24 Poems ~ 24 Hours
Presidents come and go
some make lasting impressions,
others make lasting change.
I want to make change
to bring light to
the plight of the world.
To speak Mother Earth’s words
in a language all can understand,
all can absorb.
Using my time and resources
to shout at the world,
STOP,
Mother Earth is angry.
Just as this President
has left a distinct image, albeit one
of disrespect and subterfuge, I will use my words to create understanding.
“This is how she found us/ the past draped about us like a cloak” –Diana Khoi Nguyen
When history had not been made yet,
when the outcome was nothing but a thought,
a raindrop of potential,
not even a probability, but a possibility still.
Then.
When history had not been made yet.
I wonder if the men whose hands
had not yet pressed the buttons
trembled.
It should have been everything to do
with anticipation–
not of glory
but of cells mutations
of Native land taken
of fear like a cloak over the world.
Fire blazes on the surface of the moon
Moonlight flickers with oranges and deep reds
On the wildflowers sprouting around me
At incredible speeds
The stone surface of my altar
Burns with an energy
That could heal the sick
Or end them
An energy created by me
I pluck a dandelion
Still flowering
A wonderful shade of gold
And place it in my small iron cauldron
Humming an old song
I sprinkle black salt on top of it
And sway to the rhythm of the earth
It holds me
Steady
And unwavering
Grounded
Like the roots of the strongest trees
As I call the fire of the moon toward me
Her fire blankets my skin
And a warmth I’ve never felt so strong
Envelopes me
The fire becomes me
And I become it
Reaching for destruction…
How I wish I could fly
mount up with wings like an eagle
take to the sky
look down at the earth below
fall in love with the wonders I see
Be free and be filled with glee
I shall take the umbrella
and it shall become a parachute
take me up in the air
without wings I shall go
I shall look down at the earth below
fall in love with the wonders I see
Be free and be filled with glee
Without a care in the world I shall be
New Year’s party
Taking shots
Liquor gliding smoothly
Through a tunnel of clear ice
In a gym
Where 70 year old Marta
Learned to do pull ups
And lift 150
A time when
Deep wounds
Left scars
And clouds of uncertainty
Of middle age
Nebulous relationships
Last forever
No matter
How hard
How hurtful
How different
Store clerks and dead fisheyes
Stabbing Pollyanna
Until she becomes
Less
Happy
And
Whole
More
Hope
And
Jade
Alone it sits in darkness
But gentle light prevails
Bringing hope and purpose
To a world whose faith has failed
Let us hang onto the light
That obliterates the night
Let us be the love the world needs
Let us be the light in the darkness
What will fill this need?
To the voices heed?
Commune
Plant in love the seed
Growing at great speed
Festoon
Spirit at last freed
Climbing up to feed
Blue Moon
I have been meaning to write a poem using the lai form, so I gave it a try using this photo as she climbs the ladder to this week’s blue moon.
Painting the picture
Having those crazy thoughts
wondering if I am going to make it.
Not wanting to run lose
Gaining control of all the pain
Wanting to lash out and cry again.
Letting all those feelings slide
I woke in panic that I didn’t die.
All those rampant feelings
Trying to make me feel like losing control
wanting to wake up from this nightmare
Oh please I don’t want to die and just be my soul.
Point Of View at Sixty
Sixty years old, hard to believe
I have lived this long.
Time has slipped by so fast,
seems like I just turned fifty.
A bit stiffer in the morning,
harder to get out of bed.
I can stoop down to get something,
more difficult to get back up.
Retirement and medicare just ahead,
not sure if I am ready for them yet.
In bed by 9 or sometimes 10PM,
but awake at 3 or sometimes 4AM.
Cpap to help sleep, medications for
low thyroid and high cholesterol.
Gluten, dairy and high fructose free diets,
sure takes the fun out of eating.
Where will I be in ten years,
will I still be alive is a better question.
Only time will tell!
Change in a Decade
I look down the corridors of time.
A decade ago, my life sublime.
Strong, no illness in this frame.
School, work, family focus was my name.
Illness knocked me over, out for the count.
Blew away my dreams, now I live with doubt.
Gone in one decade, only memories now.
Reinvent with new parameters, I’m still working on how.