The Trees of Hollow

7/29/2019 The Trees of Hollow

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The Trees of Hallow

A collection of poems by Alan Eby

All work Alan Eby


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Note:

The work in this collection retains its uniqueness and initial spontaneity. All of these poems

contain the emotions I was feeling at the time. No additions or revisions have been made to the

poems. I want you, the reader, to experience this collection just as I did when I originally wrote

it.


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Bloody lips and cherry wine

Moonshine in your hair

Just keep staring at the sunPraying for Summers End.

Summers End Foo Fighters


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The Legend of Aconitum and the Moon


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Amnesiaonic

A steady stream of sobriety interrupted by a relapseBack again to your picture out of focus

Haze and smoke from my unfinished cigarettethat was supposed to relax me

The sound of your silent voice isnt too far away;

just out of hearts reach

But since were on the subject again,might I suggest a review?

Down the stairs I trip, falling over your name;a rush of nostalgia to the head

These wounds will fester with regret

and infected they will become

Reflected in the mirror are your eyes,

two hypnotic fools with a skillLike a breath, I was drawn in then out

Released back into the wild like an animal

Even in sleep when my mind has the power to go wherever it pleases,it is adamant that you come along

So I drag you behind me

Weighted down by your soul

And after a few parallels where it all worked out,I sit down and brush away the hair from your faceWondering why Ive come all this way

to be sitting here brushing away the wind

Drenched in sweat and a feeling of guiltI quietly pace the hallway betwixt my door and our previous door.

When I get to that door, I go to knock then halt,

knowing that no one will answer on the other side

But I knock anyway just to give myself a sense of peace,

a sense of peace that never keeps us at peace

Frantically, I wish for the morningsince in the light, your shadow follows me

I, being amnesiaonic, want to be hit in the head;

an attempt to erase past attempts

To sharpen these pencils for the day

and write about something new


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A steady stream of relapse interrupted by sobriety

Back again to an empty picture frameHaze and smoke from my finished cigarette

that has relaxed me

The sound of silence isnt too far away;just within arms reach

And since were on a new subject,might I suggest risk assessment?

Down the stairs I walk, talking over your name;

a rush of closure to the headThese scars will show hope

and nurtured they will become

Reflected in the mirror are my eyes,

two trusting guides with a skill

Like a breath, I look in then out,capturing all there is to see

In sleep, my mind has the power to go wherever it pleases.It is adventurous,

leaving everything behind

Weighted down only by gravity

And after a few parallels where its a different me,

I sit down and brush away the hair from my face

Wondering why Ive come all this wayand have not known about this place before

Drenched in sweat from running in my dreamsI quietly exhale and catch my breath

When my heart slows and my mind is at ease,

the door opens and I decide to leave

I dont have to knock since the door is automatic

A peaceful sense of peace in me

Hesitantly I wish for the morningSince in the night, no light can burn me

I, being amnesiaonic, want to be hit in the head;an attempt to kill the future

To dull these pencils with history

and remember what I already know


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Dragonfly Wings

Brittle as paperStrong as glass

Dragonfly wingsHumming as they pass


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MMXII

Oh, rejoice!Your time has finally come

Tell them all your secretsand they will welcome you

Only at night

so they wont see the seriousness in your face


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Rainy Progress

Drizzle here, drizzle there

Rain here, rain there

Pour here, pour there

Drizzle here, rain there

Rain here, pour there

Pour here, drizzle there

Drizzle here, pour there

Rain here, drizzle there

Pour here, rain there

Its all progress and failure

and sometimes it comes quicker than thought


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Acute Girl

She knows only what she knowsFears what she doesnt know

Never giving the new a chance to become her oldAnd lying to herself that that is what makes her acute


