Talking to the Wind

By Michael Wayne

This is the third in a series of poetry books written by the author. The first poetry book by Michael Wayne was Memories a Crime of the Heart; second, Talking to Shadows; and now, Talking to the Wind.

In this book, you will discover a few fictional short stories, but primarily, you will discover emotional sonnets written with care and compassion by the author to try and help him as well as others understand the complexities of life. Inside are stories set to poems of a life lived in doubta life questioned by the author himself. These poems are but a brief glimpse into the mind and world of one who has livednot by choice but by circumstancesthrough the gauntlet called life, which can sometimes be beyond ones control.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Xlibris US
• Release date: Sep 7, 2018
• ISBN: 9781984550842

Book preview

Copyright © 2018 by Michael Wayne.

Library of Congress Control Number:              2018910371

ISBN:                  Hardcover                     978-1-9845-5083-5

                             Softcover                      978-1-9845-5085-9

                            eBook                            978-1-9845-5084-2

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted

in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system,

without permission in writing from the copyright owner.

The views expressed in this work are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of the publisher, and the publisher hereby disclaims any responsibility for them.

Any people depicted in stock imagery provided by Getty Images are models,

and such images are being used for illustrative purposes only.

Certain stock imagery © Getty Images.

Rev. date: 09/05/2018

Xlibris

1-888-795-4274

www.Xlibris.com

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CONTENTS

Acknowledgment

Prologue

1. A Promise Made Can Bite You In The Butt

2. An Unjust Law Cannot Be Administered Impartially

3. Emotion

4. 9-11 Reminds Me

5. I Went To Washington Today And Confronted President Obama And John Boehner

6. What’s The Deal?

7. What Do I Want In A Woman?

8. We Never Know The Why

9. Things Said To Me By People Who I Thought Loved Me

10. The Night The Lights Went Out In Cranbury

11. Our Government Must Be Religious

12. My Other Life

13. In Retrospect Me Thinks Today I Should Not Have Gotten Out Of Bed

14. Trying To Understand A Desperate Act

15. Harsh Memories

16. In An Old Box Full Of Memories

17. Stupid Is As Stupid Does

18. Just Give It One More Chance

19. It’s Funny Sometimes The Things That Will Trigger A Memory

20. (Class Reunion)

