24 Poems ~ 24 Hours
How to make a Kaleidoscope
Stick pretty paper round a tube
Cut out three circles in something clear to use
Hot glue one to the bottom space
Put the coloured beads in place
Hold them down with another disc but not too tight
Allowing them room to play and fight
Make a triangle of foil covered strips
Place inside so it’s a snuggly fit
Pop the last piece of plastic on the top
Once the glue is dry the fun will never stop.
Hour Seventeen
I am convinced
flies have genetic memory
to the swatter-
dashing through the air
landing upon
naked skin crawling
a constant hum of buzzing
afflicting my quiet.
I pick up the swatter
and the nerve-grinding melody ceases.
I scan the room and cajole them
out from hiding,
eyes narrowed in annoyance
and after a few moments of pause,
I set it down and go about my way.
Preoccupied with my current task,
I forget their existence
and venture further off into my own world
when it so happens to flirt about,
bouncing like a pinball
off surfaces and my being
in an angry squabble of
buzzing interfere to the depths of my thought-
an annoying static-
and disappears.
I bat them off and shrug them away
shooting daggers from my eyes
my features contorted by
my grievance.
I pick up the swatter
and they disperse-
the army of black flies
going AWOL in their defense.
I set it down slowly,
mindful of their presence
and threat to concentration.
One lands upon the table in front of me
zipping along zig-zagged lines
teasing me with it’s curious presence.
I hold tight the handle and slowly raise
holding it aloft like Anne Wilkes
as their number one fan
and blessed is the silence.
Life occurs differently depending on the side
of the realm your soul is on
Birds venture between worlds in addition
to their own
Coming out of daydreams there is a blurry
sense of purpose that stumbily enters inside my head
air is earths devoted companion and guides wings tirelessly
through spiritual fusion of realms
….and then she found an old traditional recipe by her foremothers, forwarding it to her future self…
Ingredients
1 cup of inner anguish, neatly chopped.
A selection of treasured recollections from happier times.
There are several pinches of silent ideas that want to be heard.
To taste, 1 peaceful melody of self-compassion.
A big helping of nostalgic warmth, like a warm blanket.
Tender care is just enough to remove self-doubt from your centre.
Instructions
Prepare Your Inner Environment
Allow inner turbulence to stew in the cauldron of your mind.
Gently whisk in a few handfuls of treasured memories.
Unspoken Expression
Sprinkle countless pinches of unsaid ideas gradually.
Allow them to unfold and breathe, releasing their essence into the pot.
Melody of Harmony
Infuse a calming melody of self-compassion into the stew.
Ensure a perfect balance by adjusting the volume to taste.
Nostalgic Solace
Add a hefty helping of nostalgic warmth to your project.
Allow it to wrap your thoughts like a warm mental hug.
Self-Care Is Tender
Use soft motions to detach self-doubt from your centre with extreme caution.
Continue until the combination achieves self-acceptance.
Suggestions for Serving
In times of inner turmoil, serve boiling hot.
Garnish with a dash of optimism.
For a hearty mental feast, serve with a side of awareness.
This Harmony Stew recipe is for achieving balance and calm inside your own thoughts.
Dudes who complain about yardwork
Dudes who don’t take out the trash
Dudes who leave the spoons on the side of the sink
Dudes who leave the drain clogged
Dudes who smash mailboxes with bats
Dudes who don’t take their medication often
Dudes who forget birthdays and anniversaries
Dudes who are unusually close
Dudes who work on cars
Dudes who don’t coupon at all
Dudes who read westerns
Dudes who can’t sit through a play
Dudes who slash tires over stares
Dudes who don’t know how to play UNO
Dudes who leave the toilet seat up
It’s us , we’re dudes
she needed a ride home and we obliged
no one at the party knew our names
and were too obliterated to capture faces
you’re handsome and your small talk is distracting
in the rearview I can see her eyes
on your chin and cheeks and collarbones
drinking them in with tipsy lust
keeping your cool, the last one got you too excited
and you punched them in the head over and over
as I stayed on the lookout for cops and nosy drivers
so enthralled by you
and not paying attention to the exit signs that fly by
far away from where she told me to drop her off
flashing like green lights to a place
she’d rather not know she was going to
and not coming back from.
In shadows deep, the lone banyan tree shakes its branches
A haunting breath whispers secrets deep
Amidst the silence of the night, they duet a death dance
The owl in the nearby tree traps its prey
A ghost of memories silently weep
A realm of dreams; their secrets keep
The sun rises, the night is gone and all is well
Until it is night again…
You told me once that you would never heal me.
Had you known it was me, you never would have tried.
Wound the eel of the fen, the wolf of the snow-bound trees,
Wound the cattle that you need for winter.
There comes victory, and what comes after?
There follows not a bright new day.
I told you once that I would never heal you.
Had you known this was me, would you have even tried?
One day I will perch upon your shoulder
And all you will have is dignity.
Spectres of monsters past
Shades of Jabberwok
And Babaduk
Visit me in the wee hours
Old monsters spent and tired
Who’ve long since lost
Their frightening power
But another monster rises up
From the depths to take their place
Rapacious and malevolent
With distilled malice and ill intent
And an all too familiar face.
I can only see him by candlelight
In the mirror past midnight
I’m deathly afraid of who he might be
Because his face looks just like me
He whispers never to fear monsters again
Those monsters who look just like men
And tells me a secret as if with glee
The most frightening thing in all the dark
Isn’t him, it’s me.
I feel your breath in my air
In my empty bed, my empty room
Your scent reachs me from beoynd
A mix of hunger, rose and mint
Crawling up my nostrils
Into my memories, pulling out tears
Dreams and nightmares crowd my body
My heart thumping, sense strung on nerves
Waiting for you to appear