Exposed to the Marrow

Exposed to the Marrow

Exposed to the marrow,
To the essence of who I am
All I want to be.

I see myself on the silver screen
The courage, the willingness,
The fear and uncontrollable trembling.
The fate of the task required
Left to one least able
Chosen for heart, not skill.

To be called, unworthy
Driven by a force not ours
With the end unknown.
To venture beyond our limit
Is the summon we must answer,
The only life to live at all.

sjb 12-23-01
(after seeing “The Fellowship of the Ring”)

Waves Crashing

Waves Crashing

Waves crashing to the shore.
Waves crashing evermore.
War begets peace and peace thirsts for war.
All men pay a different whore.

-Stephen Barber
5-17-04
On the shore 100 yards from Alabama near the beginning of War and Peace by Leo Tolstoy.

Home Is Not A Place

HOME IS NOT A PLACE

Home is not a place for me.
I’ve spent time in many places.
And while I often miss my long lost friends,
Going back is not quite like going home.

Home is not a place for me.
I’ve been to class reunions,
Even stole a kiss from one held dear,
But going back is not quite like going home.

Home is not a place for me.
There’s no dirt that calls my name,
Every footprint is a sacred step on my journey.
So, going back is not quite like going home.

Home is not a place for me.
Wife and parents, sisters and brothers,
Daughters and son, kin far and far away,
Some here, some Over-Yonder,
In their embrace, I am home. Let me rest there.


Stephen Barber
August 7, 2007