Today's Tendril...

To drive and be driven,
      Is what I've been given.

But to lead or be led?
     Asks the Voice in my head.

Time is but a lie,
      Yet a master still.

The equation of man,
      Bends to my will.

© Copyright 2011 Christopher V. DeRobertis. All rights reserved.

Today's Tendril...

Dedicated to Monk, because he is an original (and very much so).

© Copyright 2011 Christopher V. DeRobertis. All rights reserved.

Strength Everlasting

Today's Tendril...

To live and be free,
     Despite any threat.
United we stand —
     We'll never forget.

 

About

Alternate idea for the SE banner text: Wings, talons, and strength everlasting.

P.S. The font used for the SE banner text is Bleeding Cowboys. I believe this is a right-fit use of this font.

© Copyright 2011 Christopher V. DeRobertis. All rights reserved.

The King of Pause

© Copyright 2011 Christopher V. DeRobertis. All rights reserved.

Never Surrender (2011)

 

About

* Original version: Late September 2001; posted September 27, 2001.

* 2011 version: August 2011; posted August 26, 2011.

Years ago I promised myself that I'd revisit and revise my "Never Surrender" image (and its associated commentary) that I created in the weeks following the September 11, 2011, terrorist attacks on the United States of America.

I didn't forget.

And I never will.

The original (and lengthy) commentary suited the moment.

And now, nearly a decade later, all I want to say is this—

– Never forget the images or the pain.

– Never forgive the terrorists (or those that harbor them).

– Never become like the enemy.

– Never give in to fear for the sake of comfort or ease.

– Never be lulled into a false sense of security.

– Never surrender to terror.

– Honor all those that have sacrificed so much (and sometimes everything) in order to preserve the Land of the Free and the Home of the Brave.

– Vigilance, resolve, and liberty remain.

– DON'T TREAD ON ME

Soundtrack: "When the Eagle Cries," Iced Earth, from their album, The Glorious Burden. (I consider TGB one of the finest Metal albums of all time.)

P.S. The core of the original image remains: a photo of Old Glory that I snapped one morning, several days after the attacks. The flag looked so beautiful and I found comfort in its stars and stripes. I still do.

© Copyright 2011 Christopher V. DeRobertis. All rights reserved.

Today's Tendril...

To be awake,
        and aware.

To be "alive,"
        and "all there."

To be stirred,
        by a thought.

These tendrils,
     I know,
        aren't for naught.

© Copyright 2011 Christopher V. DeRobertis. All rights reserved.

One Night, One Scene

© Copyright 2011 Christopher V. DeRobertis. All rights reserved.

Overheard

Overheard in passing...

• "Stupid smartphone." (And the user had nothing to do with it.)
• "Right in the center of the middle." (I want to be there.)
• "...is all holier-than-thou, yet she's the one having an affair. But you didn't hear that from me." (Actually, I just did.)
• [Teenager] "Being green, is like, so important and stuff." (Well that cleared that up. Who says the youth of America is ill-informed?)
• "...it's been itchy for a week and nothing seems to help it." (Ewww. What have you touched?!?)
• "Listen, I'll have to call you later, because people are staring at me. <directed to those around her> HAVEN'T YOU ALL EVER HEARD OF PRIVACY?" (Umm, this is a public place, so if you choose to talk in public, then you forfeit your 'privacy.' By the way, have YOU ever heard of courtesy? Do you think we like—or care—about the drama in your life?)

© Copyright 2011 Christopher V. DeRobertis. All rights reserved.

This text composition is a work of fiction. Names, places, institutions, events, incidents, characters, persons, locations, and/or organizations either are products of the author's imagination or are used fictitiously. Full Creative Writing Disclaimer.

Remnants of Winter (A Prayer, of Sorts)

May/July 2010 - Original versions of poem. July 2011 - Revised and final versions of poem and image.

© Copyright 2011 Christopher V. DeRobertis. All rights reserved.

Today's Tendril...

Even angels sweat when reflecting on the heat, humidity, and scorching hate of the human heart.

Alternate Version (Original Version)

Even angels sweat. (Reflecting on the heat, humidity, and lack of shade.)

Original version originally made available (2011.07.12) via my now defunct @tagsandtendrils Twitter account.

© Copyright 2011 Christopher V. DeRobertis. All rights reserved.

