CliffSongs

  People   The little dog likes his walks, The man likes how well his pet is trained. He bags up the dog poop, Good citizen. He leaves the bag on the sidewalk. People are the worst People there are. Is half an effort Worth the trouble? Would asking him that Waste oxygen? She signed up for the climate newsletter. She forwards it to everyone. She thanks herself for doing her part. She won’t donate. She finds plastic bags provided More convenient than bringing a reusable in. Is the non-effort of one person so bad? How about the million just like her? People are the worst People there are. Don’t tell me of good deeds Performed to salve a conscience. Don’t show me help That is only assuaging guilt. Why are the consequences Someone else’s problem? How long before They stop performing at all? The little dog has a bladder infection, The carpet gets a bad smell. The shelter can only keep so many at a time… People Are...

  Crash Carnival   Hello suckers… ARE WE READY FOR THE CRASH CARNIVAL? WELL???   We open the curtain to: The Elaborate Disaster, Intricate in its processes, An undulate progression, Stagnant in practice. See the Clown Confessor! He explains the course corrections, Not getting the joke, He tells all. See the Big Hat! It’s on top and still empty! Not everyone wants to wear it – They all put it on. It’s starting to get too heavy, But that’s the fashion these days! And look there! It’s the Minion Ride! Climb on and lose your mind! And then your soul. Or the reverse if you like, It doesn’t matter which, It’s still an endless spiral, And the only direction is down. And what is there to eat? Crow. Lots and lots of crow. And your hat and of course your foot, Which has been in your mouth all along! And all of it is covered in sugar and cocaine: Tastes sweet going down, Gets you on your way in a hurry, And ke...

  Before   Sometimes, When I am very tired, I can see the Long Ago, A Before, When I was.   I was more then, We all were. We shone, So we did not fear the dark, Or the things that came from there after. That was the mistake, I think, We were so young, And had not yet learned bad.   We were warned. Told of things We could not understand, But some learned, yes, Some learned.   They stopped shining, And said that it was growth, That they were becoming, And they were, But we did not see They were becoming less, Though they said that they were more. Then they set themselves above us, Used words as weapons, Until we shone less, Making it easier for them, And harder on us.   Sometimes, I get so very tired, And see glimpses of the Long Ago, The Before, When we were, When we shone, So that we no longer fear the dark, Or those, That wish to keep us there.   We can shine. ...

  It’s So…   It gets weirder. You never know when, Until you’re there, And then it’s so weird. You try to piece it together: The how, The when, And why nothing fits Until it does - And then it hits you: It was always weird.   You got weirder. You tried to normal, But you weren’t there, You were too weird. They tried to take pieces of you, Your why, Your who, And it gave them fits, Until they won’t, Because it hit them: You just got weirder.   They get weirder. They aren’t normal, They’ll never get there, They’re just too weird. They tried to fit you, Somewhere, Somehow, But you picked up the pieces. Because they won’t. It finally hit you: It’s always weird.   So, it gets weirder. The whole of your when, Your every there, It’s just weird. Everything is all pieces: Every why, Every then, And looking back, it fits, Because it does, And sometimes it hits you: That’s so we...

  Perspicacious Persists   Perspicacious looked out upon the unraveling, And he packed his bags. He could not say If it was the beginning of an end, Or the end of a halting start. It mattered not which – An end is not defined by its beginning. Perspicacious spent no time wondering: It had gone wrong, In spite of his efforts, In spite of the efforts of others, Spite and cruelty fed upon themselves, And there was plenty of both to go around. So, he packed his bags, Said minimal goodbyes, Traveled far, And dug in. The unraveling persisted, Grew angry, Violent, Virulent, And raged through. Perspicacious rode it out, And when all had come apart, He wandered the tatters, And kept his head down, And his wits up. The controls were dead, But the ravers were not, Preying on each other, When easier targets were not found. Perspicacious persisted, But did not participate, That way lead to danger and Death was too easy...

