Subbing in America: Hour 18
to count to three and
after eat the M&M’s
all week he struggles
flicker of light in his eyes
his victory is short-lived
Hour 17- To know or not to know
When you’re handed a quest for you to pursue,
Do you hope that it’s elaborate and clear,
That detail all the actions that will ensue,
Or have no rules that you will have to adhere?
Would you want to be tailed and taken care of,
Protected in case you slip, a net waiting,
Or would you prefer blind trust than love,
Letting you slip and fall, always learning?
Do you like that you know everyone around,
Each of them a familiar face from yore,
Or do you like to be free from relations, unbound,
To find new people to hold and adore?
A map carto graphed with intense skill,
Or a blank canvas that is yours to fill?
02 – Whose Woods
With credit to Robert Frost for the first three lines, taken from lines 1, 3, and 5 in “Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening”.
Whose woods these are I think I know
He will not see me stopping here
My little horse must think it queer,
A deafening silence, drawing near
And though it’s said I’ve much to fear
From sinister sounds both far and near
I thank my stars I do not hear
Sardonic laughter in my ear
Whilst silence settles ’round me, clear
Were he to see me stopping here
With my horse, thinking it queer
We would vanish, bones and gear
For though I know he sings a song
Once changed, he’ll amble softly along
Silence precedes his gleeful tune
Until he howls, eyes on the moon
Most grateful am I to know this fact
Preparing myself, now, to react
The wind is calm, now dark woods cackle
A fire burns and gently crackles
My breath doth curl and icy air lick
Silence dawns, stifles, becomes chthonic
Quiet encroaches, settling in
With his approach I give a grin
No bated breath will you find here
For laughter’s begun in my ear
My breathing slows, and pupils slit
Claws extend from fingertips
Though these woods his may be
From the moon I am free
Subsistence kills are for his sort
While my kin like to kill for sport
A Moment of Joy-Hour 18
And now
Your moment of joy.
This marathon is done
Another bunch of poems tucked away
Your head hits the pillow
Your body folds into a soft mattress
NO STOP
Not yet
A moment of joy.
A pot of coffee
A cup swirling to cozy quiet
My eyes drift
Closing, darkness
NO STOP
not yet.
A moment of joy.
Garbled words
Smashing into each other
Like bumper cars
I black out
Silently dreaming
NO STOP
Not yet.
Brass bands
Drum circles
Cold water splashing
That’s better.
Yes, splashing cold
Iced coffee
Bright lights
Timpanis
Adrenalin
Clapping, dancing
Spinning
AWAKE!
18: At 2am
Shakespeare and Poe share the same family tree
Genetically prone to dramatical spree
Such as murders and the quoting of ravens and such,
Perhaps just a little too much.
Stevenson’s prattle of pirates and shore
While Wordsworth rambles of flowers galore
And Frost with his goings, his stopping, his walls,
Dickinson’s bees, drunken hauls.
Rhythm and rhyme, insidiously vile,
Seeps into our soul, with the gentlest guile
And sticks in the cracks between tear and smile.
Forever. Or just for a while.
Hour 18 – The First Kitten – Text Prompt
The First Kitten
She had been expecting
For quite a while
And told me as much loudly
That she was with child
At first I could not know
I’d never seen a queen
But then it was obvious
And nearly too late to be seen
So I set up spaces
The future mother could rest
I didn’t not know what I was doing
And trusted momma knew best.
She grew wide, as did the father
A chonky duo, proud as otters
Then the day in question came
Much to my surprise
February 18th
At just 6 am
Contractions made her bolt from
The nest in which she sleeps.
And on the ground plopped the first
A silver tabby kitten
We spent that day together
But at the first I was smitten.
5 more were born of course
But I was just so proud
That while momma cat was birthing
She had sought me out.
I stood guard, to the queen
I helped them out,
She groomed them clean
And all was well 10 hours later.
Unknown Animals – Hour 17 Prompt
Fossils are an incredibly rare occurrence
there were beings walking here
beyond our comprehension
and their colors, flumes, tooth and claw, maw and diets
we will never know
Sharks and alligators unchanged for millions and millions of years
perfect predators, still share our home
Is it unlikely others have stayed around as well?
New species are discovered in the depths of caves, oceans, and rainforests
critters long thought passed pop up unexpectedly
Long necked, early Jurassic beasts may not be lurking in lakes
raising humps
But their ancient sturgeon brethren may
Natives had tales of the Hairy Men, The Wise Men of the Mountain
the link is still missing
Jackalopes hanging on the Wall Drug wall in Wyoming aren’t real
except we made them real
Just because
we don’t know for sure that they are here
doesn’t mean they haven’t been here
or that they aren’t real simply from the magic of our imaginations
Pure Ecstasy (hour 18)
Waiting can be painful
if you aren’t sure of the reason
you are in the prison
for the season
but the moment you know
and you can see
it is pure ecstasy
like an unfruitful couple
gifted with twin diamonds
after 20 years
Hour 18: Flawed
I am flawed
Very much so
I make mistakes
A lot of them too
I stumble and fall
With nothing in my path
And don’t even ask
About responsibilities and tasks!
I am easy to anger
I can be mean
Though just as easy to appease
With cakes & ice-cream.
I am flawed
I know
But that’s what makes me
Human
Very much so!