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Fernix

The chimes ring your earsSubduing your worries

After paralysisKnowing your world has been called out

Fernix leaves and breathes

To those who wait

Wait for himThe gag removed


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3 Times

I had a feelingA funny feeling

That this would result

I had a hunch

A fruity punch

To the gut and choked up

Three times is plenty for me

Plenty for the books

You could have stopped at oneAnd Id been happy

I read your mindWith my mind

Going for the ride

I felt a wind

A strong wind

Something was coming

I tore it down

Down to the ground

No spring seeds

I made a pact

A pact to relaxBefore I felt again


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62

It never was my favoriteUntil you lived there

The creak of the floorsFifteen wooden stairs

Always a chill

Mostly in your bed

Burrowed under that blanket colored red

You can spread out now that Im gone

My things are packed and now I am gone

Out the door, dont wanna hear the song

That we first kissed to on that Autumn nightIt all felt good

It all felt right

You bled me out and forgot the goodbyes

Lovers smoke in my eyes

I guess it wasnt what seen us through

On that street, West at 62

Asleep on my arm

I dared not to moveHours on end

Nestled in a groove

Pictures on your bedroom wall

The stories I heard you tell

Silenced by the night

Cautious of the morning bell

You can take down the photos of me


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Carpet Cleaner

Those stains on the carpet are memoriesLike the time you spilt wine

Dressed in a skirt, dancing out of timeEvery time I look they come back to me


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A Framed Rose

I once plucked a rose from its stem,wanting to give it to someone special

The favor wasnt returned so I framed the rose,hung it on the pale egg-white wall

My theory was that since I couldnt have their love,

I would frame mine for them

The rose lost its color and shape,

but never died; barely holding onto life

And so I hoped they would notice my determination,

but then I realized that the framed rose wasnt the only rose to bloom


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Herfst Brug (Autumn Bridge)

The leaves from the old oak tree fall to the groundA sign of mysterious forthcomings

Cooler winds prevail over the merciless heat of SummerBreathe in the aura of Appleseed

Scents of pumpkin litter the cider-like air

Crisp as a freshly picked apple

Bearing no direction but 360 of immense color containing reds, yellows, oranges, and browns

The water flowing under Herfst Brug is drenched with Dutch blood

Ancestral wells pooling the local historyFables and myths are planted with caution

Risen by the ghosts of past seasons

Counting down the days of harvest left

brings the realization of what has been achieved and what will die

but everything has come to this October festival:The grand finale of the living season blossoms in the days of Autumn


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Necessities

BootsJeans

Leather jacketWhiskeyCigars

Apple Cider

Bales of hay

FireA belief in the legends


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Opaque Statues

We were young onceBack in our brash days

Time has ended its loanAnd we ready to pay

These bones have felt love

Reluctantly accepted loss

Sounds of life chimeAnd chip away our gloss

Well be stoneSomeday

Opaque statues

Someday

Ordinary as the wind

But staying in one placeSimple means

Make a modest space

You and I have livedCounted the stars a thousand times

Lets recount them again

Closer than ever this time

Well be stoneSomedayOpaque statues

Someday


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I Had That One Long Ago

A long, long, long time agoI once knew a girl who showed me how

To be patient and anxious and to take controlAt the time it all seemed a grand ole show

Then the rose, it died from the slow

Truth that finally shined with a bloody glow

It all felt odd, against who I wasSo I ran away to my home because

I had that one long agoIt did me bad, and did me slow

Take her in and shell show you why

Shes a master of disaster from the start

The raging seas have nothing on her

Wrath that crashes into Big SurLike a muse she draws you in

With lullabies and songs from the devils den

Nave I was to trust her eyesBut the pleasure was sweet dressed in disguise

My heart was attacked and ripped from my soul

She put it back with grace and control

I had that one long agoIt did me bad, and did me slowTake her in and shell show you why

Shes a master of disaster from the start


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Three Rivers

The boats that came through hereMany years and moons ago

Brought this town to its bloom

Then the trains with their smoke and coal

Passengers lined up with their dresses and tobacco

Helped move life into this town

Moving with speed, these cars came fast

Taking things there and bringing new ones here

Paved the way for this town


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Legend

If you think it cant be realThink again

It hides within youResting in your bellyWaiting to arise

Like an animal from its slumber

Two fights it fights every day

Between good and evilThe victor is crowned

By whichever you let win


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Paint Your Soul

What are the colors of your mindDo they shine in the sun

Is your room painted to bring them to life

So paint me your soul on a canvas

With yellows and greens and everything in between

And what you finish with will be yours to give

Can you trace the outline freehand

Or do you need my help

Let me sit beside you and watch patiently


With blues and reds and everything in your headAnd what you finish with will be yours to give

Will you let me watch while you workDo you prefer I sit outside and wait

Whatever it is, Ill eventually see

So paint me your soul on a canvasWith blacks and whites and everything you have to fight




With blacks and whites and everything you have to fightAnd what you finish with will be yours to give



