The River Metolius

Speed up, slow down,
Getting out of town
A Bald Eagle threw a stick at us
While heading over the mountain on the way
To the river Metolius

Go East, go West
Your option was truly blessed
The rain did not pour because
You said no to the beach in favor of a stay
At the river Metolius

Left, maybe right
No wait it just might
Get caught in the foliage
You and I predicting fate of pine needles
In the river Metolius

Perhaps yes, perhaps no
Let’s pray and then we’ll know
Should we bring friends with us?
It might be fun to share untold stories
Of the river Metolius

By Royce Waxenfelter
9/9/09

Without You

Fjords of flushing feeling filled fingers with fickle fright
And the mounds of molten monsters meant my mystery was right
This bound and brittle brooding has bent my broken sight
Like clipped-wing canaries cauterized from flight

When I'm not with you I am sinking
Apart from you I'm lost
The distance starts me thinking
Of the wedding ring embossed
A symbolic love note meant to last
Promising a closely intimate plan
You guide my future and know my past
And only you can hold my hand

Cramped cut-off chasms constantly collapsing
Like lions leaping laterally my lipid lips are lapsing
My mental mitigation of methodological mapping
Tenses terror that takes to me through tabulated trapping

When I'm not with you I am sinking
Apart from you I'm lost
The distance starts me thinking
Of the wedding ring embossed
A symbolic love note meant to last
Promising a closely intimate plan
You guide my future and know my past
Guide me as I hold your hand

Lost and losing like laden lead, listing and lumbering
Festering forests of forbidden fruit visions
Tossed and twitching tadpole, twisting and tumbling
Deem demoralizing and disastrous decisions

When I'm not with you I am sinking
Apart from you I'm lost
The distance starts me thinking
Of the wedding ring embossed
A symbolic love note meant to last
Promising a closely intimate plan
You guide my future and know my past
I'll walk with you and hold your hand

By Royce Waxenfelter
7-23-08

Unanticipated Procedure

With bristling sensation
Question rotation
Dread-filled probation

Glistening crust
Gathering dust
Glorified rust

Rabid yet soothed
Tranquility ruled
Crowned and bejeweled

Slobber retreat
Rinse and repeat
Meandering peat

Backed quantifiable
Granite undeniable
Statistically reliable

Arrested development
Stunted judgment
Piping hot fudge went

Down the long sleeve
Scarring a weave
Searing belief

That solid deny
To excuse / qualify
Support with a pie

A fiery emblem
Siren ended
Spires extended

Quality garden
Rembrandt discarded
Statutory pardon

Solitary cottage
Dislodge the clot and
Helicopter spotted

Signified member
Personal pretender
Electrifying blender

Absolute justification
Abolished Wi-Fi station
Temp gratification

Unreadable data
Doesn’t even matter
Horseshoe platter

Slipping hilly
Jumped the dill weed
Abandoned Philly

Bettor’s insight
Twister in flight
Living despite

Grasped beware
Gasping for air
Distant – not there

Long and forgotten
Lost in the rotten
Scratch blended cotton

The boil has burst
Done its fair worst
Nestled and nursed

Nurse named Mildred
News that bewilders
Soon to be fill dirt

By Royce Waxenfelter
6/5/09

With You

(to the tune of Girls Talk by Rockpile)

You've got a beauty they can't cover up with lipstick and powder
And I love that in church you're now singing louder
I love it when you're smiling, love it when you're happy
Even though the other guys may think that I am sappy

Oh, I just love to be with you
I've got a cavernous feeling inside when you're gone I miss you
But when we are together it can't get any better
I feel like I may be floating on feather
Right here and now

With you, and they wish they were me
With you, if you said it'd be me
With you, way back in '03
I'd find it hard to believe to be real

You're a woman whose filled with God's love and no one can take that
And when you lean on His promises then nobody will shake that
You are growing stronger, you are gaining wisdom
God has granted you a portion of His kingdom

Oh, I just love to be with you
I've got a cavernous feeling inside when you're gone I miss you
But when we are together it can't get any better
I will stay with you regardless of the weather
Right here and now

With you, and they wish they were me
With you, if you said it'd be me
With you, way back in '03
I'd find it hard to believe to be real

Oh, I just love to be with you
I've got a cavernous feeling inside when you're gone I miss you
But when we are together it can't get any better
You’re more comfortable than any old sweater