  Long Mile   The hours have passed, The journey is long, Not everyone you knew Has come along. The miles have passed, Long under your feet. Still, we press on: A journey incomplete.   Over the long miles, The victories and the trials, The scars and the smiles, Collected over the long miles.   The years have passed, A winding track. Is there any wisdom In looking back? The miles are past, You have come this far. So, if I may ask: Are you still who you are?   Over the long miles, The victories and the trials, The scars and the smiles, Collected over the long miles.   Are your memories lessons? What have you learned? Dare you ask the question: What bridges have burned?   Over the long miles, The victories and the trials, The scars and the smiles, Collected over the long miles.   Cliff Lake 2/22/2025 Copyright © Clifford Lake 2025

Starwash   They drift past my window, Wisps and whispers, Singing sad songs, On moonless nights. Beautiful and ethereal, Only half here, And somewhat there, They bid me dance with them, And learn unremembered secrets Under the starwash. We listen for the melody Brought on earthy breezes, Played on the trees. No step is undue, No partner unwanted. No small creatures flee before us, And my spirit is cleansed, Under the starwash. They sing soft and slow, That I may understand, And share in a loneliness For lost brothers, I did not know I had. But awakened from my bones: A longing and an ache Present in my waking self, And only partly made well now, Under the starwash. They beseech my belief, Though I am willing enough, Still they ask that I dance again, When the moon once more hides, And the clouds part for us, That we may find each other, And remember our kinship, And the trust we used to hold, And share in o...

  Far and Long   It was long, long ago, And far, far away. I sat dreaming, Dreaming summer away. Summer is gone, But I dream on, Of a long ago, Far away.   Time has grown cold, Too many tales told, Dreams fall into years, They’re here, Become unclear, Then disappear. Why did I stray, So long ago, far away.   Once long ago, And so far away, I thought that I could Dream life away. Summer was long ago, It seems far away, There is much to do, Here I must stay.   So I live here, Live day by day, And dream dreams gone, Try to hold on today. And while time may heavy weigh, There was light in summer, Once long ago, And far away.   Cliff Lake 2/21/2025 Copyright © Clifford Lake 2025

  Crossroads Again   Criminals in the sacred hallways stalk. The villains have grabbed all the keys and broken the locks. How do we with these fiends grapple? They have broken into and defiled the chapel.   Fools reveling in disaster, Institutions falling faster. Where is the light we were assured? Look at the future unsecured.   Here at the crossroads again, Grasping for the receding rope’s end: Is this the choice you did not make? Is this the chance you failed to take? Here at a crossroads again.   Tendrils of infamy encircle in siege, Power being removed beyond reach, Grasped by brutes who cannot be appeased, Why would anyone choose this disease?   We once again live in oppressive clime. We fought off such straits upon a time. We stood against the evil then, We find ourselves at that crossroads again.   Here at the crossroads again, Grasping for the receding rope’s end: Is this the choice y...

  Friends   I can see my friend, I can see him from here. But he won’t visit any longer, He won’t come by. He no longer trusts me, Or the people I live by, And I do not blame him.   What have I done to my friend To cause him to shy from me? I have existed. I have existed in the right place At the wrong time. And though that is not my fault, Still, I do not blame him.   Once I loved my existence, In this place, In my time, Faulted though it was. But now too many that also live here Embrace those faults, And name them virtues.   Loudly they proclaim against my friend, And name him lesser, And claim debt of him, And threaten his home, His livelihood, His autonomy, And would co-opt his home.   What’s worse, Is that I do not know If I can stop them, From attempting to act on their words, And neither does my friend, Nor do any of his friends. And I don’t blame them.   Once I ...

  Mired   Muddy waters, Hidden hazards, Smoke and haze, And through it all, Strident voices crying imaginary woe.   They wandered the broken landscape, Scavengers they were called, Parasites and scroungers, Yet they only desired to live. Their clothes were poor but sturdy, Good enough for the work deemed their station. Hard muscled they became, Built rough, And living rougher.   Mists and mirrors, Fogs and feints, Deceits and despair, And through it all, Invocations against each other.   They worked the blasted earth, Menials they were named, Unworthies and unwanted, Yet still they were used. Their eyes were clear and unhardened, Good enough to see through lies told too often. Hard willed they became, Numerous, And growing stronger.   Moans and accusations, Complaints and threats, Empty promises and failures, And through it all, The gibbering fear that they will be seen.   ...

