The Poetry Marathon

1. Music 
2. Laughter
3. Dog or cat
4. Favorite shoes
5. Loved ones

• Prior to assembling your ingredients, locate your bathroom scale and full length mirror. Take your sledgehammer and go to town. Do not rest until they are no longer recognizable. They are not accurate measures of your self-worth. 
• Music. Next, turn on your favorite song. Dance! Dance naked if you must. Feel the joy that is inside of you. Celebrate your body as it moves in time with the music. This body has been there for you in spite of the neglect it has suffered. Thank it for never abandoning you, for helping you to move through life.
• Add laughter. Watch a movie, talk to your funniest friends. Get that belly laugh going. Laugh until you cry.
• Put on your favorite shoes. The shoes that put a pep in your step. The shoes that still fit regardless of the freshman 15 or the Covid-19. You know the ones.
• Spend time with your cat or your dog. They think you are the best human ever and so should you! Feel how it feels to receive that unconditional love. It feels good, right?
• Surround yourself with your loved ones. They see you the way that you should see yourself. You are a beautiful mother, wife, daughter, friend. 

On some days, you may add the ingredients in a different order or not even all of them. You may change the amounts and that’s ok. After the initial preparation, focus on what makes you feel good. Consider this the test kitchen. Over time, you’ll find the best combination for you.

Ninety miles she walked,

towards liberty or death

with God’s voice in her ear.

Ninety miles she trudged

through forest and stream

she knew her worth and did not fear.

Ninety miles she led her people,

like Moses led the Israelites,

from bondage to a new frontier.

Oh, Harriet, 

the struggle continues,

we remember you and persevere.

six years in life and you

thirty years since sending you into the world

every day adds confidence

you are dearer to me than the year before

let us look forward

without fear

without depression

love will be sufficient

I hail this day

Congratulations are in order!

You have survived deep cuts

whose scars will never disappear

You came out swinging

TKO to the past

like a prize fighter in the ring

The future knows no bounds

It still hurts but the pain has taught you

that you shine

A hush had fallen over the house

electric coffee pot brewing

grab the canteen from the shelf

fill to fuel your adventure for the day

as you survey the fog

hovering over the concrete blocks

down by the dock

silvery in the moonlight

waning as the sun appears in the east

inhale the scent of fir

Damn! It’s good to be alive!

Long forgotten

neglected

beautiful in its chaos

she turned the key and pushed

gasping, she sensed a kindred spirit

something tangible that was as wild as she felt inside

as she brought it back to life

the garden returned the favor

You are my favorite flavor.

You taste of salt,

tea and hot chocolate

I breathe you in.

You smell of sawdust,

surf and sweat

You smell like mine

There is a ghost under the old oak tree,

dreaming of a past life when he roamed free

Confined to this place now where he loved and toiled,

still wearing clothes stained with sweat and soil

He wonders, how much longer is his sentence in purgatory?

What tasks must he complete to ascend to glory?

He pauses for a moment, then begins to turn

reaches his fingers out to touch the Resurrection Fern

The keyhole to her heart

Was covered with

Heavy chains

And padlocks

Anyone else

Would have heeded this

Unwritten

Keep Out sign

But he didn’t

It is always the same

You standing in the shadows, waiting

Until the time is right

You ask, Will I?

I look at you as tears fill my eyes

My heart says, Yes

My mouth says, No