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When We Rolled In

We drove for hoursOne in the front and two in the back

Not sure which way we were going

Somehow we found the belt

Wrapped around that city

Placing faith in the unknown

Up on the horizon

Couldnt believe our eyes

The buildings, the lightsWhen we rolled in


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Shot Down

I threw up your name and shot it downWith a look of my eye

I buried your truth and walked awayWhen the sun was setting

I burned your face with a touch of honesty

While smoke filled the sky

I drowned your voice whilst

Watching the tide come in

I tried to fix your heart

But you refused


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Lights That Guide

Hear the stillness of the nightAs your thoughts come out to play

Curfew is upBut they plead for you to stay

Oh, follow where they go

Get lost aside the dark

These lights that guide you home

Soon you lose your way

Circling around the worldAsking a few

To show you the new

Oh, follow where they go

Get lost aside the dark

These lights that guide you home


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In Time

Through a reflective lens I combat the painof slowly remembering all that was but now makes me go insane

Of a matter of words on a piece of string that pursed through your lipsit all seemed like it would settle like concrete and refuse to rip

And the ribbons and banners of the revelry

got torn down by some overlooked carnival employee

Distracted by the repetitive march of the clock

I fell into step and became synchronized, completely forgot

In the darkness of that little bedroom seized by the cold

I swore you said something but you wouldnt repeat what you told

Winters song started to play gently in our ears

and the scent of Armageddon loomed within the year

Like driftwood from an inevitable shipwreck

these splinters floated from the mast unhinged from the deck

Gracious are the moments of nostalgia at night

as I dance with a ghost that never sought to haunt my sight


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Leather-bound

Collecting dust on the wooden shelfA plan to use it again

The words housed here are asleepNever to breathe again

Tightly packed in a cardboard box

Onto new towns and fields

Dying for sunlight and growthRealizing that for a price theyll yield

Wonders let loose with a cut of a strapRacing through the air like a newborn butterfly

The plan was to stay leather-bound till death

But they manipulated my weakness and succeed with a try


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The Life and Death of West Egg

She always said that Autumn always brought hopeHope for renewal and preservation

The leaves that littered the surface of the lake teeteredTeetered on right and wrong

And although good intentions were the root of action

Action was set in motion for destruction

Midwest values smothered by money and carelessness

Carelessness that ruined nave ambition


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The New Sinful Lot

Nor greed, jealously, or adultery can compare

Spreading like a resurfaced Black Plague it infects

Quitting cold turkey only makes it worse

Pray that its grasp doesnt grab hold of you

For in a rebirth of light you appreciate your broken heart

Numb from disappointment, freed from heavenly lies


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My Greatest Memory

My greatest memory isnt filled with loveDoesnt include sadness or pain

Nor overly happy visions

My greatest memory takes me back to my high school days

But not actually in the school

But at my home at that time

My greatest memory was founded on that street named after a Native American weapon

And when the Autumn winds came and rustled the leaves loose from their branches

I became drunk with the seasonal change and intoxicated by its effect

My greatest memory was guided by a soundtrack

By a band that saved my life, twiceThey were always fighting foo

My greatest memory was all about listeningTo the trees, the wind, the ghosts of past Autumns

It was all echoes, silence, patience, and grace

My greatest memory sat itself down on that family room sofaAfter school and the television roared with the sounds of the Premiership

Confused with curiosity and intrigued by every kick

My greatest memory was warmed by the late afternoon sun

Shining through the window on my legs

As the dog laid beside me

My greatest memory, over time, became knowledgeable

It came with great effort of studying and watching

And the passion was then created

My greatest memory burrowed a sense of belonging

Deep within the recesses of my mindWithout a single moment of human interaction

My greatest memory will live on

Today, tomorrow, and yesterdayReveled by the September months


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Humanity

Dearest brother,Your intent is to forget the present and to remember the past

Im sorry to say thats not your destined way

Our now- nature is to rip apart lives

Both fleshly and metaphorically

However, you say otherwise

I see the way you look at her

When she walks away and comes

But I know you smell her virgin blood

Smelling so good, it pierces your cold heart

And warms it back upYet your primal instincts kick in

Finally I teach you that we lost our humanityWhen we made our first kill to be reborn

