To Sleep...

To sleep,
Perchance to dream
Of happy times
And pleasant things,
Crossing the skies
On angels' wings,
Of youth's sweet song,
Heart beating strong,
Life full of zest,
Tasting it at its best,
But then to wake,
Crotchety, cold,
With aching bones,
Weak and old...

Alfred Charasz
Copyright 2006 Alfred Charasz

Religion

Religion is the opiate
For the simple people
Using a preacher,
Lectern and a steeple
To indoctrinate the masses
And turn them
With their hocus-pocus
Into the most obedient asses.

Alfred Charasz
Copyright 2006 Alfred Charasz

Isles of Hope

On the dreamy isles of hope,
Where lost souls seek shelter
From the stark reality
Of a decadent world in turmoil,
They gathered
To live with their illusions
Of decency, morality and peace.

Alfred Charasz
Copyright 2006 Alfred Charasz

On String Theory

All man perceives
Is merely sense illusion,
Vibrating strings of energy
Like lighted points
In empty space
Is the real conclusion;
It seems perverse
But looking at a man
With infinite magnification
We see the universe,
And thus we live
In ignorant bliss
In a world which seems
But never is.

Alfred Charasz
Copyright 2006 Alfred Charasz

To be or....

The generations come,
The generations go
For purposes
We do not know,
From sperm to dust,
A lot of agony,
Some joy, some lust,
A bit of vanity,
Wars and insanity,
Life starts in pain
Ends in calamity,
The interval may have
A certain style,
But in the end one wonders
Was the play worthwhile?

Alfred Charasz
Copyright 2006 Alfred Charasz

Gift

Don't wish too much
For any gift,
For you may get it
And in the end
Deeply regret it.

Alfred Charasz
Copyright 2006 Alfred Charasz

Life's Struggle

Beyond the daily struggle
And the constant stress
To keep on going and survive
There also is the burning need
To improve the quality of life,
Thus, on this treadmill
People keep on going on and on
Till their apportioned time is up
And they are - gone...

Alfred Charasz
Copyright 2006 Alfred Charasz

Edelweiss

High in the Alps
Near green meadows
Surrounded by snows,
Hidden away,
The edelweiss grows,
A flower so fair,
A flower so rare,
Picked one fresh long ago,
Found it dried in a book,
Reminds me of my youth,
The Alps and the snow...

Alfred Charasz
Copyright 2006 Alfred Charasz

Loss...

What is lost in a minute
No eternity can return
But regrets for the loss
Forever may burn
Causing floating anxiety
Beyond all propriety.

Alfred Charasz
Copyright 2006 Alfred Charasz

Country Lane...

Walking down a country lane,
Dreamy, quiet and serene,
When the leaves are fresh with dew,
Many wonders I've seen,
Nature in its morning glory,
Relishing in this abode,
Where the finch tells me his story
In his warbling note,
Stirring life is everywhere
From the singing lark
To the basso toad,
Vivid colors of wild flowers
Edging golden fields of grain,
Blue skies up above
And the balmy winds refrain,
Oh, the wondrous joy of it,
Walking down a country lane...

Alfred Charasz
Copyright 2006 Alfred Charasz

Undecided...

She is subtle and charming
And very discreet
And her answers are compact,
Precise and quite neat,
While her eyes have a soulful
And passionate glare,
And whatever she'd say
Seems intriguingly fair.
Could it be that beneath
This upper crust
Lies a hot shadow
Which can burn me to dust?
Pray, answer me
In all fair esteem
What, precisely,
Thy nature might be?
If what seems apparent is true,
I'd never want anyone but you
But if the shadows hold true
Which dwell beneath,
I beg you, my flame,
Let's just wait and see,
For my wings are delicate
And my soul sensitive,
And never my old self I'd be.

Alfred Charasz
Copyright 2006 Alfred Charasz

Atomic Madness

We cried in the wilderness
But no one heard us,
We raised our arms in despair
But no one saw us,
For we are the ghosts of the dead
From Hiroshima and Nagasaki
Trying to warn the world
Against impending disaster.

