ABSTRACT MIND OF A POET
THE JOURNEY
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From: "Smooth Jazz" "Not just a sound, but a feeling that surrounds you, mind and soul flush to outer edges of existence , then falling back gently to reality; a note taken to extreme, floating in a realm of fantasy, then tasted atop a hot fudge sundae, and blown out to blueberry tang, eased forward with a peach backer, letting all its flavors run together in harmony..." From: "Imagination" "Understand that you can fly above all earthly ties, To magic elven kingdoms riding golden butterflies. You can be the master of a mighty ship at sea, Or catch a watcha-ferra-dong for all the world to see! Find an unknown island in the sea of Zanzibar, Or ride the rocket ship you built to planet "way-too-far". Battle fearsome dragons or travel distant lands, Explore a new-found galaxy or walk on emerald sands. Let imagination take you where no other soul has gone; And wrap you in adventure on the magic isle beyond...." From: "Horrors of War" "The smoke begins to clear; the silence is deafening. Leaning back against the trench line, I can't feel the wounds now obvious to me. My hands are blackened with powder flash, and dirt mixed with blood covers the length of my body.... ….We each stumble from the trench over the horrific count of bodies of the enemy, and a wrenching pain wells up in each of us as brine and vomit fill our mouths at the reality of the onslaught. My God! How did we even survive!?" From: "Surrender and Hope" "We wake to the shakes or tremors or pain, We're sick to the core, near going insane. The bottles are empty, no pills or syringe, To take off the hair of the addiction binge. Soon we're so sick that we can't even stand, We were just having fun; this is NOT what we planned. Now it's been days, maybe weeks--maybe years. We kneel on the floor filled with anguish and fears... From: "Confronting the Darkness" "Confronting Darkness in my life, long buried, Brings a cold, uneasy feeling deep within. I'm told it must be done to aid my healing, But only I know where this Darkness has been.... ….Three decades passed since I first faced it; I pause to face it once again. Breaking seals on the door long since hidden, Today the healing will begin." From: "Morning Noise" "What's with all that noise you make, First think in the morning? I thought we had this talk before. I thought we gave you warning.... ….It's just a common courtesy To those who live here too. It's getting quite pestiferous And we're tired of telling you!...." From: "Taste of Love" "....As lips and fingers gather inches of flesh, Caressing each morsel as candy, Molded by tongue and touch, Positions willingly forfeited, Each taking pleasure in the other's fulfilled Rapture. Seemingly nothing withheld from the other, No kiss or caress left unexplored, 'Til both lay bereft of strength to carry on, And the glow of satisfaction surrounds Our weary bodies...." From: "A Hell of a Ride!" "....Sometimes I find my world in a constant state of damage and repair. It becomes uncertain if I'm staying ahead of the leaking boat I'm in or if I'm really going down for the last time. But I keep bailing and plugging holes and--Guess What? The damn thing still floats! So if I'm asked what I think about how "would I", or if "I think I could", I simply have to smile and say, 'Well, ya know, I may not have enjoyed every aspect that I've lived through, but it's been a hell of a ride!'"
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About the Book
In his first book, Abstract Mind of a Poet, The Beginning, L.S. McKay gave his readers an initial taste of his unique perspective on life, love, nature, and people. In this, his second book, Abstract Mind of a Poet, The Journey, he guides us on the path that exposed him to these insights. He begins with the poems and prose of youth, inexperience and innocence of brightest day through the disillusionment of war and broken dreams that yield the dusk of careless abandon and wild risks with nothing to lose. McKay's verse and verbiage then submerge the reader in the depths of despair and desperation, a glimpse of the dark endured by those ensnared by death and loss into hopelessness, guilt, and addictions. Finally, we soar aloft again with the poet as he fights for life and a new dawn that looms on the horizon for those who reach a hand up for help. Sometimes funny, often raw and real, always thought provoking, McKay's offering of prose and poetry is at once a basically simplistic and inspirationally complex reflection of his unusual life. Step along the path to explore the Abstract Mind of a Poet, The Journey.
About the Author
L.S. McKay spent several of his childhood years at a military academy in Tacoma, Washington, where his interest in writing was sparked by the Dominican nuns who oversaw the facility. Upon graduation from high school in Forks, Washington, he married his high school sweetheart and finally began gazing at the good life through rose-tinted lenses. But Vietnam and building a million-dollar construction company took their toll on relationships until, perceiving there was nothing to lose, he cast off restraint and took a ride on the wild side. Then, ahhh, he met the woman he hoped and believed would be the love of his life. She helped him see the folly of living a life without boundaries, until that folly finally cost him all---even her life. McKay was angry and full of guilt, and on the brink of joining the souls he had loved and lost to the universe. But that will to fight, planted early in his life, and an answered cry for help resurrected him slowly into hope for a New Dawn. Cadet, linebacker, jar-head, sniper, husband and father, master carpenter, biker, lover, alcoholic, survivor, last man standing, poet. Take a few steps on the journey with each of them, and perhaps find answers to your own soul's questions, through the Abstract Mind of a Poet.