Paper me over
with carnal designs, I am
hourglass losing
myself in the shift – pencil
sketches facing erasure.
(Tuesdays I borrow from Twitter @Vjknutson. Art mine)
Category: poetry
Down Is Right
Been riding the down elevator too long
a slight detour, I once, long ago, thought
Ambitions set on Penthouses
and upper echelons of success
First, there is a trip I must make
a downward pull insisting –
See, it isn’t true what they say
that we can be whatever we want
It’s time to stop running,
stop chasing empty promises
I’m getting down to roots
causes and influences
history revealing a legacy
here in the depths of self
a final reckoning that bears light
seems I’ve miscalculated directions
I’ve been riding the down elevator
about to alight on revelation.
(For Reena’s Exploration Challenge #160. Image my own. Hayes is my maiden name.)
Nature of Age
Evening beckons
sun’s fiery glow
mocks my unrest
I am knee deep
in river’s flow
no more than
sediment beneath
human craving –
Earth’s healing
a welcome touch.
Indecisive
Decisions weighty
I plan but am divided
half sailing; half cowering
Optimism cheery
experience berating
Nested in tradition
craving alternatives
Can I not see that plans
are investments,
overcome the fear
in favour of expansion.
(Writing this I am reminded of the saying: “I used to be indecisive; now I’m not so sure.” Image my own.)
Sleep On It
Evening sky fraught
with alarm – brooding
clouds menace
In morning light
all is redeemed –
resplendent the day.
(Tuesdays I borrow from Twitter @Vjknutson. Image mine.)
Frames
Picture-perfect life
who doesn’t aspire?
I’ve reframed the image
time and time again
Searched for definition
in 5′ x 7′ then 8′ x 10′
But a creative soul
cannot be confined
frames now accents
for the life that flows.
For Reena’s Exploration Challenge #159. Images mine.
For Hallowe’en
I am Cimmerian
dwell in dark places
worship gloom
Mythical mystery
social oddity
thrive unseen
Approach with fear
I will devour you
Curiosity evokes rage
Compassion confuses
might shift closer
then surely disappear.
Summer Love
Waves lap in rhythm with my heart
midnight sky bewitches, stars sing,
hand-in-hand our spirits soar
pulses dancing to the seduction
of love’s enchantment –
Tonight the ambiance possesses us
tonight boundaries have no hold
we are moon-crazed innocence
warmed by mysterious stirrings
sand shifting beneath naked soles.
(For Eugi’s Causerie Weekly challenge: bewitched. Image my own.)
Gods and Demons
My fairy-tale-heart
dreamt of an Adonis
but his countenance
outshone my dull
Found instead
a Demogorgon
divide my time
between up and down
Like Persephone
I negotiate demonic
Hades darkness
enough for me.
(Tuesdays I borrow from Twitter @Vjknutson – this one edited. Image mine.)
That’s What I Fear
– Maya Angelo
I fear living.
No, that’s not it.
I love living…
…but I fear engagement…
…drowning in engagement
Except, I love engagement…
… but only when I dip my toe in the waters
and feel the thrill…
and can still maintain control.
I fear losing control. I fear no longer being able to call the shots, life demanding more of me than I’m willing (or able) to give.
I’m willing to give…
… to a certain point…
…can no longer afford to be sapped dry, wrung out
and discarded… so much hurt
so much betrayal…
such lack of appreciation
I have given.
I have loved and sacrificed and cherished and
given…
…up…
…self
It’s self I’m afraid of losing
and why not?
I am only just able to touch her
She and I, still hesitant
building a certainty
a mutual admiration
respect…
And should I be called upon
to give…too much…well…
I could lose her again.
This is what I fear.
(Two separate blog posts hit me this week. The first offering the Angelo quotation (sorry, I can’t remember the blog’s name) and the second from my friend Dr Andrea Dinardo, who offers the question: What’s Under the Fear? Dr D offers a five step process for self-discovery. This is my response. Image my own. The poem also fits with my weekly challenge theme: except)
One Woman's Quest 