Alfred Charasz
Copyright 2006 Alfred Charasz

What is Love

Love is soft,
Love is tender,
Love is passion,
Love is surrender,
Love is sharing
Soul, body and mind,
A rare treasure,
Hard to find,
If, perchance,
It comes your way,
Never let it go astray,
Capture it forever,
Cherish love each day.

Alfred Charasz
Copyright 2006 Alfred Charasz

Money

Everyone chases
The money,
Like the bees
Relish their honey,
The right amount
Will buy the sweetest bunny,
If you lack cash
You can borrow,
Pay back on some morrow,
But if you don't
You may have sorrow,
Unless you declare bankruptcy,
Than you live it up for free.

Alfred Charasz
Copyright 2006 Alfred Charasz

Lulu

Lulu is luscious, sexy and fair,
Not a gal to trifle with
Unless you can pay her fare,
She's the very kind
To sex you out of cash and mind,
Lulu will give her sweetest honey
But she'll take all your money,
She'll give you all her loving care
But if your payments stop - Beware!

Alfred Charasz
Copyright 2006 Alfred Charasz

Dreams of an old man

Often, in dreams
I see them yet,
Family and friends,
My beloved dead,
In my memory
They'll linger on
Till my time comes
And I am gone.

At times, I wonder
If our lives' theme
Will be a memory
In some eternal scheme...

Alfred Charasz
Copyright 2006 Alfred Charasz

Sex

Sex is a great occupation,
A marvelous recreation
And it furthers the growth
Of the nation.

Alfred Charasz
Copyright 2006 Alfred Charasz

My Mission

In my life I've found my mission
To become a politician
Since I've every qualification
To join the leadership of our nation,
For I am a master of platitudes,
Have thoroughly dishonest attitudes,
Tarry with high-class prostitutes
And hoodwink the multitudes,
Am able to hide all corruption
By special interests seduction,
Have a talent to honestly cheat and lie
And never admit on how and why.

Alfred Charasz
Copyright 2006 Alfred Charasz

Ryan's Story

On an eerie moonlit night
In my bar I drank and died,
Angels took me by my hand,
Led me to the Promised Land,
St. Peter asked me at the gate,
Why I came so drunk and late,
Where in holy hell I've been,
What I've done
And what I've seen,
God, in white, he just looked on
Till old Peter said - I'm done,
All these holies
Dressed as physicians
To examine my condition,
Met Napoleon and Einstein there
And famous people from everywhere,
But I noticed on the gate,
'Heavenly Nuthouse'
On some fancy plate displayed.

Alfred Charasz
Copyright 2006 Alfred Charasz

Emergency

An emergency at midnight,
Sam - pains in his chest,
An ambulance racing each light,
The hospital - doctors in white,
The operation - a success,
But the patient died.

Alfred Charasz
Copyright 2006 Alfred Charasz

The Music of the Big Bang

I hear the music of the spheres
In the still of the night,
The sound of creation
In its blinding light
Which lingers on and on
Long after this universe is gone,
The music of the spheres,
A lasting, sweet memory
Of this god-like creature - man
Who once lived here...

Alfred Charasz
Copyright 2006 Alfred Charasz

Lost Loved Ones

Joyfully - they lived,
In sorrow - they passed on,
Diminished am I
Since they are gone,
The pain may slowly go away
But memories will stay
Till darkness touches me
And I have had my day.

From the beget to the begot
Life's interval passes on
To the forget and forgot...

Alfred Charasz
Copyright 2006 Alfred Charasz

Loon Lake

The silver of
The shining moon
Is mirrored on the
Surface of Lake Loon,
The scene, reflecting light,
A dreamy picture to delight,
The strange song of the loons
Echoes through the starry night
As they sweep over the densely
Wooded mountains in their flight,
As the wind whispers in the trees:
'My friend, here you'll find
Beauty, truth and peace.'

Alfred Charasz
Copyright 2006 Alfred Charasz

Modern Times 2006

Give a cheer, give a cheer,
Modern times are here,
Crooked politicians,
Fanatic preachers
And other weird creatures,
National vanity,
Worldwide insanity,
Wars for 'liberation',
Wars of alienation,
Suicide bombers everywhere,
In the streets and on the square,
Atom bombs and people roast,
Have a city burned like toast,
Give a cheer, give a cheer,
Take some Prozac,
Modern times are here.

