Paradoxical Phoenix

Paradoxical Phoenix Pain, passion, poetry
(434)

Crush Depth I was unprepared for the depth and richness of your soul. I am mining never discovered territory that has lo...
09/03/2026

Crush Depth

I was unprepared for the depth and richness of your soul.

I am mining never discovered territory that has long been overlooked and hidden in the shadows of your discontent.

It takes my breath away when we dive deeply into the ocean of emotions that we share.

With every unexpected exploration, I lose myself so completely that the boundaries blur and expand far beyond the here and now.

For half a lifetime I have waited for you unknowing.

This unexpected gift continues to draw me in as I work to peel back the complex layers of our former and present lives while we try to set a new course for our future.

Where these travels will lead in this world and beyond I do not know; what I do know my beloved, is I look forward to sailing the seas of time forever with you.

Leslie Bertrand
©️Paradoxical Phoenix 🐦‍🔥
2 September 2026

Together How is it that every time I come to you crying like a little child over something broken, you can pick up the p...
09/02/2026

Together

How is it that every time I come to you crying like a little child over something broken, you can pick up the pieces and give them back to me like a present; and suddenly I see them as a fresh start?

Only you have given me such a precious gift.

When you cradle me like the finest crystal cup, collect my tears on your fingertips and whisper to me: “I’ve got you”, we change bittersweet memories into a succulent love-infused elixir of hope and dreams.

This is how I know I’m finally home.

Leslie Bertrand
©️Paradoxical Phoenix 🐦‍🔥
2 September 2026

homeless lamentI’ve got no money,I’ve got no place to go;I’ve got no car,So I get there real slow.The only choice I have...
09/02/2026

homeless lament

I’ve got no money,
I’ve got no place to go;
I’ve got no car,
So I get there real slow.

The only choice I have,
Is the shoe leather express;
They say I’m not trying,
But I’m doing my best.

I’ve got no place to sleep,
Because they cut my hours;
The tent I sleep in leaks,
During afternoon rain showers.

If I want hot food,
I cook over an open fire;
It’s so damn hot each day,
I just lay there and perspire.

I keep hoping and praying,
That things will change;
But every day I wake up,
They remain the same.

They say this great reset,
Will be a wonderful thing;
That people will be happier,
When they own nothing.

I can tell you this:
Hasn’t seemed to work thus far;
I see more people drowning their sorrows,
At the local dive bar.

When will it end,
I sit and wonder;
In the meantime the world’s going to hell,
While society is torn asunder.

Leslie Bertrand
©Paradoxical Phoenix



Graphic art: Skid Robot- Los Angeles, CA

inside jobThe demon and I,Shared the same bed;For I couldn’t get its voice,Out of my head.I wanted to forget,I’m remembe...
09/02/2026

inside job

The demon and I,
Shared the same bed;
For I couldn’t get its voice,
Out of my head.

I wanted to forget,
I’m remembering instead;
I believe it feeds,
On the tears I shed.

It doesn’t matter,
How much I’ve bled;
It wants me to think,
I’d be better off dead.

But I’m not that timid,
Nor am I easily led;
I told it to go to hell,
And chose to live instead.

Leslie Bertrand
©Paradoxical Phoenix
revised 2 September 2026

Some daysThere were shadows on the walland voices in my head sometimes it was hard to tellthe living from the dead. The ...
09/01/2026

Some days

There were shadows on the wall
and voices in my head
sometimes it was hard to tell
the living from the dead.

The space can get so crowded
that often it’s hard to find
serenity and tranquility
some quiet peace of mind.

The memories are so many
the pictures are so clear
often I struggled to differentiate
that I and not they, were here.

Journeying through that inner space
those places in my mind
I’ve learned to look and visit
but leave the emotion behind.

I see it as a movie
that plays inside my head
I can stay and watch it
or get up and leave instead.

I can stop the picture
and advance it frame by frame
the difference is that now I’ve learned how
to view it without pain.

What I see are memories
they hold no power now
the only way they may hold sway
is if I show them how.

I take some time to acknowledge
the one who went before
you kept putting one foot in front of the other
and learning so much more.

It took so long to realize
there was a better way
we can be so very stubborn
I got in my own way.

I’m glad I’ve learned those lessons
and now I hope to share
that you really can change this
with time, consistency and care.

