We're singing

Our voice is the loudest in these groves
Heavy with the sense of resentment
We used to be so much different
When I started, you knew that I always meant it
I knew I could make a difference
We started to see it's only a matter of time

Words appeared on my page
Faster than I could pull us away
And I knew this, I knew it
But watch you ruin it
The sparkling spotlight, the focus
The feelings, the preparation of stage
Don't say you are ready to turn the page

So now this book has been written
Our pages have been read,
All we have to say is time goes on
Time no longer means anything
Days and hours on the road on this stray light
It didn't mean anything, nothing at all.

Last Call

The stars are the reflections of our dreams in your eyes
The way I look once, twice, you're my prize
Long drives, loud music, easy smiles
Who knew that we'd face numerous trials
I'm the proudest man living in this place
There's no other girl I would replace
I've got the girl that my 911 can't compete with
It's like its always December twenty-fifth
Repressed, tantalizing, insatiable.

Shivers up my spine crease the thoughts of my world
What I wouldn't do to make you my girl forever
Candlelight dinners, walks down the pier
It's the way you look at me, that twirl in front of my mirror
The slinky looks, sensational sense of humor
This hot and cold attitude, dreams of better days
What happened to that girl that sent me into a craze?
We're stripped, twisted, ripped away.

We make up, we get up, we let up
We're unstable, uneven, unsure
Unrepentant, unreal, insecure?
Its the three am calls, the amounts of texts
Double checks, games, girls on my cellphone
What am I doing? Where are we going?

Hands on my neck, feet on my waist
You're so pretty when you're disgraced
Its a shame to have to chalk this fall from grace
To arrive from a lie, only then we started to erase
Not being able to reach you, half truths
This is not what I asked for, not what I fell for
When you burn this perfect picture, see the door
I fold, bend, crumple through and through.

Giving it up hurts the most
Our conversation is as if talking with ghosts
Plenty of hurt inside, realizing we came that close
Rejection once again has paid its toll
And for a long while, there will be that hollow hole
To the streets, to the grass
I clasp our hands and we both laugh
Enough is enough, let us run.

You're a season

The waves of our resistance define our choices. The consequences of our actions are unparalleled. We drift, spiral, vanish, beyond the means of reason. I don't truly like this; I don't like letting go, going slow, pushing my thoughts of you aside. If you just didn't have that silly smile, the one where I pull you in, gravitate, and run my fingers through your hair. Your dark, dark, cold hair.

It's our roots. We stem from issues unresolved, complications, triangulations, pieces of our hearts spinning by day, thriving at night. Talking through issues, skipping work, playing by ear, remember? Calling you on the phone talking until the sky begins to open, with warm shafts of light press down upon us. Your hand that was in mine. These are the days I live for.

Unequal, inconsequential, insatiable, our appetite grows. It's hard to be the better man, when you keep on dying. Let the pale, still, earth glow and let your eyes open to this new season. It is now just a period of life, where we let go of our strife, our delights, moving for the sake of motion. It's such a dangerous business to keep your thick, desolate door open when these winds blow in; who knows what will push through to you. Never give up.

I say this in honesty, repentance, and inspiration. You were the reason for my innovation, in and out. The waves lap against the house, our shaky foundations built on mud. It's hard to be intertwined when the bricks you build with are made of sand, right? Like a lock in a door, a room to a hallway, wheels to a car, pillow to a bed, I still embrace you. Keep your pretty head up and never let go. This is our season.

Defence of the United States

Too many times I hear friends and people talk about how the United States is a state which controls the affairs of other countries way too much, gets way too involved, and generally, intervenes in situations which are none of its 'business.' The primary example I hear, from friends, MTV, MSNBC, the media, is the War in Iraq. The United States, this conglomerate of media believes, has an agenda in which the 'supreme authority of the United States' overrules the rights and decisions of the state/country in which they are involved in, by simply being arrogant and insisting on the 'American way' in any and all situations. They believe the United State arrogantly interferes in the affairs of countries and their situations, even crises' that it has no business in. They believe the United Nations or the country(s) involved, should simply deal with their own problems.

I completely would disagree. I don't believe the United States has been active enough in the international stage until as of recently. in August 1992, it was U.S. President George H. W. Bush who announced that U.S. military transports would support the multinational UN relief effort in Somalia to deal with the massive starvation and food issues. Meddling with international affairs other then its own? I would think not. We all know what happened from here; in 1993 the disastrous and yet heroic Battle of Mogadishu occurred, and after the dust cleared, newly elected President Bill Clinton pulled all forces from Somalian soil completely (by 1995). Under a Democratic President, the United States refused to intervene in several situations that occurred throughout the world. Too many people around the world complain and place blame on the United States for not being involved in conflicts such as the Rwandan Genocide, the mass murder of an estimated 800,000 to 1,071,000 ethnic Tutsis and moderate Hutus by Hutu militia groups in Rwanda in 1994. However, if the United States had fought in Rwanda with fellow United Nations peacekeepers, chances are, after a couple years of fighting, approval ratings for the conflict would be tanking like a new TV show starring Rosie O'Donnell. Thus, we would begin to hear the whiners, arguing that the United States is greatly involved in affairs which are not peripherally related to the supreme national interests of its country. In the USA, you can't win for losing.

