Tag: poem

Cracking the Code

Adept at uprooting,
conditioned to follow chaos –
know my place there.

Kindness unsettles –
each ray piercing
cracking the crust

unleashing a prism
both painful and joyous –
legacy of dysfunction.

(Poem from Twitter @Vjknutson.  Image from personal collection.)

 

 

Familial Legacy

“…too young to notice
how fear persists, and how
the anger that causes fear persists…”
– Immortality, by Lisel Mueller

Purposeful, this fortress
permanently ungrounded

Burdened without bearing
fear underlying motivation

Reassured that life is unfair
dedicated to defying limits

Challenged by rage
bloodline ingrained

Pulled towards inevitable
complete collapse.

(Inspired by the promptings of Reena’s Exploration challenge.  To see the full poem and prompt click here.  Image from personal collection.)

Shallow Measures

Didn’t have to say it –
read between the lines,
the “and you too”
as an afterthought

pathetic attempt to
cover truth – ugly
I was, unlike sisters
whose beauty raved

Only in flashbacks,
time gifting objectivity
do I see it wasn’t true –
depth shines through.

(Image from personal collection.)

Midnight Encounter

Midnight
and moon casts an eerie light
shimmers of white-kissed fields

Headlights off,
I pause to contemplate the glow
endless skies here beyond city limits.

A herd of deer graze
ignore the hum of idling motor
celebrate the lunar flood.

What drove me here,
I cannot say; perhaps clouds
relentless in February skies.

Or maybe it was another pull,
a knowing, a grace, calling me
to open spaces – an offering

Surreal this suspended moment
stars dispersing sombre greys
tides of emotion releasing

I am transported,
uplifted, encouraged –
Heaven’s stellar promise.

(Inspired by a midnight ride and Eugi’s Causerie prompt of the week:  stellar.  Image from personal collection.)

 

Resilience

Purpose –
much coveted
despair-driven –
has returned.

Energy –
motivation
to proceed –
building

Willingness –
once vibrant
now constrained –
resists.

Chasms –
loss created
unparalleled –
require bridges.

Purpose –
discovery born
enthusiastic –
persists.

(Resilience first appeared here in October, 2018.  I submit a slightly revised edition here for Ragtag Community’s daily prompt: resilience.)

I Grow Roses

I grow roses to remember
a beloved grandmother
the dreams of innocence
the blush of summer love

I grow roses to believe
that life has purpose
and time has no end
and love defies boundaries.

I grow roses to understand
that beauty and pain coexist
and life is about cycles
and simple things have great value.

(Linking up with Eugi’s Causerie, prompt: blush.  Image from personal collection.)

Bystander

Dare I confess
the hollowness
of my heart

How emptiness
echoes in its chambers
How lost I feel inside

This is no sanctity
no secure refuge
my withdrawal is a sham

I stand by, observe –
circles entwine, embrace –
recognize the power of love

Practice the words
extend warmth
and retreat, before

connection ignites
convinced as I am
that the vacancy is merited.

(Image from personal collection.)