The Poetry Marathon

Accommodating

loving

Approval seeking

giving

Rescue needed

helpful

Pleasing

easy going

Self sacrificing

supportive

Contorted to fit

perfection

Loss of self

you are my world

The language that I speak

Wanting nothing more than you to love me

Seeking to find it through losing myself

But those days are over

I am strong and courageous

I am interesting and unique

My faults accent my beauty

And at the end of the day

I AM ENOUGH.

A trodden bit of earth

Leading me to places unknown

Traveled enough times

To be pressed down and worn

Aware of my solidarity

I journey forward

It beckons me to take the next corner

Go deeper into places beyond

I continue- following, following

It is apparent that others have passed

Creating this walkway one step at a time

Experiencing the same

But I must go alone

The beginning

Another day starts

With the handiwork of God

A calm blue sky

Subtleties of color streaking through the sky

The sun climbing to its place

We go about our day

Filling the 24 hours with necessity

Demands and frivolities

The time passes

Exchanges with coworkers and friends

Moment by moment

Sunset approaches

We are in awe by the beauty

Each day ends

Uniquely beautiful

Another is chalked up as done

Peaceful rest

I am looking out the window

Glad to see that morning has come

And the writing of poems will cease

As I slumber heavily on my pillow

The time has been enjoyable

And excruciating- as occasionally

Time ticked by so quickly

And others, tocked about aimlessly

I will do this again

Thankful for an exceptional experience

And conversations with like minds

And kindred spirits

The church lock-in

Was from seven to seven

Games, snacks and movies

And a lesson on heaven

We played volleyball

And bowling with plastic pins

Pizza at 9:00

And passing TP with chins

The counselors

Were tracking pairs

Herding them back

For truth or dare

I made the awful mistake

Of falling asleep

Woke up covered in toothpaste

Dental floss around by feet

As I recall

I felt about the same

As I do right now

With little sleep, to blame

I want to be nice

Give you things

Make you happy

Your life will be better

But is that all?

What, if anything do I expect?

Does it benefit me for you to be happy?

Will it positively affect me?

Will I gain from it somehow?

Are my motives pure?

Is there such a thing?

I once thought there was

But now I wonder

A filmstrip is all that is left

Frame to frame

Moments between us

We had the fortune

Of knowing that your life

Would be cut short

And we had the grace

To talk openly

About why and how it would end

We were no strangers to fear

As you walked closer

To the edge before it collapsed

The filmstrip is something I treasure

And think back to those precious moments

When we paused

Knowing our time was less than we wanted

And pain was sure to win

And you or I would say in that pause-

I’m taking a picture

The words came to my ear

Through the taught string

Between two cans

I looked to see the speaker

But I could only see my friend-

A girl at the other end

I looked away and the voice came again

This time I whipped quickly around

And caught him, can in hand

He was smiling as he dropped it and ran

I was in 5^th grade and I remember it

Like it was yesterday

The first time, that anyone

Outside of family

Told me, “I love you.”

She

was

there

growing

in

the

safety

of

my

womb

that

was

meant

to

nourish

and

protect.

She

was

there

until

the

cramps

and

bleeding

came.

And

then

she

who

was-

was

not.

The desire to live the perfect life

The white picket fence

The wraparound porch

The 2.3 children

With perfect teeth

Excelling in athletics

And academics

The faithful and doting spouse

You know what I mean

You look at those pictures

And you buy into the romanticized life

And wonder why you don’t have it

As a photographer

I feel an obligation

To the rest of the human race

To clue you in on a well kept secret

Life in pictures

Is staged