The Poetry Marathon

Hour 15, prompt 15 Plan Trip

When we fly, you take me higher and further.

We have sat close and visited the past,

maintaining eye contact through the laughter and the tears.

To share the names of my demons, to let you see them and know them, by name.

Halfway there, and you wake up from an awkward nap,

we pull out a crystal ball and predict the future, the whole time, you repeat

you and me

you and me

you and me.

When we reorient ourselves, the stars are a blanket of protection softened by clouds.

“I’ve never been this close to heaven.”

you smile, give me one of “those” looks, and lower your eyes until we both can’t want to land.

 

Hour 15, Banshee

Sue, my dear mother-in-law, was celebrating her 70th birthday
in the last lucid days before ALS would take her from us.
She asked that we come to her, travel from Texas to Massachusetts,
likely knowing the end was nigh.

Our grandson was not yet two, but would make the trip with us,
the only chance his great grandmother Sue and her own
mother-in-law, his great great grandmother, would ever have to see him.

Travel there was beautifully smooth and easy, our bitty grandson
a slumbering cherub in our arms. Once there, he nestled sweetly
in Sue’s hospital bed, seeming to sense her fragility, playing baby
hand games with her, each delighting in the other.

Memories were made, to be later cherished, and our time there came
to an end as we entered the plane that would take us home once again.
Our boy cherub from the trip out disappeared and all the long return
he was utterly inconsolable, a stiff, screaming, and keening banshee.

Sue would be gone two months later.

 

Midnight

Midnight

Haikus are your friend,

My baggy-eyed midnight writer.

Now go, and take a breath.

Bette Low 2020

Her Own Words

In Her Words

In memory of Barbara Reiher-Meyers

Her footsteps in fog,
ghost of her smile
cried with every stroke of pen.

With unblinking eyes
an arm a column of numbness
rising to the music of the news.

I joined Twitter because I’m not a twit.
Once ignored the world outside their door
protective canopy of leaves.

She was created by God’s strength
and just wanted you to read the poem.

Barb, you are remembered.

Margarette Wahl

Love -Haiku (HR 15)

Frequencies are high

You and I caught each other’s vibes

Happy Ever After 💍

Poem 3, Prompt 15

I once took a flight to Romania
Intending to see Transylvania
But the plane didn’t land
In the country as planned
And I wound up back home in Tasmania

Flight of Woe – hour 15, prompt 15

September 20, 2001

a plane ride back

vacation done

here we sit, this flight is grim

every bump, a deep breath in

a sudden drop, perspiring again

goes from forehead to the chin

some other planes, destroyed you see

marred 9/11 and US eternally

in Paris, when I heard the news

my flight was canceled,

I was confused

a whole week more I heard the tale

from Frenchmen, Germans all a-pale

how three planes crashed, the other failed

and CNN replayed the horror

in gruesome detail every hour

so then reschedule did I thus

but this flight I really didn’t trust

and when finally, it came time to fly

I said a prayer that all not die

the whole cabin talked around

their travel tales and planes aground

and when the aircraft finally touched down

all cheered and clapped – now safely home

and when we finally found our own

we hugged tightly, and cried some

for flights that perished, those brave ones.

– Sandra Johnson

 

Wing Chun

I find my center line
Protecting my core self and peace of mind
My hands move like cranes, tigers, panthers, and snakes
Gathering my chi with each move I make
I do not block
I only redirect energy
My opponent is my dance partner
Never my enemy
This is an exercise in empathy and connection
Sticky hands touch souls in this art of protection
We release ego understanding all is intertwined
This kungfu style is for life
Its name means Beautiful Spring Time

Quote Poem

A wise person once said that “If you don’t stand for something you will fall for anything” and I agree with it. It is like going into a store and not voicing your opinion on a ring that you asked for and going for it because you don’t want more of it. Not standing for something is like commanding a nation that is on the blink of misunderstanding and it is outstanding to be demanding a cause that you wouldn’t stand for without having the footing so you can keep your feet on the ground for.

“If you don’t stand for something you will fall for anything.”
― Gordon A. Eadie

The Flight

Settling into my roomy seat
breathing sighs to release tensions
brought on by the airport
Travel was easier before 9/11
Everything was.

I wish I could fly without baggage
“I don’t like to carry things.”
I muse aloud.
That’s very French. 
My mind responds.
Yes. I smile mysteriously.

I love every new minute of the flight
champagne, reading, movies and nap