my cheese poem never posted, a sad affair indeed
the wheels turn
harden
sour
salt
curdle
and bring us together
The Railroad
Undisturbed, sedated sounds— there
As I gazed across the vast, empty space
With my eyes fixed—blank to which they stare
At each and every piece in its proper place
The railroad, both—long and wide
An unknown journey, I felt belonged
To this, this place to which it resides
To this, this home— to which it longed
The Forgotten Promise
Buried within the depths of wisdom
Sacred words were all but—whispered
Bound together in—a rhythm
Leaving nothing left unanswered
Pages turned and by mine hand
One before another
As my heart did now understand
Exactly what you sought to answer
Loudly did I start to hear
Precisely what you sought to speak
As I did now lend my ear
To what it was that I did seek
A forgotten promise in the midst of wisdom
Between both sleep and awoken times
Clinging to life it’s spoken outcome
Concealed within these arcane rhymes
Wide Awake
Deep sleep is where I laid
Even while awake
For it was when I obeyed
That serpent, wise—old snake
When my thoughts returned to me
From where they once had gone
That I began to stop and see
The path to which they fasten—
For as the sun is said to rise
Each and every—day
From the east until it dies
Returning to obey—
For light might move from east to west
Giving life to all that live
As it seems to never rest
As though its been taken captive
From life to death and what’s left in between
A course to which we are forced
To obey this same, wise—old routine
Until it is divorced—
For sleep no longer reigns in me
As I’m wide—awake
And the spirit of prophecy
Is finally burned at the stake
For words themselves must be bound
When concealed until the light might show
That they will often be found
When its time to know
Knowing is they key that reveals
What’s hidden deep inside
That which was once concealed
But is now very much brought to life
Second Sight
For mysteries did hide from me
As blind I was before
But then reborn that I might see
And faith— they then restore
Tears did drench mine eyes
Baptized through my pain
Yet— it’s then I could realize
The strength I did contain
Weakness sought to reign
Until I could start to see
That I just might sustain
With you that lives within me
My eyes began to wander
Searching for a key
Wisdom was my armor
That second sight gave to me
Strength was found within the bonds
Of wisdom that I’ve gained
Knowledge now responds
As weakness is restrained
For all I seem to now know
What I comprehend
Is that what’s now below
Is darkness that I tread
For with thine light I can see
Exactly what you intend
And anything that’s now before me
Is what I did portend
For strength and wisdom do now guide
The steps I seek to take
As mysteries now do not hide
But instead are wide awake
Cloak—and—Dagger
Concealed mysteries yet blatantly disclosed
Entities— among us— in skins, disguised
Yet holding sight, essence— itself composed
Of things— we here, at best—only theorize!
Perception is vital— from whose eyes, we see
As our decisions are formed by what we perceive
Transformed into our fates— our destiny!
Composed by many things that we do believe
Nature herself— so cleverly creates
Yet— often lost to understanding— retrieved
From the very same people that she confiscates
From the life that they themselves once bereaved
For oftentimes hidden within our own innate desire
Lies many things— often unknown to our own conscious
That we often later even start to unknowingly conspire
To fulfill our destiny, our forgotten promise
Disaster in the tropics
Life has paused
Nothing seems to be moving
Life is on stand still
Change is coming
Where is the bill?
Great thoughts arise
Panting and searching
For the prize
Where is this strange demise
Seems it’s bigger in size?
Questions unanswered
Life is on pause
Let’s hustle up
For the cause
Copyright © 2021 Roxann Lawrence (Poetessrock)
24 Oxtail Mockery
Oxtail never late
Oxtail on your plate
Oxtail curry or stew
Oxtail if you only knew
Oxtail brown or red
Cooked to taste so great
Just so you know oxtail makes a great meal on your plate!
Copyright © 2021 Roxann Lawrence (Poetessrock)
23 Case closed
No need to argue
No need to frown
No need to be a clown
Once it’s so
It can never be no
So keep the stakes low
Make a bow
Take the blow
Understand that it’s time to go
Don’t try to be cute
Nice or sweet
It’s just time to know
That you he lost the race
Case closed!
Copyright © 2021 Roxann Lawrence (Poetessrock)
Joy and Sorrow in One Cup
Joy and Sorrow in One Cup
When you go to war
And you win the battle
And you come home triumphant
Rejoicing that you’ve won
What d’you do when you meet
The families of those fallen at war?
Do you suppress your joy?
Does your sorrow now float atop?
Even before you meet
The loved ones of the fallen
What do you think, what do you say
About your friend, your bosom friend perhaps
With whom you’ve suddenly parted on the battle field?
Joy and sorrow in one cup, but not mixing
And none floating on the other.
The last time a mystery as such surfaced
It was at the Sea of Reeds
But the standing water, even then,
Gave clear joy to the beneficiaries of the stand
They had clear joy indeed —
No mixing, no floating, and no sorrow beside
When a child gets to high places
The mother rejoices, the father celebrates
But what if the child brings shame and sorrow
By acting like a total buffoon
In manners, in society, and at home perhaps?
Do the parents rejoice still? Do they occasionally blame themselves?
Does one blame the other
That a child so loved is devoid of humanity?
There’s joy in an aspect of the child’s success
But there’s sorrow in another, and it’s glaring.
Joy and sorrow
In a cup we carry
Many times in life