So no bother trying to resurrect it when blood is waiting to be spilled


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Bourbon in the Bayou

Give it another roundHold onto your glass

Shout out your lungsLet the bad times pass


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Atlas Misjudgment

So push this heavy load off my shouldersAnd give me my overdue wings

Let me fly awayWithout a crying sound

Your troubles and your sadness

All of your confusion

All held up by my inner Atlas

Unknown to your thoughts

A moments worth of attentionAll looked over by my inner Atlas

If you ever think to noticeMy arms under your feet

Holding you up, my inner Atlas

I cant take the weight no more

Watch it all come crashing down

My inner Atlas quit takes away your crown


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Fire, Smoke, and Rain

You are set afire

You are smoking at the seam

You are put out by the rain

You know its only a dream


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Never In The Moment

The smoke never clouds my sightBecause I know where Im going

Dj vu floods my mindAs if Ive been here before

Hindsight will bitch at me later

But I dont see itNever in the moment

A gentle mist of confusionRaining down on my anxious face

These little details arent important

Ill pay attention to them later on

Hindsight will bitch at me laterBut I dont see it

Never in the moment


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The Wind That Whispers

Man should never listen to another manOnly to the wind

The wind never shouts liesIt only whispers the truthBecause what is certain and real

Never needs force to be heard


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Blindly

Agree to agree on so muchBlind loyalty all the way

Until the day you calledTo tell me it wasnt what you agreed on

Ah, ah, ah, ah

Oh, oh, oh, oh

Like a good friend I obliged

Anything to make you happy again

You came running back once moreAnd I took you back blindly

Ah, ah, ah, ahOh, oh, oh, oh

Will you let me follow you down

Where you and I crash and burn?

The past was over with a blur

Like getting dizzy rolling down a hill

This years love has gone too farHarvest it in the middle of Fall

Ah, ah, ah, ahOh, oh, oh, oh

A bicycle you rode to townWith me on the handlebars

And when I fell off

You watched as I rolled into the cars

Ah, ah, ah, ah

Oh, oh, oh, oh

Will you let me follow you downWhere you and I crash and burn?


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This One

This ones not about you or meOr why we chose to say our goodbyes and leave

This ones not a lost causeSince we can pull each other back into arms

Pull you back or push you away

Ill fight for you if you promise to do the same


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Augustas End

This Indian Summers got me sweatin like a dogIts not from the heat but from what I know comes next

Gotta put away the boat, gotta lose these tan linesSince the cool air is telling me its time for

Augustas End

Time to say goodbye to my summer friends

All the beer is gone and I wont pretend that it doesnt make me sadOh, its Augustas End

When the leaves start to turn a warmer colorThats when the kids are going back to school

And Im one, of those university suckers

When all I want to do is just go out and play but its

Augustas End

Time to say goodbye to my summer friendsAll the beer is gone and I wont pretend that it doesnt make me sad

Oh, its Augustas End

No more beach funJust homework thats never done

I should just move to Puerto Rico

But its

Augustas EndTime to say goodbye to my summer friendsAll the beer is gone and I wont pretend that it doesnt make me sad

Oh, its Augustas End (x2)

No more beach funJust homework thats never done

I should just move to Puerto Rico (two times rapidly)


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Coal Mountain Luck

The year was 1902When Pa came in from the fields and said hed got some newsThe banks taking our lands

Weve got to move West

To the Appalachians

Where the black coal rests

We settled down in Ohio, next to a creek

Where Pa and I found work in the mines, two dollars a weekThe dust ate our lungs

The sun never shined

Our luck turned black from all the woodbine

And wheres our coal mountain luck?


One Tuesday morning, around 10 am

Pa hit a piece of rock that caused it to end

The mine was coming downI grabbed Pas hand

He fell and I lost his grip

As quick as sand

Standing by the grave, holding mamas handAnd my sisters crying, they didnt understandNow I see

What is misery

Its knowing that your best

Will never set you free




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Backwards

All the times youll never forgetAll the times you now regret

It all seems like yesterdayAnd now its clear, theyre far away

Could you tell the tale about your life?

How it took its time to get just right

Maybe its a story that goes with some brewsIm givin all my attention to you

Here we goFlying through time, over every line

The part about kissing you

Makes me wanna smile, itll last awhileBut here I am with you

A ring around your finger, this love it likes to linger

Around your wordsWhen you go

Backwards

Do you think about all your lies?The white ones and the long goodbyes

Crying to move the pain

Ill always be there to take it away

Say youve ran around for long enoughYour feet are tired, your hands are roughPlay the song that soothes your heart

Let the bad things come apart

Here we goFlying through time, over every line

The part about kissing you

Makes me wanna smile, itll last awhileBut here I am with you

A ring around your finger, this love it likes to linger

Around your wordsWhen you

Go backwards


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Boo

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The Trees of Hollow