O’ Linda with the brightest eyes, stands alone, black dress that silhouette those years that passed,  your children gone, you look around, there’s something’s wrong. It’s all changed, the mirror doesn’t reflect that girl who twirls and sways to candle light and barefoot soul, those songs upon the record, play away your yesterdays and inside a dream you dance alone with shadows on the wall.

Ancient marbled mountains recede in winter's icy flow
Blue sapphire envelopes the spot where I often stand
Eye of sorcerers, glare and wander in dark angry spaces
Bird’s o prey glides the thermals high above this shadow land
My silhouette is long; it taints the mists that swirl inside the water's fall
I alone, within myself, can hear the quiet mountain’s call
Against this cold I cup my hand into a fist, as if to hold a tiny rock
And carefully I take it all and calmly put it deep within my pocket
I turn myself against the cold; I turn my thoughts against the snow
I warm my heart inside the sun that spots the dyeing forest floor
Brown and wasted, crisp it crackles as I ramble down its mighty slope
My soul once touched the face of God, for here is where he gave me hope
But now I’m lost in cityscape, and humanity covers like greying moss
I try to breathe the petrol air, and within its stress my life is lost.
To escape would be my only hope; sanctuary’s found in nature's charm
Sadly though,  to return to what I love the most will only do my lover harm
So I walk amongst my kind, drifting through its alleys, networking, searching
And in those lost a solace times my soul travels to that place I once called friend.

there are phases

in my life,

things of interest,

things to share with my father

as time passes

on a continuous stream

of hopefuls dreams

of broken sceams

things

to hold on to

interests 

often times

make no sense,

seem to clutter

that futile feeling

that all is for not,

that when it's over it goes with you

hangs over my head

Like a dark cloud

questioning the reasons

For what is the use

I capture it in pictures

to revisit this journey 

and this again I question

what quest do I take with me

in the ending of my days

In my reach for heaven

what do I take from here

What was this light

That once felt love?

It's not a struggle, these demons I wrestle.

For me, feel not sorry, for it's just my way.

My obsession is control. I mean you no harm,

don't be afraid, please, don't be alarmed

For you scare me more than you realize.

To walk amongst the living is the greatest of fears

for I wish to hide in my head, live in my lies

find comfortable depressions, solice in the dark

I don't wish to come out, to do so is painful 

This fear of my failures is a strain on my heart

but to stand alone, by myself and look in your eyes

I peak around walls and stumble outside

Oft times we sit, quiet, trying to stop time's passing. Our eyes close to treasure lost moments as if that one deep breath will make it all clear. We attempt to still our hearts .... our minds.... those random thoughts that collide, out of control, seem only to smash against some wall. We, with all our might, seek the stillness of the air, yet the questions still rise and the sun still sets and the answers never come.

"Self - mutilation" 18x14 Acrylic on britol by Terrence L Cope 

A line
Drawn
Staring back
Taunts me

As if laughing
It owns me,
It sits on piece of white paper

White fucking paper ,

Bright  
White
Paper

 Just a line
Dark, black, charcoal
Burnt wood
A beginning,
Stopped
As if to reflect my life
It Stands alone
On this stupid page
Like some "imagined" importance
By itself,
Going nowhere
A block ........

A LINE

Life is the program, you are the programer

Life is the program, you are the programer

Life is the program, you are the programer

Life is the program, you are the programer

Life is the program, you are the programer

Life is the program, you are the programer

Life is the program, you are the programer

Life is the program, you are the programer

Write the program .....................corrupted

"Flying Tiger" 18x24 Pencil on Paper by TL Cope. Click for larger image

Cold morning air, motors spit fire through the velvet smoke, propellers turn
Painted warrior, a chariot awaits your rise, she's been up for hours now
Wood splintered, canvas torn roundel, you silohette against the sun
As bullet rips the flesh, blood flows in fire and oil stains the glass
Black smoke, rich and burnt, lifeless, dances to the ground
Its dark spiral pirouettes in the winds, anguish cries carry then fade
Scented letters tied in ribbon under silken scarved tattered skies
It was simple then, it did not end with this life, this war,

Today, I am not so sure.

"Nude - white and reds" January 2010 Graphite, Ink and Acrylic by TL Cope.

"Second Light"   20x24 Acrylic Painting by TL Cope. Click for larger image

The sand always shifts on the East Coast
Outside looks good here, the paddle out looks rough
Yeah! Let's try here ..... do you have any wax?

Impressions locked in colors residing in a moment

I open up my palette to  paint a pretty picture

To tell you how I see you in a very special way

Lost in crayon colors no one will ever know

I’ve built this shrine, this temple; you’re how my garden grows.   

Standing in awe of what lay before,

Staring thru cloudless skies and the infinite,

I, So small once measured?
What size am I once pass this horizon?
Do I exist at the edge of the universe?

Thrown across the wind like a storm,

Measured like dust on a breeze,

Tattered like the flag abandoned,

Lost like the rain in the sea.

Mine eyes have seen the poetry,

Of a moment that ne’er returned,

Wonder upon wonders in a swatch,

To be played out countless times,

In distant lands, stars and galaxies,

Witnessed and not by someone or thing,

Through many thoughts and dreams,
Trapped alone, in flesh and bone
My mind sets out to play,

Growing lost and insignificant,

In the calling of this day.

Bathed in white light, I could barely trace the outline

There you stood, pristine, motionless and eternal

I walk up to you with that look, happy, confused, scared

A million scenerios, like the stars in the sky, flash before me

The white halo of the streetlamp, the cold grey of wet concrete

The hollow sounds of the city at night

I take your hand, to perceive a smile, some sign of approval.....

"Girl in white shirt" 2010 16x20 Acrylic on canvas by Terrence L Cope

I have a favorite spot

It's where I put my favorite box

And inside this favorite box

Are all my favorite things

A favorite stub from long ago

Of my favorite picture show

A ticket to a baseball game

Marble, coin, some metal chain

Matchbook cover, a sketch I drew

This photo from a day with you