When the rivers all run dry, who will know?
When the trees fall from the sky, what will grow?
When the oceans cease churning, will the earth keep on turning
so fast, or will it slow?

Where will all the people go, when the trial of time brings only more
of this yearning for a better life, in a world cold and sore?

And time, so precious
lingers on the lives that make it so –
for the dreams we keep
thru our slumber deep
until tomorrow . . .our fate unknown.

When I open up my eyes, what do I know?
Will I hold onto my dreams, or let them go?
Given time to unfold them, with my love I can mold them
But will my love be hidden, or will it show?

In my dreams I love you so
Consumed by my passion I am driven in fear
that the love of a lifetime just flickers and dies when the flames disappear.

And love, so tender
Lingers on the hearts that make it so –
through the fires that rage
and the wars that we wage –
and lights the darkness of our souls

Am I destined to my fate – is every maan?
Will I flounder in the lee of Promised Land?
Awash on the sea shore, will I cross, or give heed for
a thousand lines drawn in the sand?

The time has come to make my stand
Like a beacon of light I am guiding you near
to this place in my heart where the dust has all settled and the smoke has all cleared

Where life, forever
rises from the ashes that we reap –
from the seeds we have sown
whose purpose unknown –
and lights the future, where lies our hope.

This is a very nice piece of work.

Am I right in thinking that there's music somewhere for this, because it definitely has music in it, the simple ways you exit a more complex verse, it kind of lingers. Nice

I think verses 3 and 6 are really good.

I wonder how the bandAmp crew would welcome MP3's of spoken poetry? I'll have to give it a go
Because I'd love to hear it as it should be heard, by it's creator.

is there meant to be a double 'that' in the last verse?

Reading this now and thinking of the few points that have been made recently about the difference between 'poetry' and 'lyrics'.

Take the end of this piece for instance, it is strong and soaring, bringing together all the questions and the reasons of the whole piece, and unveils to us a new horizon of hope.

I feel that it's too 'powerful' for a 'normal' type of 'song', some 'songs' just carry on they don't actually end at all. With these kinds of 'intense' works I always envisage a 'rock opera' or a 'concept album'.

Thanks as always for liking my work.

Good catch on the double "that". I edited it out. Thanks.

The poem is basically organized into three sections sections of three verses each, three verses each. I have the lines and verses organized a little different on paper, but it didn't work out in this posting format, so I changed it a little, and its a bit less coherent as a result.

This work was written over a long, long time, and the meaning changed as it developed. There is music in it, intended to be a very soulful ballad.

woah.

very nice.  i think it`s one of my favorites.

the first section is a little out there, but the rest i really like.

one of the nice little puzzles i got stuck on at first was the section:

In my dreams I love you so
Consumed by my passion I am driven in fear
That the love of a lifetime could flicker and die
If the flames disappear.

extremely well worded, it`s just that i hesitate to preach as to what the "flames" are.  this section sort of jumps out of the rest of the words because it tosses a "you" in there.  i don`t get the impression that "you" is anybody specific, but rather a variable "you", whoever applies to you at the moment.  it might come off as a bit akward, as the only other "you" in the work is "Like a beacon of light I am guiding you near".  But... i think that this 2nd "you" is more... plural.  or something.  maybe not, but still, i think it comes off as a "you, and the rest of the world with you".

at any rate, i think that the "you" could possibly be looked at (as it says itself) someone that is loved.  but, the feel of the song makes me imagine that this you-person is just another element to the chaos inside rather than the main focus of the song, as many "you"s tend to be.  i mean "chaos" in a good way.  chaos is a bit of the theme here, i believe.  anyway, i see you-person as simply a bystander that the hero (the writer) sort of turns to in desperate action and confesses... "i loved you so [much]..." and then turns to run and save himself because he`s too driven by fear, as the lyrics state.

i`m a fan of these lyrics.  it`s a shame that they`re not nearly as popular, post-wise.

the length is great, i think.  one of my complaints about people`s songs sometimes is that they think in short little stanzas of identical length.  this song breaks all that up and slaps it down in a cement mixer.  very good.  way to tear it up.  keep it up man.

XO, TLS

Interesting comments about the "you"s, and right on target. Both you's are literally intended to be the same individual person, while at the same time working at a more figurative level to accomodate the universal lyrical concept.

Mmm... 
I wonder; Is this song about "the end of the world"?

I really like these lyrics.
 
Part A is so dark. And I like the way you repeat: "Who will know?", "what will grow?" and "or will it slow?".
I wonder about: "or will it slow?". To me it flows better with "will it slow?". But I haven't heard the song, so I don't know.

You repeat "time" many times. It's like: "do we have enough time?". I like that. Time is a thing everybody wants more of... "Time" is a big word today.

"our fate unknown"... "will I hold onto my dreams, or let them go?"
This is such a sad, sad song...

You also repeat "dream" many times. I like the word "dream". 

This is a masterpiece! 

thanks for the review, but "masterpiece"? Gosh.

Well, it's not exactly about the end of the world, but the setting is, unfortunately, a world that is doomed to end. But when? How much time do we have, and what does that time hold for us and our dreams? What potential lies in those dreams, and what will be do to realize that potential? What is in those dreams that makes them worth the sacrifice in the face of unknown destiny? From these questions comes the authors realization that it is love that makes that makes it worthwhile, and his resolve to "make my stand" in pursuit of his dreams. But where? At that "place in my heart..."

Regarding, "Or will it slow?" It's part of the conditional question, "If the oceans cease churning, will the earth keep on turnng so fast, or will it slow?"

It's sort of a sad song. The human condition is pretty sad, if you just look around. That's why our search for happiness is called a "quest".
                              

This is sad! I love it!