Running on Empty

("A Moment of Grace aka The Empty Mirror", 2024, original encaustic) Running on Empty Within the empty mirror mind I see an empty smile Is no one left to judge me then And my heart of guile? For who am I to blame at all It’s just what I’ve become A life consuming this bullsh*t A life of playing dumb. We’re what we eat and what we wear To live and just fit in Yet that is no excuse at all For lives consumed by sin. To sin is in our bones you know To simply miss the mark All careless players in the game We stumble in the dark. Until at the darkest hour Dawn comes with growing light To see at last right where we are And how we lost our sight. And with that clarity we take Our aim and hit it straight With head held high and heart aligned We bravely meet our fate. Yet all the while the mirror’s there With nothing more to be We play the game and follow rules Pretending we are free. We reach for stars and mimic fools And think we have arrived But in our hearts we know the score A life that’s built on lies. And that’s our lot, both yours and mine To struggle through these times An empty mirror, empty smile In essence so sublime. So run away and run around And run back home at last It’s not a race, it’s all just play Until our final gasp. (8/23/24)