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                    A NEW BEGINNING

A new beginning is what I needed in order for me to succeed
I had been through so much until I just couldn't explain
But I kept on going and tried not to complain

Strength is a valuable asset I gained
After enduring so many heartaches and pain
The tears I shed when I was down
Only made me feel worse and 
Lowered me to the ground

Now that I have found peace through prayer
I'm winning only because 
I let go of the past and
Started a new beginning.

Constance Odom (c)  moni@nichemarket.com 

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                    KNOWLEDGE  & POWER

Some view power as an ability...an omnipotence...a mighty
tool to succeed

But only with wisdom would power achieve...without it, foolish 
vigor would falter indeed

One has to control his puissance...authority only reaches its 
potential if one is wise

Many can certainly rule with an iron fist...but respect is truly earned
when that hand is extended in compromise

One has to strengthen his faculties...knowledge is the taste that we 
must swallow

Knowledge enables one to lead...but the true power comes from the 
ones who follow

Cephus Pierce III (c) cpierce@poloralphlauren.com

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A DIFFERENT PERSPECTIVE

Stolen moments and shared whispers
Clandestine kisses and hugs
Lustful longings and furtive glances
This is not where I belong. 

Sacred vows are cast aside
Wantful wishes come true
Afraid to ask questions for fear of the answers
How could we do this to you?

I've never laid eyes on you before
I've never heard you speak
Yet your presence invades my dreams at night
And my curiosity about you is piqued.

I didn't intend for this to happen
I fought it at every turn
Yet persistence is a strong aphrodisiac
And for an attentive partner I've yearned.

I realize that I'm only a substitute
Used to fulfill some un-named void
But from my point of view, three lives lay in waste
Mine, his and yours

Nicole McLean (c) phoenix-nm@yahoo.com

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FATE IS A FAKER

We sit on the edge of the porch
Together you and I,
And we watch the sun Scorch 
The western sky.
We speak softly and slowly
Looking for meanings
That are apparent maybe and only
When we are our hearts heeding.

It is a time of the gloaming,
A time of dimness,
A time of thoughts touching and roaming,
And a transparent thinness.
We are reminded of a time together and past,
Of being apart, together and again apart,
Of a friendship that through the years has last,
And a fate that has stitched each heart.

Our hands entwine finger to finger,
Our thoughts combine,
And in the moonlight each seems to linger,
Waiting for a simple sign.
And though our hearts beat as one,
We just can't seem to get around,
An item of thought that is so bothersome,
Is this fate or love that we have found?

You see both of us firmly believe,
That Fate is a Faker,
And Fate does not pardon nor reprieve,
A cruel taskmaster, a slave taker,
That when allowed to shimmer and shine,
A mirage, a reflection of false hope,
That will fetter, bind and leave you eternally blind,
Always holding the end of a frayed rope.

We sit solidly on that porch,
And wait for love to ignite,
To flare up, to burn, to warm; to scorch
Our souls, and our hearts to reunite.
But deep down, we seem both to know,
That the only light we will see
Will be that bright orb the sun as it does grow,
And, again, in the dimness, we will be.

Shaun Cecil (c) unteteunbois@usa.net

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I AM WAITING
      [for A]

I am waiting for you

where the four roads meet

where once our lives met

where with the wings of the eagle

we flew high with faith in our togetherness

and I saw beyond the delight of our thoughts

something my father did not find

along the sidewalks of my mother's pickerel smile.

If ever you do hear this cry

let it stir your clearest waters;

even if you have songs of Joy glorious with all trust,

let passing clouds bring to you this voice,

my Chevrolet life has come to a stop, 

and I am here, waiting for you still.

Padmore Agbemabiese (c) agbemabiese.1@osu.edu

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COLD AND ALONE

Living a cruel death
waiting to die, just waiting
all those around you 
have faded away and
left you cold and alone

Sitting on a park bench
in the drenching rains
with nothing but newspaper 
keep you dry.  Slowly 
you die cold and alone.

You live in death, no one
wonders who you are, they 
just wish more than you
that you are dead.  You long
to die cold and alone.

They say it's your fault, you
brought this on yourself.  Now 
you turn against the world and
they turn against you. But you 
are still cold and alone.

You die.  No one comes to 
your rescue.  No one gives you 
a funeral.  No one notices you
are missing.  No one cares that
you die cold and alone.

Chuck Reimer (c) genex@cybrzn.com