Reflection and Introspection

Curtain Call


This was written in 2006 and is one of my favorite pieces to this day.

And in enters the hero
The flood lights focus
The stage lights dim
Deliver your address
Reassure her she'll be saved
Make the audience tremble
Turn their skin to brail
Valiance always wins the crowd
Valiance always wins her heart
Captivated and subdued
The audience stares in silence
Beneath a sable shroud
Awaiting the final scene

And in enters the villain
Descending from a fiery pillar
The crowd gasps in unison
Face to face and toe to toe
Hero versus foe
Commence the final fight
Wide eyed spectators pray for the hero
But the villain is far too strong
He's down! He's down!
Oh God! they cry.
This can't be true!
Heroes never die!
The villain stands over his fallen foe
Where the hero lay waiting
For the victors final blow
But with a solitary spec of strength
He rises to his weary feet
He fights until his foe is down
He fights until his foes defeat

The crowd revels in gracious uproar
To the cliche Hollywood ending
Where good triumphs evil
Where debonair destroys the vile
And though we've seen it a hundred times
Its still our favorite drug
We'd hate to see the hero fail
And so we drink it up

Its almost time for curtain call
Where protagonists bow and curtsy
But let us not forget the love scene
For which our hero fought so proudly
The spot lights draw them close
Until they both meet center stage
Where they grapple like the links in chains
Where he softly serenades
And calmly whispers in her ear
That things will be all right
She cradles him in mantis fashion
While he holds her, corset tight
Her left leg lifts instinctively
And forms a right angle
Another scene from the silver screen
To keep the viewers tranquil
They're locked on in the perfect kiss
Perfected through recital
The heroes won, he seized the day
But he leaves us in denial
Cause as the lovers pull apart
She sees the blood rush from his heart
"Oh God! Oh No! She fiercely screams
As she sees the hole where his life is fleeing
"My love! My dear! You can't leave me!"
"You fought for me so gallantly!"
But the villains sword had found its mark
Deep within our heroes heart
"My love. My dear. I'll be with you."
"I wish these things I could undo,
but I'll wait for you on heaven's wall
until we both meet again at curtain call"

-Ryan Baker

Vultures. Liz.

Vultures.

The vultures are coming.
I can feel it.
And they will feed on what
is left of our love.
something we never made sacred.
I am on my way back to where I started,
on my knees.
But this time,
I will be praying.

-Shannon Masayo

Vultures

I am a corpse on the side of the road
A heap of baking death in the desert heat
Melting to the asphalt
Waiting for the vultures to pick me clean
To turn me into dental records and fingertips
No one will recognize me
Thank god
Cause I don’t want anyone to see what I’ve become
This place has sucked the life from me and left me for dead
God damned desert
You stole from me the life I loved
The high-noon vultures circle and start their slow descent
And I feel myself slip to the bottom of the food chain
I used to show such promise
Now all I am is well-done scavenger meat

-Ryan Baker

Vulture
I've had enough of his acidic touch.
He's a fucking vulture, picking at my scraps.
Yet you part your legs and part ways with progress...
I just have to laugh...what happened to ambition?
And what else is there to do when the killer is a victim?
No one should feel sorry for you.
We are both thieves,
One goes about it like a gentleman,
One does it for attention.
One needed you to believe
One needs you to feed.
You let this happen, you still do.
You both can go fuck yourselves.
There's always a fresher kill,
I won't look for love in a landfill.
You both can fly free and high,
because the best thing about simple beasts,
They eventually die.

-Tylor Sherman

Tender. for Vanessa.

Tender.

I used to have tender layers
unfolding.
I was a blossom
opening
and you were spring.
but it is summer now
and feeling a bit like hell.
I can sleep now.
And I feel like I am sewn to nothing.
those layers are more like
millions of white sheets,
suffocating.

-Shannon Masayo

Tender
I've been searching for the perfect way to share my city with you,
but mobile phone photos just don't do it justice,
so just fly out to the midwest,
and add a new chapter to your life.
It's a tender subject, but there's always an
open invitation for you to send your mail to my address,
and I'll clear cabinet space for your dishes.
They won't match anything I own,
but you can throw out a plate per day before I get home,
and I'll pretend I don't notice 'til my
hand-me-downs are all handed out.
We can share a bottle of wine and walk along the lake,
make our way downtown,
and get thrown out
of dive bars and dance with college kids,
I've done it once, I'll do it again.
With you, for you.
Life is simple when you're happy.
You wouldn't complicate a thing.

-Tylor Sherman

squat. for Seth.

Squat.

When I walked through your front door
all i could see were legs.
your jean covered legs.
you were under your kitchen table
I had to squat to see your face.
You were carving my name
on the underside of the table
with a butter knife.
I laid on the cold tiles next to you
elbows touching.
I told you it might take a while
you said...
"It's ok, I think it's worth the wait"

-Shannon Masayo

Squat
You're the first woman I didn't rush to say "I love you" to,
Just to see if it would stick.
I didn't have to.
With you, everything just is. Nothing complicated.
No fireworks, but every day is a steady flame.
If there was a difference between "love" and "in-love,"
Then I may hurt your feelings.
But, I think they are just silly words, and most of the time,
People blame "in-" for mistakes,
and "not in-" as an excuse to walk away.
Semantics mean squat to me.
Love is loyalty.
Love is you and me.
-Tylor Sherman