24 Poems ~ 24 Hours
In the aftermath
of an argument
about nothing
and everything.
I wondered
what is love
if not the
turning of perspective
so that one sees
clarity over confusion
feels peace consume suffering
sees the dark of fear
dissipate in the light.
What is love?
Love is the truth.
All else is illusion.
Don’t get lost there
or all will be lost there.
What is love?
This is the third time
trying to execute this poem
and that’s what love does
to someone like me
It’s impossible to explain
it could be a call home
it could be a feeling
it could be feeding your cat
The beauty of love
is that we don’t know what it is
We never know when to expect it
or in what direction it will come from
It keeps us on our toes
It’s also gutwrenching
turning your stomach into a knot
that’s tied too tightly
unable to be released
It also gives you life
in the search for that feeling
again
I long for it
“What is love”
Misattributed quote says love
Is finding your weird partner and
Being weird with them.
Movies tell us love
Is recognizing our soul’s counterpoint
In another.
Books tell us love
Extends beyond class
And privilege.
Commercials tell us love
Is a diamond, a card, a
Bouquet of dead flowers.
Life tells us love
Is precious, rare, violent, painful,
Soul rending, necessary.
A commitment kept between two hearts
a four-lettered promise
those nervous butterflies at the sight of him
everything that follows after life…after live…
everything that’s offered and what you have to give
its work, truthfulness, open and it’s free
its between people and animals
it has two legs or four paws
its blood pumping to the heart
ink dripping from your pen
it’s the inspiration to write this
its a phone call, a hug, a kiss, and everything that comes in between.
I love you when you put me first
I love you when you let me talk
I love you when I interrupt to bring the conversation back to me
I love you when you choose me to be first
I love you when you tell others how great I am
I love you when you share my fame
I love you when you forgive my inattention and you have to explain things again…and again
I love you when you make fudge
I love you when you take care of the business
I love you when you do the cleaning up
I love you when you make all the arrangements
I love you when you discard the best picture if I don’t shine in it
I love you when you are of use to me
I love you when you do what I want
I love you when it’s convenient for me to do so
I love you when you buy my books
I love you when you teach me new things
I love you when you let me shine
I love you when I need to whine
I love you when I need to vent
I love you when it’s the cool thing to do
I love you when I get stuff from you
I love you when you do the work
I love you when you kiss my ass
But now that you’re done doing that
I
Well
I don’t love you anymore
What Is Love If You Are Gone?
If you were gone,
Days would seem endless
And nights even more so.
I would have to call repairmen
And car mechanics
And financial planners.
I would have to eat all the vegetables
By myself
And the chocolate cake.
Without you, love would be a treadmill
Going, going, going
But never getting anywhere.
What is love without you—
I don’t want to find out.
Cindy Herndon
The table, besides me, is bald and bearded
I’m getting there but hanging on
we are brought turkey and sides
Kraft sprinkled mac and cheese
stuffing with giblet gravy
green beans with pork fat
cranberry sauce right out of the can
they bring it out to us tired
they bring it out while their kids run and scream
they bring it to almost whispered thank-yous
they bring it despite not orgasming in years
they bring it after breaking down in the kitchen
while the others keep going
they bring it to the ones we know are abusers
they bring it to the ones they’d like to take for a spin
they bring it to me multiple times because I eat good for my size
they bring it to husbands who complain about their attitudes
when their backs are turned
and they think they can’t hear
I see some of them gripping the cutting knives hard
and looking at us
even me
like they’d love to bring that to us.
Love is doing dishes,
making dinner.
Holding hands at the movies.
It is singed with frustration
and joy.
It is worry in the hospital waiting room.
It is sticking around through good and bad.
Love is communication and respect.
It is founded on attraction,
but grows with admiration and need.
Love is saying “I’m sorry,”
when it needs said.
Saying “I’m sorry too,”
when it needs said.
It is accepting responsibility.
It is finding the path together
and honoring the other when that path splits.
It is belief in one another.
Keeping the other’s best interests at heart.
Love is vast and comical.
Touching and fanatical.
Love is everything and nothing.
Love is the Universe
and the blade of grass beneath our feet.
Wooden swings are a beloved classic
plucked memories of rising dandelions
its petals cushioning footsteps
leaving this swing
accessible regardless to iron gates
and locked fences
accomodating to lush landscapes
and joy
What is love she said
ya got me he said
then he said let’s kiss and see if it happens