I have hope and I have joy and I have these feelings of the soul
I rejoice in the ability to feel with the fingertips that seem like a divine gift,
the feelers printed with symbols and circles so archaic
I run these gifts across every surface they come across,
with permissions I ask the wooden table so far from home if I can feel its grooves,
I ask my enemies if I can shake their hands,
I ask if I can judge the sharpness of the blade
I ask if I can feel the fungi, or the leaves or trees,
I ask Mother Nature if I can run my hands through her tallgrass,
Though I’d never be worthy enough to even attempt to braid her eternal hairs
I ask my lover who lays dormant like an island if I can sift through her sands
The emotions felt from feeling prompt me to feel more, and I remember once I was a table, I was grass, I was an island, I was an enemy, I was a blade, I was fungi, I was a leaf, I was a tree I was eternal, no longer, seemingly.

I bask in the ability to see, and I move from spot to spot seeing all that I can
I see the mule pulling the man and laugh a little bit before spitting into my can
I see the dagger in the other man's back from a good old pat from a friend
I see the bearded orb in the sky responsible for all the warm light, observing all it’s wisdom and wrinkle lines
I see the beggar sat up against the wood wall, wearing a blissful mask of contentment, there lies no sweat on his brow, no stickiness in the air, no clouds in the sky, he has all he needs to see what he can.
I see the beauty in the corpses lying lifeless on the battlefield. rifles stuck like stakes becoming tombstones for the deceased, lost letters flutter, blood roses gather—I’m speechless.
I see the beauty in second chances and the ability to try again, the ability to learn from our actions, battlefields and sword-sharpened love remind me of that.
I see the beauty in rainbow-cloaked mountains, romantic landscapes so real you’d think the gods are just waiting for the right moment to use the god rays as ribbons to descend upon.
I see the beauty lying in an open field with no one but you by my side and we are basking in the flask, laughing, joking, and seeing what we want to see in the clouds, I see the beauty in dumb imagination.
Beauty reflects beauty I see it in the sky, I see it in the beggar, I see it in the mule, I see it in the dagger, I see it in the sun, I see it in the battlefield, I see it in the rifle, I see it in the rainbows, I see it in the mountains, I see it in the prairies, I see it in the potions and tinctures, I see it in your eyes, I even see it in myself.

I hear hope trodding down the path in multitudes, it’s beat so catchy got me tapping my feet
I hear hope in the commotion of freedom that grows louder each day, creatures find ways out of the cage
I hear hope coming from songs other than our anthems, coming from songwriters new and old
I hear hope in the raging bull stampeding its way towards our towns, what will we do when chaos hits?
I hear hope in reggae and blues but also folk music too
I hear hope in Three Little Birds…
I hear hope in Get Up Stand Up…
I hear hope when the ship comes in…
I hear hope in friendly conversation between strangers so foreign to one another, it’s possible for worlds to collide, its proven structures will stand with pride.
I hear hope when the swords and shields hit the ground and we are left with empty hands; metal clanging the melody of our hands finally being free to clasp one another.
I hear hope in the popping noise of pulling a tassel, taking care of a home we probably never deserved
I hear hope in the wailing cry of a baby, a newcomer to this world, a worldbeater waiting in the queue
I hear hope in the spirituals who send messages out every day, one day we’ll all believe in something like the stars, the sun, or the planet
I hear hope and I hear it well, something so constant, a ringing like tinnitus, the bell a warning for a time that has been long coming. A time when the Whitmans, Dylans, and Dickinsons come together, a time when hope and joy infect the masses, a time when gold rains from the sky, a time when we see ourselves in each other's eyes,
We will have hope and we will have joy and we will have these feelings of the soul
all in a moment's time
all in a moment's time.