  Timecode   From odd places an off wind blows, From a bizarre cyclone the strangeness flows, From turbulent pasts some illness thrown, Seeds of interruption in the present sown.   Sudden slides, curves of unreason known, Hapless ends on the wings of illogic grown. What do these meritless finalities bode? There is being ciphered a wrong timecode.   From whence comes all this uneven tension? Who’s jammed the switch and is gunning the engine? Madmen in the control room have thrown away the manual, Punched all the buttons and broken the handle!   Imps and imposters granted unearned access, Existence ever eternally going trackless. Pilotless truck gone amok, dials on overload. Inanity track, no looking back, unwriting the timecode.   Dreams unseamed, nightmares in every pocket, Raised hairs, new scares, and no way to stop it. How will we survive sane enough to tell the tale, On a runaway train riding a broken ra...

  For Immediate Rele ase: The Real Fake News – Kids in the Hall Edition   Elon Musk today announced plans to have wheels replace his feet after discovering one of them was a left. “If we’re going to make any progress, I’m going to have to roll through this presid… uh, appointment.” said the erstwhile cyborg to a group of children he pulled from a large sack. He then ordered the group to rifle through the Resolute desk and throw out whatever they found.   President Trump took laps at the Daytona 500 race. As expected, no egg prices dropped as a result.   Mark Zuckerberg has cancelled all public appearances until his oil can is located. He has however promised to continue making Facebook even worse.   Health and Human Services secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. today denied reports of the existence of the H5N1 virus, also known as “bird flu” claiming, “Whoever heard of a bird with cold symptoms, I mean, c’mon!” Meanwhile he promised to release a list of...

  Histories   Ancient account, Mythos proclaimed, The records were broken, The pieces scattered. Fragments found and Misread and Misunderstood and Misrepresented. Guidelines against disaster Not prophecies but Warnings of mistakes, Of reaching too far, Too fast, Too willingly. Do you find them too cryptic, Or is that what you’re told? O Alexandria! O Teotihuacan! We stumble through Göbekli Tepe, We wander Giza, We wonder in the Betatakin Cliffs, Mighty and wise, Once powerful, Now fallen, Burned, or abandoned. What secrets your people held, We can only guess, Taken to the grave, And gone. If you could see us now, Would you warn us of our danger? Would we listen? Do we ever? Or are the warnings understood, And hidden, To make the future irrevocable. Or is disaster upon us already, And awaits the final push? Do we want to know the answer?   Cliff Lake 2/16/2025 Copyright © Clifford Lake 20...

  Questions   In the spaces between the dreams, The noises of living, The taking and the giving, And the constant question: “Why?” In the faces of the timestream, In the smiles and the frowns, In the eyes cast down, And do you ever wonder: “Why?” In the chases involved in the schemes, The upward flow to the bosses, The betrayals and the losses, And do you ever stop to ask: “Why?” In the braces you wear in your team, Do you get less, and yet do more? How long has your back gone sore? Do you look back and ask: “Why?” In the disgraces gone extreme, How did they get to the top? How do we get it to stop? Is there any point in asking: “Why?” In the spaces between your dreams, As you strive for a decent living, Are you to remain so forgiving? If you are to allow this to continue, I have to ask: Why?   Why?   Cliff Lake 2/15/2025 Copyright © Clifford Lake 2025

  Hollow Wind   A hollow wind blows – Bringing nothing. This is winter’s remains: The cold has already arrived, The leaves long since departed, The clouds keep back precious moisture, And still the wind blows.   Low whistles cry no syllables, Yet haunting moans imperil the spirit, A succubus in sound.   Gritty dust swirls up, Falling again as each gust passes, Taken aloft anew, Then reposited. Futile cycle. Nothing changes But the patterns on the walk, Read by none, Trod unseen, Kicked and scuffed, Waiting for the next disturbance.   Bare branches rattle ominous, Swaying in a dance performed to closed doors, Shuttered windows, Lit from inside.   Children wobble overdressed, Scarves and balaclavas reveal The minimum of bitten flesh. Walking becomes scurrying, A handful of upturned collars, Covered heads, And bent backs intent on escaping The hollow wind blowing.   Cliff Lake...

  Stealin’   Another day and Another distraction Pointing away A continued subtraction.   Moving the funds from Over there to here, Three card monte, The funds disappear.   You fell for the carnival pitch, Now you see the bait and switch. Maybe you call it double dealin’, In the old days we just called it stealin’.   They tell you to trust, But their story’s too old. “Follow the money” But the trail has gone cold.   Just what are they doing With their kiddie hacks? They’ve made such a mess, It covers their tracks.   You fell for the carnival pitch, Now you see the bait and switch. Maybe you call it double dealin’, In the old days we just called it stealin’.   You thought you gave yourself a break, You thought you’d get a piece of the cake. You find out you never had a stake, This is what you voted for, cupcake.   You fell for the carnival pitch, Now you see the bait a...