With you… with you… with you…

By Royce Waxenfelter
7/24/09

The Plan

My mistake
My mistake was
Pushing Him out of my selfish way

And the way
And the way I
Denied His will and His plan for me

I learned that my way is not so good
I learned to trust Him and wait for good
And now get everything I need

Often times
Often times I
I take the easy way out it seems

Yet the days
Yet the days they
Seem to end up disastrously

So I’ll give Him my selfish mind
Trade it in for what He has in mind
Then in my life I’m no longer blind

So we wait
So we wait for
For His direction and guiding hand

And we give
And we give Him
Our life and trust that He has a plan

A plan of growth and development
And when we fall He lifts us up again
And forgives our mistakes and sins

God is good
God is good yeah
Yeah He wants what what’s best for me

And He knows
And He knows how
How to place me right underneath

Under the showers of blessing’s spout
Getting rid of the hurt and doubt
Building my spirit so strong and stout

By Royce Waxenfelter
2/3/09
To the tune of “Time We Had” by The Mother Hips

Grocery Life

Samples are waiting and she’s demonstrating
A delicate pecorino, plastic cup full of vino
Step up and try it, they’re hoping you buy it
A margin of profit could be lost if you drop it

A slice of America
Our life in the grocery store
Millions unaware of what
Next week’s schedule has in store

Having trouble planning a weekend game
This unpredictable lifestyle puts me in danger
The lack of foresight leaves me weakened and lame
A dependent family stranger

Ample frustrating, cursing and hating
A wallet that’s lean – Oh, a pizza Totino!
Step up and try it, they’re hoping you buy it
A margin of profit could be lost if you drop it

A slice of America
Our life in the grocery store
Millions unaware of what
Next week’s schedule has in store

Back trouble from standing in one spot
This register mat is no trampoline
Ask for a break - “No you cannot”
My manager is crusty and mean

Don’t be nervous, give good customer service
Your children are spastic, paper of plastic?
Step up and try it, they’re hoping you buy it
A margin of profit could be lost if you drop it

A slice of America
Our life in the grocery store
Millions unaware of what
Next week’s schedule has in store

by Royce Waxenfelter
1/22/09

Honeysuckle Summer

You educate and inspire love
So I'm a graduate of higher love

Like the sweet smell of hay on a fresh-cut summer day
Like the full moon in flight on a perfect summer night
You'll be my moon that's full and sweet aroma
My honeysuckle soul and love diploma

We share a delicate eloquence
A deliberate eminence
We illuminate an essence
An equal interest in co-dependence

Like the challenging of an oncoming halogen town
The fighting words have all been penned down
The message is now for giving
To live and to love, two to's that equal forgiving
The mission is now for caring
To warm like a glove, to chose two people sharing

Like the sweet smell of hay on a fresh-cut summer day
Like the full moon in flight on a perfect summer night
You'll be my moon that's full and sweet aroma
My honeysuckle soul and love diploma

Now I'm a graduate of higher love
Like Noah's transition from raven to dove
You listen to my analytical views
And feel for humanities political news

Together lets remember geography
We won't be just a match, we'll be a candle
A burning ember engraved inside of me

You educate and inspire love
So I'm a graduate of higher love

by Royce Waxenfelter
12/11/08

Unblemished Nature

Steering my feet over rocks on the river
Guided by adrenaline through blackberries and branches
Though these aren't moccasins on my feet
My mind is drifting back in time

Back to a place where mine is yours and yours is mine
Where you didn't get fired if you weren't on time
Where you didn't turn your back on friends in need

And I jump the fallen trees
Ducking overhanging evergreens a hundred years old
Crude sticks and stones turn precious soil
My mind is drifting back in time

Back to a place where mine is yours and yours is mine
Where unblemished hillsides fill my hearts desire
Where currency was salt and seed

Wandering out into the meadow by the pond
From fire red dragonflies to rainbow trout
Colors and scents disguise the millions from death
My mind is drifting back in time

Back to a place where mine is yours and yours is mine
Where nature's justice eliminated crime
Where there wasn't such thing as greed

Let your mind drift back in time

by Royce Waxenfelter
9/18/90

Upside Down

Are you going to turn my upside down
Spit and spite and put me down
Stomp my name into the ground
Are you going to turn my upside down

