On Your Dove

On my olive tree my life grows
On my olive tree my freedom dies

On my high mountains my home is built
On my high mountains my chance is ripped

On my orchards my wealth is made
On my orchards my dignity is slayed

On my Jerusalem my prayers are answered
On my Jerusalem my death is planned

On my Palestine my misery begins
On my Palestine my world ends

The Fortitude

The stand in rows dividing
Deciding when to start deciding

Are they white or black or gray?
Are they willing to bring today?

For now, they are in the graveyard
For now, the paradox cannot start

This insanity of profanity has come to exist
Oh, Nationalism, when will it desist?

Must I draw a line in poisonous borders
Must I tear myself from my brothers

If it isn't now, may I ask when?
When shall you deny the need to pretend?

The magnitude of your fortitude is certain
I greatly anticipate the fall of your curtain

The self-pity capsule you have opted to take
Will soon leave you ravaged in your wake

I have tired of words and wisdoms
Tired of trying to tear down your kingdoms

If it need be I will stifle my sigh
And join you all as a spot on a butterfly

Because I am unity, it is I you forsake
But it is your freedom that is at stake

The Mist of All Mirrors

You make the times of the day rhyme
Singles of whatever ticking in fervor
And if I want to be in the seas of keys
Then my roads shall awkwardly deliver

And here are my stops in candy dew drops
Deadlines of shortlines all breeding
To find the kind of all mine
Again, looks can be deceiving

I can seem weightless, flying fearless
In admiration of fouls of black street hours
Where all the migraines poke all the painstakes
But I really want to find the sweetness in all the sours

Were it what it was and what it would be
I want everything, regardless
And if the light’s colors won’t make my rainbow
I want to be left protected and defenseless

And here are my stops in candy dew drops
Deadlines of shortlines all breeding
To find the kind of all mine
Again, looks can be deceiving

Eden

Painless to speak, torturous to do

A schoolboy spewing lessons anew

And all the paths that I can remember…

Somehow end up in all that is you

My road now is a fine line

Silver in color and sharp in taste

Surviving in “nothing must go to waste”

My words now revolve around one sun

Like my mind, severing the “one”

Yet my time for reverie has passed

And I find myself now free at last

Now I shall speak what it is I do

And the lessons learned will be forever true

It's The Way of the World, My Dear

To watch the lights go out in your heart
I’ve forgotten what it’s like to be apart

And there you are, and here I am

Still I think of the methods, the ways
The misunderstandings to making you stay

And there you are, and here I am

Remember the neon lights… the black town
The fast ride
The track to nowhere

And there you are, and here I am

Now it’s in pieces
And I’m willing to shatter

And there you are, and here I am

Outside Your Door

Immersed in my transparency
Bothered by my discrepancy

Trying to find my way
Working out the amazing things to say

And if it all isn’t gold
Then why do I feel sold?

Sacrifice was on another to-do list
Another crumpled reverie in your fist

I put up a stop sign for my trance
A castle in the sky, a knight with a lance

It’s just a little nightmare
Nothing more to share

All it does is play upon your weakness
As if strength would make a difference

I can refuse to stand still
But no one else will

Would you believe me if I said no?
If I finally stood here and told you to go

Maybe it’s just the transparency
Bothered by my discrepancy

My Colonial Flag

The world's on fire
We have children for hire

Catastrophe, our middle name
Chaotic in our moment of fame

Dignified death claims our glory
My Palestinian heart's story

I can find room for its self-pity
Its throne above Jerusalem city

Revenge is not my fight
The camera has confused my plight

Your magic box is all you see
And all I can see is me

Here I find my morbid camps
My home's ruins lit by lamps

Fight! Fight! Fight! Hear me chant
Your freedom, the victim of my rant

I do not want your charity
That is not the object of my victory

This false freedom draws my scorn
My colonialized cloak grows thin and worn

For I must beg of you to understand
It is not my wealth nor my land

My humanity is my desire
In this world on fire

The Orchard

Character defines you my boy
The harshness of life is its tool
It tears at you and eats your flesh
But it will birth you anew

Dignity will save you my boy
The wounded soul is its home
It breaks your back and kicks your pride
But it will give you a mountain to stand upon

Forgiveness will shield you my boy
The realm of heaven is its beholder
It makes you shed tears of blood
But it will claim your sincerity

I have lost my children, their mother, and my home
The yaffa oranges have fallen to the ground
The dirt has claimed their unpicked carcasses
As it will yours and mine

But take this with you to the grave my dear son
I swear by the lines that map my brow
If I had known what I know now
The oranges still would not have been picked

For fate is the wielder of many swords
Purpose is its eternal motive
No knowledge can change the past
This leads to my last advice my boy

Courage will take you to where you never knew you needed to be
The sanctuary of this life is its battlefield
Hold fast to your recklessness
For the day will come when you may pick the oranges again

Second-Hand Joy

I'll visit you for awhile
Maybe recreate your inner child
I'll leave suddenly
You'll wonder what has become of me
I'll peek over your shoulder
Maybe pat you on the back
Whisper in your ear
Tell you to relax
I'll give your conscience some answers
Then i'll ask you all the questions
Perhaps visit the shadows for awhile
Take away any reason to smile
Next, I might jump into your head
Bathe where your illusions bled
I might make you a promise
Then quickly take it back
I'll call white all the shades of black
I'll make you live my way
Make you believe it's alright
Then leave you astray
With no hope in sight
I'll tell you you're brilliant
Then make sure you're insane
I'll count the times you smile
Then make you cry for awhile
I'll recommend you take some time
Find you a way to hold up the sign
I'll admire the tango, give you a chance
Then take away all the reasons to dance

Why?

Because I am joy and while I sit on your bed
Sadness is but close ahead
I close my eyes and find another place
Desert you in your empty space
I return with expectations of perpetual bliss
A devil's contract with no risk
For I am Joy
Leaving is what I do best

Exit

Standing in the rain

Cold shards of pelting pain

Casts are being opened today

Thrown to where demons lay

Vines flourishing on lives taken

Grown from fertile dreams forsaken

Glittering in a sun that begins to wane

Accusations like broken arrows are lain

Loneliness keeps the demons at bay

In their eyes is all you had to say

Amidst its drops the earth is shaken

The loneliness is gone and demons awaken

Finally, standing in the rain

Welcoming cold shards of pelting pain

Pride

You have wronged us
"I have righted your many wrongs"

You have created selfishness where there was none
"I have gifted you with strength"

You have taken from our rationality
"I have fed your minds with self-awareness"

You are loved by the shallow
"I am hated by the weak"

You are despicable
"I am desirable"

You are an illness
"I am your creation"

You are us
"I am you"

In the Deep

Thought you had all the answers
to rest your heart upon
but something happens
don't see it coming,
now you can't stop yourself
now you're out there swimming
in the deep
Life keeps tumbling
your heart in circles
till you let go
till you shed your pride
and you climb to heaven
and you throw yourself off
now you're out there
spinning in the deep

words: bird york music: bird york and michael becker