A Cross to Bear

"Frustration."
A cross to bear.
"Aggravation."
A cross to bear.
"Tension."
A cross to bear.
"Expectation."
A cross to bear.

"Oh, where do I find the strength,
To face another day,
In the life of me?"
A cross to bare.

 

About

This piece is dedicated to those who insist on "sharing" in public places, via cell phones, their daily dramas.

Your lack of compunction is inspiring.

© Copyright 2011 Christopher V. DeRobertis. All rights reserved.

Tendrils 13: Variations on a Grey Theme

These variations on a theme,
     Are bits and pieces of a dream.

And in between the written lines,
     Are shades of grey,
          With prickly spines...

 

It's hard to be grey in a rainbow world.

 

It's hard to be the only grey cloud in a sea of blue sky and overwhelming sunshine.

 

Calm need not mean grey,
     And sad need not mean blue.
Scared isn't yellow,
     And green doesn't envy you.

 

Said the Mirror to the Self, "You're so different today, that even your shadow is a different shade of grey."

 

What is G.R.A.Y.? Glum. Reclusive. Apathetic. You.

 

When skies turn grey, don't run away.

But when they're green, swirls may be seen.


© Copyright 2011 Christopher V. DeRobertis. All rights reserved.

Images in the Clouds

The following were seen in the clouds above and around Lake George, New York.

Sadly (for me), I didn't have a camera to capture them.

I was on a "pen and paper" only expedition.

• Lobster
• Seahorse
• The first few seconds of the opening title to The Simpsons television show
• Jellyfish
• A webbed hand from the creature in the 1954 movie, Creature from the Black Lagoon
• Mackerel fish
• Turtle with a loooong neck
• Mountain lion with two large horns, in mid leap
• Spine (human)
• The "Pillars of Creation" from the Eagle Nebula
• Red fox
• Drill bit
• Billowing smoke stacks
• Nerve endings (so many tendrils)
• Onions with shoots
• Ocean waves

© Copyright 2011 Christopher V. DeRobertis. All rights reserved.

Sticks and Strokes [image and short story]

 

Sticks and Strokes (Companion Vignette)

-Place: A cathedral-like atrium in a metropolis
-Players: Two unlikely friends, sitting on a stone bench
-Proximity: An indoor harmony stream
-Time: Lunch hour
-Topic: Same old, same old

        "Don't be absurd," said the futurist to the calligraphist, in a tone and manner that was as smug as smug could be. "Penmanship, print, and paper are all dead. You're living in the past. You are the past. I've got thousands of books in the palm of my hand; barely a finger tap away. Plus, I can download more whenever I want, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, 365 days a year. I'm a library incarnate! Ha and ha! And I don't have to sacrifice precious living space to be that library. There are no dusty, musty smells to deal with. No overpriced first editions or 'special' editions. The way it should be."

        With a deep and dramatic sigh, the calligraphist replied to the futurist, "Your bits and bytes are transient at best—cached today, deleted tomorrow. You're living on borrowed time, my data hording friend. Hard drives are nothing more than anchors and arrogance; landfill waiting to happen. Books, however, are individual things of beauty, to be admired and held, and given a place of honor upon the shelves of our hearts, minds, and homes. What you fail to grasp is that a book—a real, physical book—is a commitment, not just to yourself, but to the art of writing, and to the adventure that is reading. Every book has a familiar-yet-distinct form, a wonderful weight, and a strong spine, unlike the apparitions haunting your little virtual world."

        "Hmph!" grunted the technologist and returned to the pages of his smartphone.

        "Hmph!" grunted the calligraphist and returned to the pages of his book.

        And for the remainder of their lunch, neither said a word to the other, nor heard the flow of the harmony stream.

 

Soundtrack

If the image had a soundtrack, then it would contain the following Steve Vai tracks:

• "Whispering a Prayer," Alive in an Ultra World
• "Brandos Costumes (Gentle Ways)," Alive in an Ultra World
• "The Bodhi Tree," VaiTunes #7

© Copyright 2011 Christopher V. DeRobertis. All rights reserved.

This text composition is a work of fiction. Names, places, institutions, events, incidents, characters, persons, locations, and/or organizations either are products of the author's imagination or are used fictitiously. Full Creative Writing Disclaimer.

Today's Tendril...

Volunteers: 0% pay - 100% heart.

© Copyright 2011 Christopher V. DeRobertis. All rights reserved.