  Gulf of Embezzle-O   Elon and his kiddies swarm, He says we need Xtra reforms. The U.S. is reaching new sub-norms, Watching all the DOGE deforms.   And the Orange Ogre lets it go, Bringing the U.S. low. But We the People, we still know, They plunder from here to the Gulf of Mexico.   The Gulf of Mexico, my friend, Where the dinosaur met his end, There isn’t any need to pretend, In the Gulf of Mexico, my friend.   The Oval Office internal foe, His rich guy cronies in tow, The Rule of Law is no mo’ From here to the Gulf of Mexico.   The Gulf of Mexico, my friend, Why would anyone backbend? Seems like such a dead-end, Messing with the Gulf of Mexico, friend.   How do we throw off this shadow? I think we need better ammo. They would have us exist below, Under guard from here to the Gulf of Mexico.   The Gulf of Mexico, my friend, We will not condescend. Listen as I recommend, Stil...

  A Long Way   The Big Rock Candy Mountain, The forever youthful fountain. No trouble that needs surmountin’ No trials that need accountin’.   Always in the warm mainstream, Never exposed to the extreme. A life lived on a moonbeam, That’s a long, long way to dream.   A long way to dream, Life gets in between. This ain’t no TV screen, Such a long way to dream.   Never grinded in the mill, Never having to foot the bill. It all comes as you stand stock-still, It’s merely a force of will.   Existing always in a golden gleam, Lazing your way downstream. Things are exactly as they seem, What a very long way to dream.   A long way to dream, Life gets in between. Will someone intervene, Such a long way to dream.   Would you live so happily Would you be in rhapsody Would you just find stagnancy Lost and found in fantasy?   A long way to dream, Life gets in between. It’s all ...

  Lost of the Win   Somehow these are the cards that we drew: A couple of jokers that don’t care about you. This is the craziest crew: Pete wouldn’t withdraw from the WHO.   Hungry babies in the Bible belt, Losing on the hand that they dealt. Scratching their heads and it’s such a shame, They still don’t get they were always the game.   A disaster in every town, An infection in every pot! Epidemics and poisons going down! Get ’em while they ‘re hot!   Departments mined and then shut down, The dealers collect while the people drown. Ante up and join the shakedown! See what you get for effin’ around?   All these losers that went all in, All these losers taking it on the chin. What’s happened to your stupid grin? How did you lose it all on the win?   A disaster in every town, An infection in every pot! Epidemics and poisons going down! Get ’em while they ‘re hot!   Cliff Lake 2/8/2025 ...

  Memory Follows   The fading paint of memory. Time becomes a distance, Increasing with or without the footstep, A retreat in minutes and hours, Of days and finally years, Hazy, Unclear, But coming into sharp clarity at times, Only to retreat again. A distance traveled now in thought, Slighted of deed.   The failing paint of memory. Sights and sound going gray, Indistinct and muddled, Yet inseparable from the self, A skein beneath the skin, Holding one together, A connection to what was, Is no more, May never have been, And makes you what you are.   The falling paint of memory. Exposing nothing beneath, Our being counted in a continuous past, Created in moments unheld, Looked back upon With the measuring eye, That may see clearly, Or may diffuse that glimpse, Seeing splendor that is not, Or tragedy that has broken one, Or creates a strength of will unlooked for.   The fallacy of memory. ...

  Vortex   He was trying to pay in paper money, As if. He only had the one power cell, One of the good solars, Couldn’t take that, Slow death, Only a day or so Before the next vortex cuts through. Had him choring for two days, Fed him, Sent him on his way with a good knife, And the emergency blankets he’d come for – Still plenty of loot in the Bass Pro, Now that we’ve wasted the goons. Doc, We call him Doc because he keeps reading. Doc has us farming. He’s probably right, Corn’s coming up good anyway, Gets more true all the time says Doc, That mutie shit from a couple years back, Killed some. Doc said some of the weaker ones Weren’t gonna make it through the next vortex anyway. He’s probably right. He knows a lot of shit like that. Says it’s in his books, Saved my life once he says. I don’t remember, The Red Sick fucks up your brain. Hope Doc don’t get it – Maybe some don’t like him and his smarts, But they kn...

