Been Here Before

I think we’ve been here before
You kick me when I’m on the floor
You kick me until I bleed
But maybe it’s what I need
I was always true
But I never knew the real you

I think we’ve been here before
You want something, but you’re not sure
How can somebody hope to know
The things you refuse to show
How can I hope to help
When you don’t even know yourself

I think I’ve been here before
Don’t want this cycle anymore
It’s nobody’s fault but mine
I can choose a better design
Calling in something more aligned
As I come to know myself in time

San Diego, California

Kaleidoscope

Take your feelings
And all of your dealings
And find them in your
Dreams

Write your story
First thing in the morning
Find out what it
Means

Ooh it’s a kaleidoscope
Ooh it’s a kaleidoscope
Ooh it’s a kaleidoscope
I see

Hear a little whisper
And you start to miss her
Cry out in the
Streets

Burn another picture
When I used to kiss her
Memories of sweet
Scenes

Written with Bobbie Pierce
San Diego, California

Peace of Mind

When I saw you
In the morning
Beautif’lly snoring
I wished that
I could freeze
Time

When I left you
In the evening
Painf’lly grieving
I wished that
I could
Rewind

Help me
Find my
Peace of mind

When I met you
That afternoon
Everything seemed in tune
I knew that
We’d
Harmonize

When I kissed you
That night
Everything seemed so bright
I knew we’d
Be each others’
Light

Berkeley, California

Across the Ocean

I went to the seashore
And I thought I could see more
If I took the next boat out of
Here
I was in a hurry
But I didn’t worry
Cause uncertainty is not what I
Fear

Across the ocean
Across the ocean

40 nights at sea
Knocked the wind out of me
By the time we anchored on the next
Dock
When my crewmates scattered
I was feeling tattered
Alone with my bag on a
Rock

Berkeley, California

Shadow Side

I tried 1000 times to get
Through to you
I tried and tried, even though
I’m not supposed to

Slipping down and out through
The other side
I think I might be losing
My alibi
I might be discovering
My shadow side
It’s not the first and I fear it’s not
The last time

I give it my all
But still I fall
I lay my soul bare
But you’re not there

Written with Nick Goyhenetche
Oakland, California

Quicksand

I’m feeling stuck
I’m feeling stuck
What the fuck
I’m feeling stuck
Don’t know what to do
Guess I’ll start singing some tunes
Been feeling stuck

It’s like quicksand
Up to my thigh
I get more stuck
The harder I try
I reach out for
A helping hand
But all I grasp
Is more quicksand

I got a wildfire
I got a wildfire
You’re my heart’s desire
I got a wildfire
Everything’s wrong
But I’m still singing my song
I got a wildfire

I can’t breathe
I can’t breathe
Under your knee
I can’t breathe
I come up for air
But just inhale despair
I can’t breathe

Oh let me go
Said let me go
I want to flow
Let me go
I step outside
I’m not gonna hide
Then I let go

Rewrite combining Quicksand (original) and Rona Blues
Berkeley, California

Taking My Time

Taking my time
Writing a rhyme
While a hurricane’s blowing
Around me

Take time to breathe
Don’t let your mind deceive
I thought I lost part of me
But then it found me

Through all the storms
Making, breaking forms
Confusion and clarity
Take their turns sharing me

Oakland, California