Poems - Jack Roman Photography

Why am I an artist?
Maybe every time I take a picture I plead for life
Every time I create I celebrate my breath
Every new idea reminds me of the beating heart in my chest
Giving me a chance to share in this moment
Speeding thru space on a rock
Pausing to capture the wonders
The beauty
Even the tragedy and sorrow of these fleeting moments
Is the closest I can come to reaching out and holding your hand
Slowing down time to feel the heart beats around me
Dropping to my knees in wonder and awe
Sometimes I create cuz it's the only way to stand up again
(C) Jack Roman

Lost in my aloneness
It's a whirlwind of silence
Filled with doubt
Emotions pulling me into a dungeon
Body shaking
Unseen Explosions bombard the psyche
Emptiness firing bullets into the heart
While I suffocate on lack of stimulation
Failed attempts circle around my neck like a boa constrictor

Things they are a changing
Energy is shifting
Dropping people and situations like bags of sand
Almost on an unconscious level
It's like my spirit can no longer tolerate such things as lies and mistreatment
It's moving so fast people and situations fall like rain from the sky
Fear & Concern collide
A deeper sense tells me all is as it should be
Yet still the ever present witness watches
Always asking questions
Weighing behaviors
Making sure I set out on a proper path and not letting regressed emotions or my desire for revenge lead me astray
Sometimes it is difficult to discern
Webs are often layered
While anger reveals its motivating power
Too much anger burns the forest
Not enough and the forest is over run with weeds
Still I plead
Knowledge, wisdom and the ability to jump

My desire to create keeps my feet moving
When all I want is to lay down and die
Passion still leaks out
While being beaten with people's lies
Time has given me some clarity
More questions
Also a deeper appreciation to share and be with others who enjoy and value my gifts
My treasures
Those who can handle my mistakes and shortcomings
Precious are those moments
When the ship is aground from the outgoing tide
Nothing to do but to share a view and conversation with a friend
I miss those moments the most

When you come to realize your the best person to have your own back
There is a huge freedom that pours in with that awareness
Although that takes some time to set in
Right behind that sense of "I got this" is a bucket full of loneliness
There was once a thought of togetherness which turned to poison on the lips of maybe someday
So what do you grab for?
The glass of freedom with an after taste of loneliness?
Reach for a kiss to lift yourself up for a few brief moments before the poison kicks in
Lye in remorse and non action refusing to allow yourself to be infected again
I have tried all roads hundreds of times
Desiring a different outcome
Taking different side streets only to return to the same destination
I have laid motionless at the bottom of the ocean
Not wanting to walk the paths I have seen before
Age as me wondering that perhaps art is the best I have to offer
Some how the missing fields of connection continue to fuel a creative engine
In my sorrow I type these words
In hopes of at the very least touching your spirit
Maybe my magic is in a realm I cannot touch
Maybe in my unrest I can inspire others for a brief moment as I have been with those before me

Closeness is a sweetness not often tasted
Moments not often experienced
Emotions not often felt
Where is the sweet smell of spring
Where is magic & pixie dust

Haunted by Loves Lost Kiss
An idea
A vision never materialized
Once it used to lurk in the Shadows
Now it's like a UFO sighting
Yea maybe they exist, but I have never seen one
A glass with just a sip of wine
Enough for a taste
Enough to show you what might have been
Vapors linger
From where I don't know
Catching its scent trailing on the autumn breeze
Just long enough to remember a thought I once had

I want a quiet moment
To sit and look at the stars
Gentle breeze
Sound of the water hitting the rocks
Time shared
It's the space between words and silence that's my favorite

Camaraderie is a treasure I often seek
I love the experience of working together
Building something bigger then me
It's an allusive Gem not often found
In a world full of Me's the We's are hard to find
Or is it some disillusionment of getting older
All too often I have experienced a stealing of this beautiful gift
Perhaps we are all granted fleeting moments of it
When I became an adult I came to release how sacred the Brotherhood is
Unfortunately we all don't play by the same rules which is the Downfall of man
Our only saving grace is a willingness to seek within
And a desire to communicate

Somewhere out there is a fuse to my engine
Not sure if it went missing or was just never there
Creative energy and art fuel my tank
When my tank runs low that's when I need that missing fuse
To connect with others
Intimate conversation
Shared conversation
Exchanging dreams, fears and desires
My car runs great on the gas tank
I have no battery backup