"Being Big" by Laurie Molloy

When i was little

i wanted to be big

so i could decide

what i did-

so i could drive places

and do grown up things,

eat what i wanted and

decide who my friends were.

Dress up, wear make - up

and most of all

tell myself what to do.

I still want to be big

each day i try

to be a little bigger-

a better person

than i think i can be.

It is a lot harder

to be in charge than I thought.

"Light" by Laurie Molloy

If Thomas Edison hadn't invented the light bulb

what would light up the night?

I would let the lightning bugs in

and they would glow and blink

and i could read and write

and have conversations

talk with friends, late into the night.

I would have nature to thank-

the electric bill would be much less

and they could be my friends

they might evolve, learn to talk,

grow bigger and learn to think

each day providing more and more light

making every night, lovely and bright.

"One Dream" by Laurie Molloy

A trillion dreams

passing through,

but there's only one

i have to have-

just this one,

and it will all be ok.

Each morsel of will

is dedicated to

this overwhelming need

to be free from the people

who say it is unrealistic.

I say they are stuck somewhere

silently slipping away

in a world dependent on reasons.

"The Question of Destiny" by Laurie Molloy

Did I choose this destiny

or did it find me?

Did fate falter and

leave me behind?

Did I color outside the lines,

ending up with a scribbled life-

far from the set script,

full of made up colors

and scenes I drew up

veering me off the path

the stars have intended for me?

"Crowds" by Laurie Molloy

Like a flea

i swarm,

i make my way

through the city streets-

in between

ten thousand feats

i try to accomplish the goal

of getting a bite to eat.

And i am lost

and alone.

On another day

all the people

would comfort me,

and i would seek out

the bustling noise

to feel a part

of something bigger.

A life full and complete

by the small fabric pieces

of the wandering people

walking in new or tattered

clothes, with minds

of their own, similar and unique

that complete me and

the missing buttons

from my wardrobe.

"Tired" by Laurie Molloy

Further into my sugar high-

trying to recover from lack of sleep

i continue hammering on.

I feel I must-

soon the day will cease

and i will dream continuously

until the next sun appears.

"Looking Young - or trying to" by Laurie Molloy

She walks proudly

with her deep orange tan

and puffy collagen lips-

face confined by botulism

No one knows what she thinks

as she passes by

or converses

because her mouth hardly moves.

Her hair, blonde coated and gray

like golden straw gone bad.

Married to an old rich man-

and soon her lips will pop,

her skin will crack,

and the dye will fade.

Her captor will die

leaving her withered and alone.

"Mask" by Laurie Molloy

I've lasted so long

inside this facade

i have barricaded

myself inside.

One day the cement

will get weak

and lose strength-

piece by little piece

crumbling away,

leaving me naked

to discerning eyes.

If you get to see me

when it all falls apart

look quickly because

soon the new cement

will dry.

"First and Last" by Laurie Molloy

I wished you were my first;

then i hoped you would be my last

But sometimes wishes and hopes

are all they ever are-

and never amount to more

than things you once believed in.

"Trying to Think" by Laurie Molloy

Further i move - widening the gap

ever growing and deepening

and spreading, about to put a

crack right in the earth i stand on.

Quick to divide the broken world

i float above carefully

not to land on the ground;

Because i might feel the small

breaks and then slip into one

falling all the way down a huge crevice

splitting the solid dirt that lies below

my bare feet,

carefree wearing flip flops-

unaware of the mind above.

"Boogey Man" by Laurie Molloy

Awake - staring at you,

two eyes unfamiliar and startling.

Alive, alert blurting out something;

What happened? - leave me alone.

What's going on? - sleep interrupted-

creepy boogey man diving into

your soul - he is real

finally you see him.

"junk drawer" by Laurie Molloy

I meant to do that

so long ago

that it became

a forgotten task-

never completed

left in the unfinished bin

and eventually transferred

to the junk drawer

to never be seen again,

until i went to squish

one more thing in there.

And it spilled over

reminding me

of all that is left undone

and painfully, i take

each thing out, one by one-

remembering all the plans

i had for all these

useless items-

and throw them out

to make room

for new junk.

"Time" by Laurie Molloy

Time, a clock created, man made,

relative, untouchable-

changes from place to place.

Running out or moving slow,

inevitably approaching and

quickly disappearing.

Moving forward at a rate

that falls back and springs forward

to help out the farmers,

or at least that is the theory

i know about.

One thing for sure

is that there is not enough-

each moment precious,

most of us spending

too much of it

looking ahead to a future

event that may never arrive.