21. It’s 75 Days To Christmas In Texas So I Thought I’d Sing You This Old Song

22. Triduum

23. To My Dismay

24. The Price That Must Be Paid

25. Sitting On A Park Bench

26. Serious Kills

27. These Three Roses

28. Memories Fading

29. Easy

30. Five To Midnight

31. I’m Going To Continue To Fight

32. Dad, I’m So Afraid!

33. Along The Way

34. A Soldier’s Dilemma

35. A Soldier’s Prayer

36. Every Moment Of It Is Precious

37. Hope It Is For The Good

38. I Made A List

39. I’ve Lived My Life In Doubt

40. Was The Night Before Thanksgiving

41. No!

42. Only Christ

43. Or Would You Rather Be Like Me

44. Portrait Of A Man

45. The Cracker

46. The Torch Has Been Passed

47. There’s A Road Less Traveled I Must Take

48. Through My Eyes

49. What A Wonderful Life

50. Wendy

51. I Know You

52. We All Carry The Scars Of Life

53. In The Year 2014

54. Conundrum

55. Basic

56. Looking Back

57. Does Hope Float

58. I’ve Never Been To Heaven

59. When My Faith Wavers

60. Empty, Forever Empty Lines

61. Dream On My Friends

62. 3292015 Psalms

63. It’s Just An Old Memory

64. Still Waters

65. It’s A Matter Of Perspective

66. But Here I Am

67. Perhaps I Should Capitulate

68. For What It’s Worth

69. I Feel Their Pain

70. I Know A Guy

71. I Like To Focus On The Words In Red

72. I Read The News Today, Oh Boy

73. I Was A Stubborn And Hardheaded Kid

74. I Was Lost To Begin With

75. I Was One Of The Lucky Few

76. I Was There

77. I’ve Never Been Known As A Romantic

78. If I Said, I Love You

79. It Feels Just Like That

80. It’s Raining In My Heart Tonight

81. Julie Left Me Unsupervised

82. Just The Way Of Life

83. Knowing I Can Do Nothing

84. No Rhyme Or Rhythm

85. I Did A Foolish Thing

86. Surreptitious Man

87. The Dawn Of Awareness

88. The Game’s Afoot And I’m Ready For A Good Fight

89. The One Thing That I Regret

90. The Words In Red

91. There’s A Price That Must Be Paid

92. They Are The Glue That Holds Our Lives Together

93. Stupid Is, As Stupid Does!

94. What Kind Of Life Is That?

95. Wish I Had Never Heard The Words

96. A Barren Source Of Amusement

97. A Secret Too Long Kept

98. A Story With No End

99. A Tear Drop

100. A Time Of Transition

101. A Whole Lot Of Hats And Not Enough Hair

102. Ar-Tic-U-Late

103. Between The First And Last

104. Crossing The Lines

105. Death In Paradise

106. Hidden In Plain Sight

107. I Hear The Thunder

108. I Remember Who I Am

109. Imagine If You Can

110. My Anonymity

111. It Was A Beautiful Memory

112. It’s A Matter Of Perspective

113. Life In The Shadows

114. Merry Christmas My Friends

115. Mistakes

116. My Death Poem

117. Perspective

118. Reflecting An Image

119. Sleep

120. Surprisingly

121. Sweetheart

122. There Are None So Blind As Me

123. This Game Of Life

124. Tick-Tock Goes The Clock

125. What A Drag It Is Getting Old

126. Words

127. You Have To Play The Game

128. It Was Raining Hard Outside My Window

129. You Think You Know Me

130. To The Tune Of Popeye

131. I’ve Been Blessed

132. A Walk In Time

133. It’s Just Another Sleepless Night At My House

134. The Only Reason I Stay Alive

135. Let Them Know That (We Matter)

136. Breakfast

137. People Told Me Not To Go

138. In A Faraway Land

139. I Was Okay With That

140. I Can’t Believe My Eyes

141. People Ask Me Why

142. Tug Of War

143. Without Having Said Goodbye

144. Looking For Something I May Never Find

145. Lying In A Dark Room

146. All My Worthless Poems

147. If This Is Just A Dream Don’t Wake Me Up

148. Don’t Close Your Eyes On Me

149. How Do You Explain That To Someone

150. I Die A Little Each Day

151. I Will Be Surprised And Amazed As Always

152. You’re A Brother For Life

153. A Book That Was Never Written.

154. It Could Just Be The Beginning Of Something Better

155. Make My Memories Go Away

156. A Flaw In My Character I Guess

157. But Not Today

158. Confessions

159. Endless And Tedious Ramblings About Nothing

160. Hello Life My Old Friend

161. How Did I Stray So Far

162. Human Nature’s A Funny Thing

163. I Knew You Once

164. I Need This Special Time

165. I Was One Of The Lucky Ones

166. I’ve Been Too Long In It

167. It’s Going To Be A Great Day

168. A Creature Of Habit

169. Bald

170. How Is Your Life’s Work Graded?

171. When I Forget

172. It’s Got Me Worried

173. Relationship

174. Kẻ Thù

175. Listen To The Rhythm

176. Men Don’t Cry

177. No Matter How Far Life Takes Me

178. Overcome Your Cynicism

179. Pen Or Pencil

180. Perhaps It’s Best You Don’t

181. Silence

182. Thanks Dad, You Did Good

183. The Short List

184. Just Think How Bad It Would Be If I Were A Good Poet?

185. Time

186. Nothing To Do And Nowhere To Be

187. This Is My World

Epilogue

IT IS THE WISH OF THE AUTHOR

THAT THE CONTENTS OF THIS BOOK WILL

BRING THE READER HOURS OF ENJOYMENT

AND REASONS TO GIVE THOUGHT

TO THE WORLD AROUND THEM

AND TO THE PEOPLE IN THEIR LIVES.

WE COME INTO THIS WORLD HELPLESS

WITH A BLIND FAITH THAT OUR LIVES ARE

SAFE AND OUR NEEDS PROVIDED FOR BY THOSE WHO

ARE RESPONSIBLE FOR BRINGING US INTO THIS WORLD.

HOWEVER, AT SOME POINT IN OUR JOURNEY THROUGH LIFE,

WE BECOME THE CARETAKERS OF OUR OWN LIVES

AND MORE OFTEN THAN NOT, THE CARETAKERS OF OTHERS.

ACKNOWLEDGMENT

To my loving family

and the memories of

my parents

GOD BLESS THEM ALL

A special thanks to:

JULIE L. MAPLES

for her contributions to this book.

PROLOGUE

This is the third in a series of poetry books I have written. MEMORIES A CRIME OF THE HEART, TALKING TO SHADOWS —POEMS BY MICHAEL WAYNE and now, TALKING TO THE WIND—POEMS BY MICHAEL WAYNE. In these books you will discover emotional sonnets written with care and compassion by the author, to help him, as well as others, understand the complexities of life. Inside are stories set to poems of a life lived in doubt—a life questioned not only by the author himself but everyone who has crossed his path. These poems are but a brief glimpse into the mind and world of one who has not by choice, but by sheer circumstances, lived through the gauntlet of life that can sometimes be beyond one’s control.

