Thought I’d be on my own
When I came to Japan,
Lone wolf wanderin’
With his paper and his pen.
At least I’d have my dream and that would
Sustain; it has and it will
A dream to understand.
Fuck was I wrong, made
Lifelong friends
On our individual journeys
Persisting
Thriving,
Improving crying falling
Flying
Hand in hand.
Wings collect dust
At home.
Friends are out there
Looking for you
As you’re looking for them. So be bold.
Go.

On the
Journey of your life
You’ll feel alone
Your body quake
Shiver with unexplainable emotion when
Walking in the sun.
Shit is seldom easy,
Memories of what you left and fear of what’s to come —
But the body’s made to face that fear
Overcome
It knows it’s made for something more
So it flutters when
It lays there
Spirit’s made to fucking soar
There’s something out there and it’s listening
To words knocking on my heart’s door
Contained they have no meaning
Heart bursts and that’s my art
Colored with uncertainty,
Iridescent in summer light —
And though you’ll feel alone at times
You’ll find beauty in
Nuances of strangers
Answers in redolent fragrances
Of flowers stemming through broken gates
As the feeling of the early morning sun
Lifts you up
Again and again, no
Matter how the heavy the darkness of the night becomes.
You’ll crave the moon as you do the sun
And dance carelessly beneath its glow
After walking miles in unshadowed daylight.
You’ll bare your soul
As you make it through the days
And while not everyone can know it or
Grasp it or understand it, it’ll grow
Walking atop fields of grass and
Roads of dirt and pavement.
I believe in you, bruh,
The streets my stage
The nights my canvas
The days an endless empty page.
At least I have my dream, and that will
Entertain me.
Don’t stop now. Pour oil on
Your flame.

Flowers in my hands;
Roses of purple and white.
Thinkin’ about who I am
I love and I fight
For my right to be me, all of me,
Seeking depths in myself
I can’t yet see; but I know they’re there
For they shine through the cracks
Of this shell constructed, busted, chiseled away
With every last word I pen or I say.
Learning who I am without much of a plan
Following my heart as I travel boy to man;
Think you know me,
I don’t even know me,
Disparate facets that are not
Supposed to be.
I’m an athlete and a poet I like to party and I show it;
I need my time alone to find myself and where I’m goin’
Evolving like the earth and
Revolving like the moon
I’m light I’m shade I open up then fade away
I find myself and then I’m lost
If being real is my aim then identity might be the cost.
I work hard for the glory yet can’t tell if that’s my story —
In the cities I’m alive and in the mountains soul’s revived
I’ll wear a business suit if need me but deep down I know that’s
Not me — I stray away
Taking steps each and every day to find the life
I long for, full expression, no longer hiding —
For although I’m many things
I have one heart which fucking sings
Different songs, don’t give a fuck what you play
All that matters is that you’re sayin’ what you wanna say
That’s what rocks this universe comprised in a soul
I fear death but not living infinitely more;
Be you.
Then be someone new.
The fullest expression
Which has just begun to bloom.

Imma writer and a student, a doodler and a doer
A lover sans a clue
I share my heart to to get to know you;
I make mistakes and pour through books
I fight with pain and pay my dues
Comfortable stretched
By the river no shoes
Loafers clack on ancient stones beneath’s a
Catacomb of bones; I love Paris,
Hong Kong, Tokyo
& NYC, LA is where I’m from
If you can kick it beneath palm trees
Then you gettin’ love from me;
Cosmopolitan mentality derives from
What I’ve seen — ha — is this really me?
I guess it’s who I strive to be.

My friends are my light — without them wouldn’t stand a chance
When squarin’ up to fight
Imma fuckin’ human being craft this heart with sullied strings ‘cause
We ain’t perfect;
I wanna be good. A good person.
An inspiration. A fighter; I relinquish and surrender.
I don’t want to hide.
An anomaly; an open booked enigma;
Not intentionally but
Because I’m reading too
The pages of myself as I read the book of you.
Isn’t that dope.
We don’t have to know just who we are
Lightning in the sky that’s actually a shooting star;
It doesn’t matter we’re still shining
Our quest to find out why luminosity deriving;
So keep looking. Keep asking. Who is it I long to be?
When the light flickers candle’s burnt
We may answer I was me.
Heart will free from tears that fall
You’ll wanna run you’ll wanna scream
You’re bound to fly you’ll hit a wall
In unexpected times and places
Others looking for a
Friend
A hand
A heart
Also on the journey of their life.
Their smile shatters weight
Just as yours will give them strength.
So carry on.
Can’t be broken anti fragile I’m still
Dancing in the storm
Close your eyes and take a breath
Laugh it off and try again.
In five, ten, maybe twenty years —
Would give anything to be exactly where we are today —
So be here.
Years ago I dreamed of stepping out my door,
Walking, biking, the sun kissin’ on my skin;
Take a train and see where the day
The road and
Music could take me.

Gonna miss Japanese summer.
Tank top daze
Lake and ocean dips and endless feel good music plays
Barbecues and
Balmy nights
Sweatin’ through the day
We’re all doin’ it
Been this way since May;
Cold coffee in the morning
Cold room
Warm sun.
On my birthday on a train I pass a
Silver Shinto shrine leading into the woods.
The mountain surrounding viridescent and lush.
Nobody there;
Seeing it
A gateway to peace.
I paddle on Lake Biwa to an ancient torii gate,
I can’t believe that this is life
That this can be life
It’s my birthday and I’m floating
Today I’m twenty eight.
Why are train stations such a good place to be.
Enveloped by green hills.
My back against warm stone
All you have to do is be.
I stop in Kyoto heading back to Osaka.
It hits me hard.
In fuckin’ awe at Kyoto Station.
The lighting, the movement, the beauty of the architecture.
This was once so far-fetched. Kyoto.
I feel it so deeply. Consumed by it. Cherishing it.
I do what I do to feel this thing called love;
That’s what it comes down to.
Love for ourselves, for others, for life —
How to make it through another day —
How to help and heal and tap into this well of beauty called existence.
As I dig deeper into my heart and soul and
Share the things I feel, I realize all I want to do is create
Love wherever I go; looking for the mystery in
Smiles and laughs, the pain we all endure; god,
Whatever the hell that means; the boundless; fear — love.
It’s beyond me; but I feel — an observation of the heart, an answer to my prayers, a Longing to know what’s beyond my borders — we’re here to experience love.
So imma keep following that.
I wanna make music; can I make
Music with these words or do they
Fade away written to no beat only to the
Rhythm of my endless steps,
My heart and soul a
Song that will forever guide me.