Elevated Signal

All those pinpoints of light

Far flung out to eternity

Surrounding us as we walk our road

Hands held and voices silent

I try my best to do justice

To the city laid out before me

This home I have created

This world I have explored

Thousands of fluorescent stars

Blanketing a darkened grid

While the sky fades neon shades

And the ocean is prismatic obsidian

These moments with you are stolen

Precious like sparkling jewels

Priceless and adored

Hidden to all save us

Mardi Gras

Oh, take me to the Vieux Carre

Where the mad men run free and wild

I promise not to blush if you show me it all

And I promise I’ll dress in style

We can wage war in the streets

Over bright colored beads

And pretend they are made up of jewels

The horns, they will blare

And the tourists, they’ll stare

They’ll think we’re all made up of fools

But they won’t know the truth

Shared between me and you

That this is all so very fair

These days of halcyon glory

They tell only part of the story

And the rest only locals can share.

Back home, it’s a holiday.

Out here, it’s just another Tuesday.

And there’s something truly tragic about that.