Alfred Charasz
Copyright 2006 Alfred Charasz

Homer

The gods saw fit to take my sight
And plunge me into an eternal night,
Though in my inner self, my soul,
Apollo's beauty has not been denied,
Within me is this constant light,
My poetry, forever shining bright.

Alfred Charasz
Copyright 2006 Alfred Charasz

Gods?

There is no empirical evidence
Of any god in any residence
For they are purely the creation
Of our vivid imagination,
Yet, rumors do persist,
They may exist,
For nature has a wondrous scheme,
We just don't understand its theme
And there could just be a chance
Of some guiding intelligence.
So, never be too caustic,
For, god forbid, there is a god,
Be safe as an agnostic.

Alfred Charasz
Copyright 2006 Alfred Charasz

John

His father killed
John's mother in a rage,
Sentenced, he spent his life
In a prison cage.
He said to John:
"Son, put your mind at rest,
All happens for the best."

Now, as a ward, they sent
John to an institution
And when discharged he went
Into male prostitution.
They told him:
"Put your mind at rest,
All happens for the best."

John wound up as an
Aids-infected, homeless
On the street.
They told him:
"Don't accept defeat,
Just put your mind at rest,
All happens for the best."

In Potters Field they laid
Poor John to rest.
The preacher said:
"It happened for the best."

Alfred Charasz
Copyright 2996 Alfred Charasz

Fallen Soldiers in Iraq

In my dreams
I see them yet,
My comrades in Iraq,
'Those honored dead',
Murdered by
Religious fanatics
To please false gods
With their theatrics,
Sent there to defend
'Liberty and soil'
By politicians seeking
Profits from the oil;
If there be gods
They'd ask why
These innocents
Were sent to die.

Alfred Charasz
Copyright 2006 Alfred Charasz

Eulogy

Extinguished is his muse's light,
Confined forever to eternal night,
The poet we have loved and known
Has left this world - is gone,
Though time will pass,
His poems may just linger on...

Alfred Charasz
Copyright 2006 Alfred Charasz

Capacity to Love

Wished, I could feel that passion
Burning hotly in your chest,
The same heartfelt longing
When love is at its best;
Alas, such passion
Never can be mine,
For the capacity for great love
Is only given to a few
By powers deemed divine.

Alfred Charasz
Copyright 2006 Alfred Charasz

Quality of Life

The quality of life
Is a subjective compensation,
The poor man in his hut
May find in his simple life
Great gratification,
While the rich man
In his palace
Finds his life poor
Without much solace.

Alfred Charasz
Copyright 2006 Alfred Charasz

Wish...

Wished, were I to waken,
This road had not been taken,
But when I woke,
My life had been forsaken
By the wrong road taken...

Alfred Charasz
Copyright 2006 Alfred Charasz

Gossip

The housewives of Nobleshore
Were delighted to meet
Teddy, a local gigolo,
Quite handsome and cute,
They preferred him
In his dashing nude,
Ted, not a type
For gainful employment
Became their great source
Of sly enjoyment,
By the ladies
Well recommended,
Ted's circle of housewives
Grew rather extended,
But some marriages
Were worn or torn
When blond, blue-eyed
Babies were born.

Alfred Charasz
Copyright 2006 Alfred Charasz

Uncertainty

Uncertainty is man's hallmark
Throughout his life,
Fighting the daily battle to survive,
Not knowing if fate may cast
Each single day to be his last,
Always hoping for the future
But dreaming of the past
And sometimes wondering
If the 'to be' is better
Than the 'not to be'.

Alfred Charasz
Copyright 2006 Alfred Charasz

I long for...

I long for love
I never knew,
For one great chance
Out of the blue,
For fame and fortune
Which never came my way,
I long for Lady Luck
To make my day.

Alfred Charasz
Copyright 2006 Alfred Charasz

Religious Illusions

I've come to the conclusion
That life is just an illusion,
Pray to any god or goddess
For spiritual comfort and advice
And use religion to feel nice.

Alfred Charasz
Copyright 2006 Alfred Charasz

Life is...

Life is but
A passing shadow
On a movie screen,
A short adventure
In some eternal scheme,
Perchance reality,
Perchance a dream...

Alfred Charasz
Copyright 2006 Alfred Charasz