The Poetry Marathon

Got nothing else

I’m not gonna lie

I kinda feel

Like I might die.

But what a great night!

What a challenge it was!

To do all that work,

Just because.

I loved all the posts

That came in through the night.

Everyone encouraging each other

To keep up the fight.

I laughed so much

At the things we had in common

I appreciate every shared word,

Now I guess I’ll go make some ramen.

See? I’m so done

Sleep well everyone!

Thank you for letting me in.

The dreams I’ve had all my life came true today.

I married the man on whom I have waited.

We went before a judge and stood together.

We held hands, spoke our vows, and pledged forever.

So nervous that day, I hardly remember.

My sister and his friend witnessed us say yes.

Every part of me leapt forward to say yes.

The love we had then has lasted to this day.

If times get hard, we only need remember

How much we loved each other then and waited

To become one flesh and be that forever.

Nothing more we want than being together.

When two people want to join together,

My advice to you both, before you say yes…

Be friends first until it feels like forever,

At the same time, it feels like you met today.

When you say yes, you’ll be glad that you waited

And make that first night, a night to remember.

When you are old and sit back to remember,

In your rocking chairs, clasping hands together,

Of the times you went, of the times you waited,

Of the times you said no, and when you said yes,

Of all that you’ve done that brought you to today,

You know that you are on the way to forever.

Along the road to the goal of forever,

There are some things you must always remember.

Don’t sleep with your anger, make things right today.

Don’t go alone when you can go together.

Don’t give them a “no” when your partner needs “yes”.

Don’t hurry them up when you could have waited.

Rejoice in the decision when you waited.

You know you had the rest of forever.

All the times of your life, you can say yes.

Always hold on to it, always remember

You made the choice to walk through life together.

Be it yesterday, tomorrow, or today.

If you wish you had not waited, remember,

You can live all your forever together.

You can always say yes to your love today.

And now

Just me and you

Without hesitation

Nothing in the world but us

Me – You

Insane

The joy I felt

The way you looked at me

No one mattered but us two

You – Me

I live

I love, I give

Everything is for you

You are my life, you have my heart

Always

For twenty one, we must return

to my thirteenth year

where a boy noticed me in passing.

It was sheer luck we were there

in the same room, at the same time

at Kennedy Space Center.

On vacation with our respective families,

we had come from vastly different worlds.

He was born in Detroit the year before I was born in Atlanta.

There was never a reason or even the probability

that our paths would ever cross,

but fate had made other plans for us.

At twenty-one, I walked into my best friend’s house

and there he sat at her table

eating bacon and smiling as if he knew me.

It took us many years to figure out why we felt we’d met before

but it only took two years to know that

we were much more than friends.

He was all I’d ever dreamed about,

all my fantasies given life.

I never knew what he saw in me but I’m glad he did.

From our first kiss in October

to our marriage in January,

I knew I had my Prince Charming.

Next January will be thirty-one years

spent with the love of my heart.

God brought us together and together we will stay.

At twenty years old

I gave up all my crutches

All my fears returned.

I’d wasted three years

Had nothing to show

And no more money to burn.

All the fear came back

And brought more with it

Leaving me helpless and alone.

Full panic attacks now

Afraid to live, afraid to die

I knew my hope was gone.

One day my sister – married now –

Asked me to come to church.

I was raised that way, what could it hurt?

When I went that night I felt something

That made tears run down my face.

It was acceptance, it was love, I felt my path divert.

It doesn’t mean that all was great

Like someone waved a magic wand,

But things had turned for better now.

I had new friends, good examples to watch

Smarter choices, calmer living, smiles instead of frowns

Though my father tried to pull me back, that, I would not allow.

Peace, quiet

Happiness, joy

Contentment and hope.

I never looked back

Everything was new

I was cleaned by more than soap.

Nineteen eighty-four

Living without fear or brakes

Life was a blur then.

No memories stuck

You must be conscious for that

Not so much fun now

Hard to make a life

When even your name escapes

Time to slow it down.

I was a good girl till I turned eighteen.

After graduation, I turned loose, if you know what I mean.

Not so much “bad” but wild as a hare,

Staying out all night, drinking too much, never backing down from a dare.

Life was fun then, moreso than ever before

I turned off my inhibitions and dove in for more.

A different concert every night, a different couch every day,

I forgot the meaning of work, but not how to play.

Not sure how I made it through this time,

Living my life in no way sublime.

God must have a purpose for keeping me alive,

Because I did everything in extreme overdrive.

But man, what memories I have!

Seventeen

Let me be that

I could stay up all night

Unlike now, I’m falling asleep

Good night

At sixteen, my life was marching band.

Such precision was mandatory,

Such stamina was obligatory.

The band was my family, much better than home.

Camaraderie was unbreakable.

Esprit de corps was inevitable.

Feelings I never knew before.

A learner’s license is the goal

Of any typical fifteen year-old.

Though I had a car the year before,

I could only drive to the corner store.

Thank heavens for a small rural town

Where the price of a misdemeanor was just a frown.

Everyone knows who you are

And whether or not you can drive that car.

Sadly, I miss that kind of life

Where mere existence was not filled with strife.

I’d turn the clock back if I could

To show my daughter when the world was good.