island, one of many seen by these eyes,

Waves crashing on the beach for me to see.

Sitting here in the sand just thinking about,

There are sounds heard but only of nature.

Palm trees are many in this world, across the sea,

What’s needed only brought with me, only needed.

Away from it all is where I need to be, can you dream,

On an island of wishes and a man’s fantasy.

Keith Garrett

AT TIMES I AM BLIND

Open your eyes!, this is said from with inside as i seem at times blind,

There is so much to see but i must confess that what is important sometimes escapes my sight.

A blind man can not physically see but learns to observe more than a man with vision,

A man with no sight asked of me, tell me young man what things with your eyes do you see.

There are at times many things I wish not to see, pain and destruction from the world today,

What i asked was that which you see not a thing about wishes or that which you do want to see.

I see the mountains, the ocean, the sky, and all there is of beauty that god placed down upon the earth,

Yes!, at times i am blind to all of these things just as they are taken for granted by most every man.,

You are a blind man, so who do you think you are trying to give me a lesson or too teach me,

Young man, are you a follower of those who are of negative ways?, take responsibility for yourself.

I am blind but in my time i have seen so much more than your seeing eyes can ever dream,

You are at times very blind, your eyes are open but it is a mans mind that is truly closed.

Keith Garrett

AT THE TOP OF THE LADDER

They think they’re almighty, the top is not kind,

A chain of command they preach, it is a fool who is blind.

They do not listen but they hear what you say,

See only what they want, negative all the way.

Ask for a raise, they’ll see what they can do,

Sorry not right now, you’re the first on the list.

Numbers and robots, w-2 with a name,

If for any reason you don’t like it then please go away.

There’s much for you to do, it’s your job anyway,

We did not invite you here, sorry you don’t like the pay.

More responsibility, just do what we say,

A dime a dozen, you’re replaceable anyway.

Keith Garrett

AT THE TOP OF THE HILL

From where I stand, it seems so high,

My struggles to climb up near the sky.

To get up there at the top of the hill,

Will take my energy, also my will.

Scrapes and bruises are a part of my quest,

Where I’d like to get for my life to be the best.

Slip I might or stumble along the way,

Giving up is not part of my game.

When I get there at the top of the hill,

Accomplished my fight for the thing I did want.

Keith Garrett

AMONGST THE AUTUMN TREES

Into the shadows, underneath the shaded trees,

Footsteps on a carpet of leaves falling like rain.

Glance do i at what’s above, flashes of sunlight,

Gleaming through living statues of brilliant color.

A gentle breeze whispers past through the branches,

Ornaments let go of the arms that hold them floating

quietly and gently to the ground.

Further into the Autumn day i venture,

All is calm with nature as it invites me to share the day.

Amongst the Autumn trees lies much more than one dares to dream,

A never ending cycle of life that can’t always be seen.

Keith Garrett

AMESBURY, MASSACHUSETTS

My thoughts and memories go way back In time to a far away place,

Not so far In distance anymore as the distance In my mind, Amesbury.

There are times when I can smell the air and still feel the cold, snow,

I remember I was only four and a half, I do recall that far back, East.

My eyes can see those purple grapes on the vines, the hills up above our house,

Playing with my friend Donnie, we had many adventures as kids back then.

I’m not really sure but there appeared to be woods or trees down our street,

I remember riding my batman bike, a cellar out back I do believe, not a dream.

I had a bag of blocks, all different colors and shapes, I was just a small boy,

I can remember the snow storms that put the power out, I can see candles In the house.

A memory of being In my bed staring at my Herman Munster head on the dresser,

Coloring books, cartoons such as Milton the monster show, Christmas Eve snow.

Icicles hanging from rooftops, making snowmen out In the freezing cold,

Sometimes I want to go home, back to where It all began, when I was most happy.

I remember laying on my parents bed, staring up at a full moon, when will they be home,

I think of a dad out In the snow, can somebody answer me, where did he go.?

Throwing snowballs Into the street, cold through my gloves, I remember me,

So many memories locked Inside the mind of a long lost child once upon a time.

Amesbury, Massachusetts seems like a dream, A story written from thoughts of a child,

There once was a boy named Keith, he had a life that’s been written In a book put away.

It sets on a shelf but never does It again get read, thoughts that rest forever In a mans head.

Keith Garrett

AMERICA IS A WAR

Everywhere, from land to land they are destroying,

Mass destruction, killing so many in foreign places.

They know and speak of us fore we are the center of attention,

Worry more about what’s happening over there, beware.

America is a war, we are fighting in the streets, hate is strong,

Who can we trust, only ourselves with eyes in the back of our heads.

There is more crime going on behind closed doors than in the dark of night,

Fighting for territory, drug wars, gangs in every town, out of control,

We need not worry about being destroyed by others as we will do this ourselves.

Keith Garrett

ALWAYS A SHADOW

The sun comes up and the sun goes down,

They’re everywhere and always, make not a sound.

Shadows from clouds cast upon the ground,

As the sun goes down, shadows all around.

Shadows upon the mountains in the early morning light,

In the early evening, shadows that hide as darkness is in sight.

Always a shadow, shapes and sizes stretched out across the land,

Shadows of figures, like ghosts, phantoms here and there.

Always a shadow, we carry this with every step we take,

Always a shadow even with the light still upon our face.

Keith Garrett