You
Effortlessly bleak
nothing happens in a vacuum
No one is entirely alone
Not all who are lost are weak
Everyone gets a little help.
Misery doesn’t love company
It demands it.
That’s Amore ~ Dean Martin Devotional
That’s Amore ~ a Dean Martin Devotional
the song~ plays in my head
when my marathon mother
prompted pizza pie
a big ol’ slice
right in the eye
cheesy, right?
I think of her
grateful for her light
Me, her selenophile
sat and sang with her tonight
now longing, to rest
my word weary head
The Silence (prompt 22)
it seems fitting that the internet would go down
right as I begin to write about how silence
is an experience I tend to avoid at all costs
silence used to scare me more
than a raised voice
or a slammed door
because it often precedes devastation
a calm before the storm
worse, when used as a command
hand in hand with shaming
for being too loud or passionate
rips the voice from my throat
just like a Disney movie
silence makes the noise in my head deafening
a tornado of thought an earthquake shifting
the tectonic plates of composure
that is why the tv is always on
even when my attention lives elsewhere
Pizza Stop
I sit in my car
at the intersection of Mitchell and Pine
Smells of pizza fill the air.
Seriously, WTF?
On one side of the street
pizza by the slice.
A buck a slice.
I’m so serious I want to swear right now.
When school is in session, they sell about
four thousand a day.
Every day.
In a town of maybe ten thousand.
On the other side of the street
whole pies
So good!
thin crust
pepperoni grease running down your arm
as you devour every bite.
This place is the place
the place that built this town.
It is so <> awesome.
The light turned green
But I go nowhere
The car behind me doesn’t honk.
Why would it?
They can smell it too.
Hour 10. The circle
Surely Money makes the world go around
but the smell of pizza baking in the oven
Makes your brain go around in circles!
The crust can be thin and crispy
Or thick and chewy.
They even stuff the margins nowadays.
To teach children fractions in math
they show pictures of cut-up pizza.
Can you blame kids for failing in math?
Now talk about the sauces.
cheese types may be many
But mozzarella is the King
Toppings are many a kind
All of them are mind-blowing.
Oh pizza, pizza! where forth art thou, pizza!!
A New York Pizza
Round or square
don’t really care.
Just add tomato sauce and cheese
pepperoni, buffalo chicken,
ziti on top, any pasta would do.
A salad slice is pretty nice
as long as the dressing’s right.
It’s all about the water
in making the dough.
A New York Pizza
is the only way to go.
Hour 22: Late Night Delights
When it’s so late at night that
all other restaurants are closed.
When I’m sad and the leftovers in the fridge
just do not speak to me anymore.
When I really, truly, really, just want something
spicy and loaded.
I walk out the door, down a dimly lit street,
Towards the harsh, but welcoming lights of my local pizza parlor.
I wait eagerly as they prepare my order.
Always around fifteen minutes, never more, never less.
I feel myself smile as they hand me the hot box,
with the soft drink I had asked for on the side.
And I bite into the pizza,
cheese and curry sauce overwhelming my taste buds.
It’s no culinary masterpiece
But at that hour, it’s everything I need.
Hour 22 text prompt – Pizza
Round and many circles
Cut into triangles or squares
I really love my pizza
From Greco-Roman chairs
Perfect in simplicity
Pizza from the city
Cooked in gas or electricity
Tastes great and looks pretty
And while cheese can be a mess
While bread can leave you bloated
I’ve never seen it turned down
When the idea of pizza is floated.
Hour 22
I’m rooting for you,
Know that I always have,
My intentions are always good,
I hope you know I mean well,
Sometimes your reactions make it hard to tell,
I want success for you so bad,
I can feel it,
Prayers so hard for you,
I can scream it,
Visualizing it so clear.
It’s more than a dream,
We’ve played different positions,
But always on the same team,
I need you to believe in yourself too,
Have a little faith,
Just as I do,
But faith and prayer without work is dead,
Yes, you’re trying, but try harder,
It’s what we all do,
When we know someone is rooting for you.
Hour 22, Poem 28: The Baby Mat
(I tried writing about a baby mat but it didn’t quite land. Will be revising it when I am more awake.)
I saw the first steps of the baby
Also when he fell and cried
Then got up again to try take his own steps.
I felt the tiny baby teeth
Trying to bite my edges off
Just two of them but really sharp
I heard the giggles and bumbling words
That made no sense but still told
Everything that ought to be heard.
And now here I am in a corner
Of a room full of toys and books
Dusty yet still there for whenever
I am needed for the support
and safety and as a teether
And to catch a baby taking her first steps.