There is still more examples. President Clinton also refused to mobilize U.S. ground troops in fighting the Bosnian Serb Army in Bosnia and Herzegovina in 1995 and the Yugoslav Army in the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia (specifically, the province of Kosovo) in 1999. All of these conflicts which resulted in thousands and thousands of civilians deaths were basically ignored by the US, which focused less on a preemptive foreign policy active in the Third World. Yet I hear people still argue that the United States meddles way too much in affairs of way too many nations... I truly do not see the basis for this argument.
Thus when U.S. President George W. Bush retaliated after 9/11 with the invasion of Afghanistan, he was more then just 'meddling in the affairs' of other countries that had nothing to do with 9/11 (as my friends argue). He was responding directly to the attacks on the United States, and the terrorist training camps for Al-Qaeda that were being created there.

To conclude, the War in Iraq, the War in Afghanistan are just that, war. Afghanistan is a large mess, resurgence of the Taliban has been devastating to Canadian and American soldiers. However, in many parts of the country, women now no longer live under law that prevents covering their skin, and Afghani's now have the ability to live in a semi-democracy, rather then a Taliban regime. The United States is there for a reason, albeit the War in Iraq was based on false information; but essentially, they have been able to help encourage democracy and freedom in the Middle East. The fact that Saddam Hussein will no longer mass murder Kurds with gas, the ability for people of the country of Iraq to have freedoms and rights, and the fact that millions of Iraqi's can now vote democratically is simply astounding. The media which surrounds us loves to portray the War in Iraq and the sacrifices the United States has made for the sake of freedom as useless, exaggerated, and not worth the high cost. And to an extent they are right; war is the ultimate consequence. Let us not forget the extent to which we pay for our own freedoms. God Bless America and God Bless Canada.

Sway Tonight

Shadows dance, spin, and spiral across
The streets, the movement of the sun fading away reveals a horizon
So unpredictably amber; its as if God has stroked a magical brush
Through the landscape and tracing the outline of the stars in the sky
The glow of our city, blended with heat make us wish we could fly
The dimming sun is setting and we begin sweating
Relax, relax, let the senses of your reflexes act.

We drive in silence, in pure unattainable lust,
Agony, excitement, this is such a rush
Our fingers intertwined, the streetlights pave our way
The look of desire on your face is all you betray
It's hard to drive straight when I'm in such disarray
The wave of heat fills this space and I let out a smile
I'm keeping this heat trapped, never letting you go
It's so hard to drive when you won't go slow...

I watch the kiss and it turns me on
It makes me feel as though I am helpless and there is nothing else
I pull her down towards me, I stare right through her
When I hold your narrow waist and pull you tight
I wish this was what life was always like
The way your arms feel around my back, relax, relax
Let the senses of your reflexes act.

We sway, so sway, never let this end
The magic, this aggressive passion descend
Pulling us close, swaying like ghosts
I give it all, I won't fade away
I give it all, I won't fade away
I give it all, I won't fade away

Real Life

Often the craziest, most difficult challenges occur within ourselves. I don't mean a battle for your soul (which is the most difficult challenge you will ever face), but I mean the battle of feeling entirely comfortable in your own skin. I have been fortunate enough to meet people from many many different backgrounds, places, and cultures, and I truly believe one of humanities greatest conflicts is within ourself. Psychologically, many people don't believe that they are ultimately worth anything, or that they have a purpose on this earth. Confidence is a large reason why I am able to talk easily with people, make friends quickly, and show my leadership characteristics. But it is not necessarily even confidence that causes you to feel comfortable in your own skin (think of all the arrogant tryhards you've met); its the ability to realize that you are your own self, and you are not just the clone of someone else. You can be like me and can be dorky and ridiculous, or you can be overweight, loud, have buck teeth, and can't smile in public; but either way, you should be comfortable with the person you are. Understand that there is only one of you, and people like you for who you are. People judge and form opinions on people they don't know in under 14 seconds. Why try to impress or be different for someone who already has their opinion of you? Most often, no matter what you do or say, their opinion will never change. It can be modified, but what they thought when they first met you, is what they most likely still feel to this day. So be yourself, and don't change or try to be any different then what you really are.

So we understand that its important to be ourselves, and that we are worth something. But what is our greater meaning in life? Day after day, I meet beautiful girls that are drunks on the weekend and students during the week. I've never been attracted to a lifestyle like that, where drinking is required to have fun, or where drugs are needed to have a "good time." I think girls that are above that, where they aren't the stereotypical 8-4pm student and clubbing all weekend, are something to be admired. I'm all for having a good time, but does that require getting smashed to have it? So the next time I club and you see me with a glass of coke in my hand, realize I'm not about getting wasted and doing regrettable (but secretly not) things, I'm there to have fun, sober. We have a greater meaning in life other then just to party, and I believe most of my generation needs to grow up. When does responsibility for our behavior actually occur?

A Decade Under the Influence

Sweet delicate creases of the folds of your skin
The half closed winter smile, the way your breath creates crystals
That threaten to freeze our thoughts entirely still
Where we're both unsure who has to make a move anymore
These are the times we live for, building rapport
Yet, its a quarter to one and I'm sick of waiting to score

You remember the time we sat in traffic for three hours
And we talked about drinking hot chocolate in front of the fire
Where the greatest flame that leaped represented our hearts
Suffocating, flickering, pulling us apart
You know what they say, you told me
All it takes is a little spark

The snowball and pillow fights make my life
The way you taunt me and go down tonight is so right
Defined, we are the innocence of captivation
Underneath it all, we feel the voices of restraint
Take it slow, take it slow, you say, You're not a Saint
Why should I let us stray once more tonight?

You know when you grin
Your tiny freckles light up all over your chin
And when you push me away I pretend I don't want to stay
You'll pout, and pretend to cry
I'll just pretend to walk right on by
You're a game I just can't deny

A decade under the influence
Ten years that went by so fast
Where the world is colored in a different contrast
When we realize this can't last;
I touch you once, I touch you twice
I won't let go at any price.