  Great Undo   Data breaker extraordinaire, What the hell is he doing in there? Is he still the tech sensation? Nah, he’s just stealing your information.   Top dog gives him a blank check, Standing down while the nation is wrecked. Seduced by the South African: Prez has left you for another man.   Feel them pull the rug under you, What are they really up to? Is this what you asked them to do? Welcome to the Great Undo.   Was is it supposed to go like this? Giving your info the death kiss? How do you think your life will go, When there isn’t anything they don’t know?   Look how the big man backs from his threats – What does he really want to get? When did he become X’s biggest fan? Donny has left you for another man.   Feel them pull the wool over you, What are they really up to? Is this what you want them to do? Welcome to the Great Screw You.   Will we let them in every division squa...

  They Say   “Look!” they say As they empty your plate, “The feast has just begun!” “Hooray!” they bray, “We celebrate The feeding of the One.”   “What joy!” so coy, They dangle the ploy Announced ad infinitum. “Misread!” they said, As the rats they bred, Prepare to turn and bite ‘em.   “We won!” they spun, Beating the sagging drum, And they smile gritted teeth. “You can’t!” they pant, And policy recant While quaking underneath.   “Stay away!” they pray, “Or we will surely make you pay!” Fearing that we may just have the guts. “You need!” they plead, Displaying their wanton greed, They’re complicit up to their butts.   “Unfair!” they share, While pretending they care, Their hands busy in the till. “We deserve!” they serve, Hoping they aren’t observed Thwarting the people’s will.   We see, you agree, And just where can they flee, Maybe to some golf haven. They’re debris we d...

  Pirated   We let them come aboard, Though without much trust. Ignoring tattered honor, And reputations made of rust. We gave over tiller, They claimed it was their due, Now they’re steering for the rocks, They broke the rudder in two. We hear them sing:   “We’re jolly pirates, Dangerous and bold. See us get ours, You’re left in the cold. We’re plundering pirates, We cannot be controlled, We’ll sink this ship, Once we’ve emptied the hold.”   They’ve raised the full sail, The storm strains the mast. The crew is in the brig, The passengers harassed. Some sailors remain, Surviving the cull, Someone to man the oars, Before they scuttle the hull. And the pirate sings:   “We’re mighty pirates, Blinded and bold. We’ll be jumping ship, After pocketing the gold. We’re plundering pirates, We cannot be controlled, We’ll sink this ship, Once we’ve emptied the hold.”   We are careening on, ...

  Diminishing   The gray times are upon us: A diminishing, A long twilight, Though the sun warms hotter, Its vigil is besmirched, And the skies are no longer friendly.   Here we have proudfully wasted, Our celebrations recall the dead, The living going largely unnoticed, Excepting garish blaring shoutings, Lauding many unworthy, Who think much less in return.   Onward we speed! Rushing headlong to nowhere, For all must retire at their end. But while we continue, We run, Only to finally stop; we know not when.   Faster we fly! In our wake, Poison and oily waters, Smokes and burnt land, And as testament to our great pace, The air browns nicely. Those in the high place, They elevate themselves ever higher, To rise above the greases, and the sludges, And make much of themselves, And make worse messes, For those below to clean.   These are the gray times, We diminish: We make the twiligh...

  Whither Thou   Whither thou goest, Lady? Thy trials are just begun, Is sweet Liberty on the run? Whither thou goest, Thy work is not yet done!   Whither thy champions, Lady? They seem so slow to rise, Have they all but closed their eyes? Whither thy champions, They must answer your cries!   Whither thou courage, Lady? Hast thee closed thy hand, Hast thee lost this land, Whither thy courage, Thee must now make thy stand!   Whither thy children, Lady? They cry out in deepening night, They seek your flame and its light, Whither thy children, Do not abandon the fight!   Whither thy ire, Lady? Thy creed is tossed away, Thy care has been betrayed, Whither thy ire, Once more thee must seize the day!   Whither thou goest, Lady? The trials are never done, Liberty walks but never runs! Whither thou goest, This fight has just begun!   Whither thy Declaration, Lady? Whither the da...