if only waking up
had anything at all to do
with being awake
waking up is the easy part
i take that back
it's not easy because
insomnia never feels easy
or effortless
on the contrary it feels
effort-full
like it saps one's energy
simply by happening
but oh how i long for
awake
for that moment when
one feels fully alive
fully engaged
those AHA! moments
when suddenly i
can see clearly as if
the fog has been wiped
off the lenses of my
eyes
because it’s never a
matter of just being awake
it’s about feeling awake
about not sleep-walking
through life it’s about
having the energy to
wake up the cells that
are crying out
for some life
my life is so rich
no, not this one
not the one you see
(or think you do)
the other one
that one over there
in a parallel universe
don't give me that look
don't pretend you
don't have one too
we all do
don't we?
i used to visualize
a place...over there
thinking my other life
took place some place
outside of me
until it dawned on me
that even though that
other universe is inside
my head it's no less
real a place no less
of a destination
i'm a writer there
funny how i save 'real'
writing for the parallel
place and just write
poetry in 'real' life (heh)
i'm a photographer
there too and i make
short films (that's what
makes the parallel universe
such a fab place...i have
all the right equipment
there...everything i need)
in the parallel place i
live in my own weird combo
city that's a mix of new york
san francisco paris new orleans
malibu and mayberry
a newparciscobuberryleans
if you will
my homestead is a
quirky melange of styles
an undefinable hybrid home
that combines elements of
an Airstream an 18th century
French Quarter flat a beach
house a tent a rustic cabin
a coffee house and a
drive-in theater
i live right on the ocean
river lake stream (because
in my parallel universe they're
one and the same)
i host salons there
we do readings and have
open mic nights and do
fun stuff for the kids
they particularly like our
campfire movie nights
(i'm kind of fond of them
too) the walls are filled
with an ever-changing gallery
of art of all types (i do
mixed-media myself)
it's kind of a cool place
my parallel universe
maybe i'll invite you over
sometime