If you are then I don't want to meet you
If you are then just turn around
If you are then you'll take a piece of
My life and turn it upside down

Are you going to go and ruin my fun
Impale me with your lashing tongue
Catch me in the web you've spun
Are you going to go and ruin my fun

If you are then I don't want to see you
If you are, turn around and run
If you are then pour poison in
My life and ruin my fun

Are you going to subtract my positive outlook
Hang me like the criminal crook
Stir me in your chemical cook
Are you going to subtract my positive outlook

If you are then I don't want to be you
If you are I won't stop to look
If you are then try to see it's
My life and my positive outlook

by Royce Waxenfelter
4/10/90

Instrumental

I want a cymbal, I want a harmonica, I want a guitar
Go after a groove and chase down the blues
Rock and roll and harmonize
A stream of notes that hypnotize
Listen as the message slowly sinks into your mind

I want a banjo, I want a trombone, I want a keyboard
The atmosphere is sweet with a thriving beat
Rock and roll and harmonize
A stream of notes that hypnotize
Listen as the message slowly sinks into your mind

I want a flute, I want a drum, I want a saxophone
A tune that I can hum while my fingers start to strum
Rock and roll and harmonize
A stream of notes that hypnotize
Listen as the message slowly sinks into your mind

I want a violin, I want a bass, I want a muted trumpet
All the creatures in the ocean couldn't swim through my emotion
Rock and roll and harmonize
A stream of notes that hypnotize
Listen as the message slowly sinks into your mind

by Royce Waxenfelter
10/4/90

Every Crowd

I am runnin' on fertile ground
Disputes tucked back behind me now
Every detail thing affects my being
I'll be runnin' with every crowd

Hazy bright violet breaks through the rain
And the wind fells mean outside your door
When there's thunder and hail from every cloud
I'll be runnin' with every crowd

See you with your mystic eyes
Sharp gusts whistle through the skies
White spears of light spread up and down
And you'll be runnin' with every crowd

Prints of our feet left in the mud
Deep into fields long since been plowed
Sweet scents from silk left on the ground
And we'll have run with every crowd

by Royce Waxenfelter
12/4/88

He Has Saved My Soul

chorus:
From perils unknown
The Lord has delivered me
From darkness not shown
The Lord will deliver me
With mercies untold
The Lord has delivered me
As problems unfold
The Lord will deliver me

He saved my soul
From the grasp of depression
I am now made whole
By sincere confession
Have saved my soul
Jesus is my savior
So I rely on Him
To guide my behavior



He saved my soul
On the cross by dying
And He conquered sin
On the third day, rising
He saved my soul
From a hell eternal
I'm glad to escape
Satan's dark inferno



He saved my soul
He's the King of Heaven
I know when I die
I'll be in His pressence
He saved my soul
you can learn about it
The Bible is His word
Find out about it



by Royce Waxenfelter
2/24/04

To Build or to Buy

Do it your way
Cavalier
Build your own home
Post and pier
Forgo the crystal
Chandelier
And ratchet up
Another gear

Juggle and jostle
Most unsteady
Contract work is
Never ready
Stressing out, those bills
You're dreading
While your wife picks out
The bedding

The rest of life
Derailed
Hit your finger
Holding nail
Fresh concrete then
Sleet and hail
This whole idea becomes
Your jail

The bank man makes sure you feel
The sting
He made you mortgage
Everything
Next time go with
Pre-existing
Choose a realtor, check out
The listings

Buy a home that's
Already there
Let the wind blow through
Your hair
Then sit back in your
Captain's chair
And wave your hands into
The Air

By Royce Waxenfelter
12/11/08

NFL Rap

This is the song of an NFL player
A Redskin or a Seahawk or an L.A. Raider

A safety or linebacker, I am not a slacker
A Minnesota Viking or a Green Bay Packer

Having lots of fun everywhere we go
A Patriot or Dolphin or a Bill from Buffalo

Runnin' up the field, quick as a lightning bolt
A Falcon and an Oiler, a Steeler and a Colt

A Bengal or an Eagle, a Cardinal or Brown
Every time I get the ball I get a first down

A Buccaneer, a Lion, a Dallas Cowboy
When we play in your town we bring you lots of joy

During the off-season I'll be sailing near a reef
a Bronco and a Giant and a Kansas City Chief