Today's Tendril...

"Consistency," yells the coach, "is the key to success and longevity!" "Platitudes," thinks a player, "have no place on the playing field."

© Copyright 2011 Christopher V. DeRobertis. All rights reserved.

Today's Tendril...

You cannot swim in despair, but you can drown in it.

 

About

Besides the visual that this TT conjures (in my head, anyway), I like the fact that you can substitute the word despair with a variety of other words related to "negative emotions" and not lose the punch of the piece; examples: anger, fear, doubt, pain.

© Copyright 2011 Christopher V. DeRobertis. All rights reserved.

Following a Thread (a Stitch in My Head) 2

The news, the dramas, the always-connected-global mind, and the info saturation, fascination, degradation, and vilification.

Options. Choices. Threads. Tendrils. Paths. Pieces. Puzzles. Clicks. (Cliques.)

Pariahs, piranhas, scarecrows, and red herrings.

Notebooks stacked from floor to ceiling.

Cycles, cynics, and solitude.

Beginnings,
middles,
& ends.

Dedicated to my Notebook Brother.

© Copyright 2011 Christopher V. DeRobertis. All rights reserved.

Following a Thread (a Stitch in My Head)

Fraying, fraying, fraying, our nerves are fraying.

Beating, beating, beating, the war drum's beating.

Tipping, tipping, tipping, the balance is tipping.

Ticking, ticking, ticking, the clock is ticking.

Dripping, dripping, dripping, the sweat is dripping.

Breaking, breaking, breaking, my back is breaking.

Crawling, crawling, crawling, my skin is crawling.

Reeling, reeling, reeling, my head is reeling.

Ending? Ending? ENDING?!?
          These thoughts,
                 never ending.

Drowning, drowning, drowning—
          in the ever present now...

Dedicated to my Notebook Brother.

© Copyright 2011 Christopher V. DeRobertis. All rights reserved.

Today's Tendril...

No cloud is ever as dark as the one above your head, and in your heart.

© Copyright 2011 Christopher V. DeRobertis. All rights reserved.

Today's Tendril...

What would you rather experience: an ocean of indecision or a trickle of inspiration?

© Copyright 2011 Christopher V. DeRobertis. All rights reserved.

My Patience Wanes

© Copyright 2011 Christopher V. DeRobertis. All rights reserved.

This text composition is a work of fiction. Names, places, institutions, events, incidents, characters, persons, locations, and/or organizations either are products of the author's imagination or are used fictitiously. Full Creative Writing Disclaimer.

Today's Tendril...

I'd rather be a snowflake in Heaven, than a snowball in Hell.

 

About

This TT popped into my head while looking at A Snowflake in Heaven (Revised) (blue-ish version).

© Copyright 2011 Christopher V. DeRobertis. All rights reserved.

A Snowflake in Heaven (Revised)

 

About

Shortly after publishing the original version on 2011.05.20 (available here), I thought,

"I've got an extra pair of wings perched in my office, looking all sad and lonely, might as well put them to good use. And in the process, I'll stop the scattering of my papers every time they get restless and flap about my head!"

I'm sure this is a problem for many.

© Copyright 2011 Christopher V. DeRobertis. All rights reserved.

In the Moment (Spring 2011)

Waterfall clouds and dandelion forests.
      Immature green blankets the brown.
Billows of bubbles and zippity pests.
      Roses with thorns complete Nature's crown.

© Copyright 2011 Christopher V. DeRobertis. All rights reserved.

Today's Tendril...

In the bag of tricks for "how to get it all done," there's nothing more useful, or more debilitating, than a to-do list.

© Copyright 2011 Christopher V. DeRobertis. All rights reserved.

Today's Tendril...

When God asks a question, do you answer? Or, are you like a deer in headlights?

© Copyright 2011 Christopher V. DeRobertis. All rights reserved.

Today's Tendril...

Fireworks don't hold a candle to the light show of    virgin snow on a moonlit night,       fireflies at twilight,          starry nights at midnight.

© Copyright 2011 Christopher V. DeRobertis. All rights reserved.

A Snowflake in Heaven

 

About

I like to believe (wish, hope, dream) that there are snowflakes in Heaven.

© Copyright 2011 Christopher V. DeRobertis. All rights reserved.

Perspective (a Branch)

© Copyright 2011 Christopher V. DeRobertis. All rights reserved.