The Poetry Marathon

Hypermnesia

taken before my birth,
still they lie beside me as I try to sleep
longing for the sound of a voice never heard
stunted by their absence, no keepsakes, no memorabilia

will walking the streets or forest where they once had life
generate perceptions, smells, or sounds of who they were?
paying homage may soothe the fractured souls
while nothing recaptures what was lost.

Still I have hopes, to claim – re-claim? as things unfold
and learn in the exploration.

Swirling

Concentric circles, I look down
upon my contemplative self
lonely? – never

serial scripts, scenarios, sequential senses,
syntagmatic semantics, seriously slither sideways,
sister singer sirens, siting in shared silence
sustaining splendent sanctity, strength and love.

Transtemporal Travel

under pressure the hard ebony lump of coal
transforms into a reflective diamond

constant rubbing irritant of gritty sand
rolls into the oyster’s pearl

submerged beneath clearwater in the ceramic cask
bright but bitter dandelion heads
crumble into sweet elixer

Am I another chrysalis
waiting to be a butterfly?

Let the Journey Begin

Didnt it really begin a long time ago?                                                                              Even before I was born?

Back when we were merely stardust                                                                                  Back when heavens ruled the world

Circling round the sun,
we all come home again.

Stardust

stardust born, exploding supernova,
embers in my blood, my skin, my hair, the earth
beneath my feet, my place called home,
whether I search the distant night-time sky
or turn quietly inward, I feel the pull
calling me back to stardust.

Cleansing

so high and mighty, four colossal chandeliers
unreachably distant, magnificent in their glory
each festooned with hundreds of tiny bulbs.

for the visitor, a majesty to behold
please consider, for the worker,
an interminable tedium to clean.

Tender Haiku

aching that I’ve known
a recipe for failure
tender to the bone

Umbrella Me

protection from the glaring sun, heat, and harmful rays,
shielding from the pelting rain’s chilly soaking to the skin,
waiting patiently in the stand, by the door, forgotten until needed.
left behind in foreign places, a burden to be carried,
ever-ready to break your fall a Mary Poppins’ gentle landing.

Nesting

to bed by the sea with you,
a curtain of palm fronds
shielding us from prying birds’ eyes,
ocean’s rhythmic whisper at our feet.

nestled among the blooming flower-heads,
here we will sleep, our weary bodies and our heavy souls
sinking into clean white linens,
as the rising sun dances its light upon the waves.

you, whisper in my ear, sleeping
beyond all the possible words and phrases
to come into the silence
that is the center of our being.

La Cuidad

stone, mortar, steel, and glass
stalwart and stately, the city beckons
scintillating with light and people.
the glory of mankind.

complex construction, supporting heights
unbound, roof-top gardens and fields of windows
reflecting clouds, sky, and other buildings
looking in upon itself.

no difference between day or night
or self and other
the anonymous everyone.