The Saints are from New Orleans, the Jets from New York City
If there's not a team in your town, we're sorry - that's a pity

A 49er or a Bear, a Charger or a Ram
That finishes the teams and that finishes this jam!

by Royce Waxenfelter
12/2/87

Valentines Day 2008

When I’m with you I feel so real
Comfortable, natural
When I’m with you I feel unreal
Spiritual, supernatural

Sometimes I want to freeze the moment
To capture it and stay there forever with you
Other times I want to push ahead
Because the connection keeps growing stronger – getting better

When I’m with you I feel at peace
Relaxed, sedated
When I’m with you I feel energy
Wide-eyed, elated

Sometimes I want to steal you away
To a place where it’s just you and I
Sometimes I want the world to see
Your brilliance and the way you shine

When I’m with you I feel emotion
Joy, happiness
When I’m with you I get the notion
We’re unique, divinely blessed

Sometimes I want to present the world to you
In all its beauty as a gift
Sometimes I want the world to end
So we can spend eternity together in bliss

by Royce Waxenfelter
2/14/08

Restored At Last

Have you lost sight of God?
Lost footing in faith?
Talk to God

Have you lost track of life?
Lost the value of love?
Return to God

Have you felt unworthy?
Lost beauty and joy?
Seek God

Have you lost hope in Heaven?
Lost sense of direction?
Find God

Have you lost your energy?
Lost motivation and meaning?
Receive God

Have you found failure in your choices?
Lost control, been hurt?
Be healed by God

Have you hardened your heart?
Lost your smile?
Be revived by God

Have you been uprooted?
Lost security and depth?
Listen to God

Have you wasted your time?
Lost mercy and grace?
Grow in God

Have you lost discernment?
Lost right from wrong?
Know God

by Royce Waxenfelter
12/9/08
(lessons from Hosea 14)

Nomadic Mind

This time we're in a bind
Me and my nomadic mind
To predict the predicament
To interrogate the kind

This time we're in a bind
Me and my nomadic mind
To resurrect the resurgence
To retaliate the recurrence

This time we're in a bind
Me and my nomadic mind
To signal the significance
To comprehend my find

This time we're in a bind
Me and my nomadic mind
To forecast the finite
To neutralize the night

This time we're in a bind
Me and my nomadic mind
To oblige my occurrence
Transparent the blind

This time we're in a bind
Me and my nomadic mind
To persuade and prefer
To government the grind

by Royce Waxenfelter
10/27/90

Freight Trains

Anxiously waiting
Time to go home
Train derailing
Specific detailing
You pick up the phone

Freight trains in my mind
I've got a two track mind

Fearfully hating
Thoughts are on loan
Post-dated mailing
A vision of failing
You can't go back home

Freight trains in my mind
I've got a two track mind

Carefully shaving
A number unknown
Weeping and wailing
Buckets I'm bailing
Of years that I've grown

Freight trains in my mind
I've got a two track mind

Consciously braving
Harmonic tone
Staring and saving
Memories sailing
Of when I'll be home

by Royce Waxenfelter
3/7/90

Difficult Times

Blinding
Grinding
Never minding

Sending
Bending
Never ending

Where am I headed
Wear my shoes
Difficult times

The needle threaded
Hear the news
Difficult times

Biting
Fighting
Such short sighting

Pacing
Casing
Short embracing

A broken promise
Broken pact
Difficult times

A doubting Thomas
Honesty cracked
Difficult times

by Royce Waxenfelter
11/30/89

Time Cards

It happened during the war
In the factories, in the cities
When women and men clocked in
And used these time cards

And ever since then
When we all clock in
We work and we wonder when
Our shift is gonna end

So you happen to be poor
Out of savings, into debt
If not you wouldn't clock in
And use these time cards

Sitting in distress
Schedule is a mess
Your work enhances stress
Like a twig in a nest

Still we labor at our chore
In the dawning of the day
We're the reason we clock in
And use these time cards

Outlook isn't bright
When our money's tight
Prices are out of sight
Every time your wallet's light

So we're slaving to restore
The wallet size, the economy
We're living at the Clock Inn
Using these time cards

We all pay the price
In conditions not so nice
I'm here to tell you twice
We're laboratory mice
We're laboratory mice...with time cards

by Royce Waxenfelter
4/5/90