The author came from humble beginnings, poor in material things but rich in love and compassion. Though early on most who knew him thought him slow with no real potential, the one thing he had going for him was that his parents gave him the freedom to make mistakes so he might learn from them on his own. His father put him in situations that most young kids might never experience. He allowed him the opportunity to use his own resources to handle those situations. Perhaps it was by Providence his father did this to prepare him for the future. For how could his father have known he would die so young leaving the young man to fend for himself at such a young age? It was those experiences that helped the author survive the challenges of an imperfect world.

On the other end of the spectrum was his mother. She showed him the love, concern and compassion that one needs to know and have in life. She taught him how to interact with others, whereas his father taught him how to fight, survive and standup for himself. Together they created the person he would become and is now. It was a short lesson, however, as both parents died in their thirties leaving the author to fend for himself at the age of 16. Life intervened and taught him the hard lessons. Lessons that would leave scars on his heart and soul, making him question everything in his mind’s eye.

The author hopes that you enjoy what you are about to read, that it will fill you with thoughts and questions and perhaps answer questions or doubts you may have about things you experienced in life. This is in no way a self-help book, just a book of poems and narratives written by a man trying to understand the world he lives in.

I have also written a murder mystery called, An Angel’s Faith it is also available now.

1

A PROMISE MADE CAN BITE YOU IN THE BUTT

It all started a few weeks ago. There I was going about my normal morning routine—consisting of drinking a cup of coffee, turning on the TV and lying down on the couch to watch the morning news. (I had realized years ago that lying down and getting up from the couch repeatedly during the day gave me all the exercise I needed to stay healthy.)

My phone rang and someone knocked on the front door at the same time. (Now this is a typical situation of the very difficult decisions I must make each day since my retirement.) What should I do, answer the phone first, or the door? I was beside myself! The phone was now on its 5th ring, just a few more rings and the answering machine would engage. What to do, what to do!? To add to my dilemma, there was that knock at the door again but this time louder. Time was running out. I had to make a choice and soon.

After what seemed like hours of agonizing thought, I made my choice. I answered the phone! It was the person knocking on the door. She said, Why aren’t you answering the door? I hung-up and opened the front door. There standing in front of me was: (Discretion being the better part of valor, I’ll reframe from divulging that information at this time.)

So anyway, she walked past me and into the house without waiting for an invitation. I shut the door and followed her into the living room, where she had already made herself quite comfortable on my couch. (Where just moments before this intrusion, I had been leisurely relaxing, watching the news and contemplating the mysteries of the universe.) I asked her, to what do I owe this most unexpected visit?

She got right to the point. "As you know you still owe me a favor. I’m here to collect it. The deal was that you would do what I asked, no matter what. No questions asked. (It’s times like this in my life that make me question past decisions made without thoroughly thinking them through.) Being a man of dubious honor and questionable integrity, I knew I’d be obligated to fulfill whatever devious plan she had formulated in that conniving little mind of hers.

So I asked her, What is it you wish me to do? She pulled a book from her handbag and tossed it to me. I want you to read this from cover to cover and do everything the main character does in it.

I asked how long she was giving me to achieve this endeavor. She said, Two weeks. One to read the book and the second to do those things in the book. I will see you promptly at my house one week from today!

With that said and done, she left, and I started reading the book. It took me all of the first week to read the book, and when I arrived at her house on the day indicated, I was very much unprepared and perhaps even incapable of doing all the things achieved in the book. However to fulfill my promise and to put this chapter of my life behind me, I endeavored to persevere.

Well to make a long story short, here I am in the doctor’s examining room. The doctor informed me that I’m suffering from dehydration, anxiety, hypertension, chafing and a heart attack. He also informed me that I’m the fifth male patient he has seen in the past few months suffering from these same symptoms. He thinks it’s the side effect of a book women have been reading called, FIFTY SHADES OF GREY.

I know, I’m Sorry ;-) Just couldn’t help myself…

2

AN UNJUST LAW CANNOT BE ADMINISTERED IMPARTIALLY

An unjust law cannot be administered impartially. It can only destroy the fabric of truth, honesty, justice and the foundations that all free people strive to uphold. There are those within and outside our government who work hard to undermine the principles and ideologies we have chosen to live by and others before us have died to protect.

We must be forever vigilant, for fanaticism is forever hungry and needs feeding. The best we can do is take its food supply away and hope it starves to death.

For most of us, our only defense against those who work within our government to chip away at our freedoms is to VOTE!! I know our choices are poor and our faith in those in office and running for office are weak, very weak. But I feel to show government we have had enough and wish a dramatic change, we should vote out everyone in the House and Senate, as well as the White House. Perhaps it’s time we cleaned house and started over. If we as a nation united and did this, those we elect in the future might walk a straighter line and realize they work for the people, and in turn do what the majority wish—not what the special interest groups wish.

Right now money dictates our policies, so the few wealthiest control the many, who have, because of greed, lost representation. I feel if we were to take a look back in history, we would find that the people we have running