Take some time to practice
to look inside yourself
silence your mind for there you will find
your way to your higher self.

It’s not a quick fix journey
there is no pill that you can take
but when you invest in yourself
what a difference that will make.

The changes may be subtle
or they may be profound
it really doesn’t matter
for it’s yourself that you have found.

Leslie Bertrand
©Paradoxical Phoenix

Original art by: May1234 at Deviant Art

Are you ready for it? What, you may ask?Whatever the day is gonna throw your way today. Are you expecting the unexpected...
08/31/2026

Are you ready for it?

What, you may ask?

Whatever the day is gonna throw your way today.

Are you expecting the unexpected?

Have you narrowed your focus too much to be open to the myriad possibilities that are unfolding before you?

Should you beware, or simply:

Be aware?

Be aware of the possibilities today.

Have a blessed day beautiful souls.

A Rare Magic You were from the beginning a missing piece I never knew I needed. How could I have ever guessed someone li...
08/31/2026

A Rare Magic

You were
from the beginning
a missing piece I never knew I needed.

How could I
have ever guessed
someone like you would exist
for someone like me?

How does the world
stop spinning and go silent
every time you wrap me so tightly
in your long arms like it’s forever?

It always feels like the first time;
and that is rare magic indeed.

Leslie Bertrand
©️Paradoxical Phoenix
30 August 2026


oh dark thirtyYou would not believe,Some of the s**t I’ve seen;It’s permeated my soul,And stained my dreams.“No one ever...
08/29/2026

oh dark thirty

You would not believe,
Some of the s**t I’ve seen;
It’s permeated my soul,
And stained my dreams.

“No one ever told me”,
I’ve heard those words said;
Now all of those memories,
Won’t get out of my head.

I’ve held onto hands,
While families cried;
Hanging on to the edge of the bed,
Where their loved one has died.

I’ve searched for the lost,
In rivers, oceans and lakes;
I’m intimately familiar,
With the lives it takes.

It only takes moments,
To founder and drown:
Sometimes there’s a splash,
Other times, there isn’t a sound.

I’ve seen bullet holes and stab wounds,
In bodies uncounted:
I’ve seen it all for years,
And the politicians do nothing about it.

I’ve done r**e kits on women and kids,
I’ve talked them out of the places they’ve hid:
I’ve watched an auger tear into a young mans’ chest,
I’ve held newborn babies to their mothers’ breasts

I’ve helped birth the young,
I’ve buried the old;
Ive been a witness to it all,
I’ve watched their stories unfold.

Sometimes I lie awake,
Through the darkest of nights:
Seeing it all again,
And remembering the fight.

Other times I do sleep,
It’s then that I dream;
And I realize those memories,
Cannot be unseen.

But I don’t want to forget,
That doesn’t seem right;
For who else would remember them,
And their incredible light?

Leslie Bertrand
©Paradoxical Phoenix



Original art: Dansun Photography

On Your Ass AgainYou said hold my beer,And watch this s**t;You’d been drinking so much,You were good and lit.You’d convi...
08/29/2026

On Your Ass Again

You said hold my beer,
And watch this s**t;
You’d been drinking so much,
You were good and lit.

You’d convinced yourself,
You could fly;
But you fell to the ground,
With nary a cry.

You should’ve known,
This would come to pass;
Because you can’t hold your liquor,
And always fall on your ass.

Leslie Bertrand
©️Paradoxical Phoenix

Not a Fan of the PlanGod I hope you know,I’m at the end of my rope;My nails are broken and bleeding,As I hang on trying ...
08/28/2026

Not a Fan of the Plan

God I hope you know,
I’m at the end of my rope;
My nails are broken and bleeding,
As I hang on trying to cope.

I wish I could understand,
How it’s all a part of Your plan;
But I have to be brutally honest,
Right now I’m not a fan.

I know life isn’t easy,
I know it isn’t fair;
But right now it’s feeling to me,
Like You don’t even care.

God give me the strength,
I need to get through the day;
I need all I can get,
With all you’ve thrown my way.

I’m taking all the highs,
Along with all the lows;
But it’s going too damn fast,
When I want it to be slow.

I’m trying so hard to move forward,
And I keep getting pulled on back;
Is it really part of Your plan,
Or is it just another attack?

Leslie Bertrand
©️Paradoxical Phoenix

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Greenville, SC

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