Compliant Child

                (Google Images)               

Too eager to please

somehow knowing

the key to survival

is submission

stuffing want and need

far far away

growing wiser

means understanding this:

being silent

ignored

avoiding notice

is far easier on the soul than attention

learning to bend will

to others

selling control

for lack of upheaval

a deadening but necessary

choice

lessons learned in childhood

and youth

recreate the compliant child

into one ripe

for relationships

unmerciful

Heat

Heat

visible in waves coming off the street

baking my body to its core

a consuming sadness

competes for space stolen by hot hot hot

sadness

at searing summer days

making me prisoner of

cooler rooms

and dreams of yellow orange red

autumn days

Somehow I've Been Away

This sky, a picture of storms about to break out, is me.  Inside there have been struggles so strong, so intense, that even writing has not been possible.  It is healing taking place, sometimes an excruciating process. I have not abandoned my friends, my blogs, my writing.  There has just been a pause while I learn and remind myself again and again that I am strong, I have survived great pain, and I will be victorious over the cruelties, torture, and control so suffocating they threatened to take my breath, my life.

So bear with me, please, as I work on healing.  For now, I believe I am ready to come back to writing.

Two Tanka Poems

Mint spreads like wind blown

leaves filling my garden bed

with round leaves climbing

toward sunshine   ready for

hot   honeyed   light morning tea

Cornflower blue sky

heavy with cotton ball clouds

changing from castle

to ghostly cattle grazing

in a periwinkle sky

 

 

 

Dessert Too

 (Cupcake and photo by Stephanie Pride)

It should be something that

announces itself in the baking

enticing aromas

infusing the air we breathe

creating a longing

for the taste

texture

moment of bliss

as we hold each fork full

to our lips

on our tongues

just for a moment

enjoying it to the fullest

before we swallow

and it is gone

Dessert in the Desert

These despised hot days

here in the desert
collecting cacti
with my camera
heat dripping down
from my scalp
to the soles of my
crispy baked feet
all I can think of is ice cream
mint ice cream
cold
soothing to my
lips
tongue where heavenly flavor rules
In my imagination I ate
the entire carton
then went back to work
with heat dripping down
from my scalp
to the soles of my
crispy baked feet

Five Poems

These are written in response to a prompt by Robert Lee Brewer in his Poetic Asides column.  You can find it in Writer's Digest Magazine and online at http://www.writersdigest.com/ .    As always, thank you, Robert.

The Sun Fell (The Sun Also Rises)

That day he admitted his

crimes against you

against God

against me

against family

His words boiled in

my belly until

I needed to vomit

I did not know where

to turn what

to do

my mind spun out of

control I couldn't think

all I know is that evening

the sun fell

Emma's Wonderland (Alice in Wonderland)

Wonderland made of night dreams

day dreams

imaginings

passages from books

lines from poems

brush strokes from paintings

stippling from charcoal drawings

verses from songs

instrumentals in their entirety

poem song stories built in my soul

No matter what part of Wonderland

I am visiting you are always there

I wake with you travel by your side

give you sparkling silver kisses

or deep red kisses never ending

you play my heart like a piano

late late night or early morning together

waking ends with you by my side

no matter what land one thing remains

I will always love you

Lord of Lies (Lord of the Flies)

Something is not right

way inside the core of you

truth is what you decide

it is

at that moment

lies are only explanations

or evidence of

the problem being with everyone else

never you

not your fault

ever

because you know

what real truth is

an insight no one else has

 

A Good Soil (The Good Earth)

Shrubs gone

wall built

weed cloth laid

now

build a good soil

to feed my garden

potting mix, organic

so much better

than what they sell as topsoil

light compared to heavy

lets roots grow

instead of suffocation

peat moss

compacted treasure of the ages

holds raindrops

giving drink to flowers and fruit

veggies and herbs

long after a thunder storm

compost black gold

feeds continuously

coaxing growth

from stems leaves buds

in turn gifting us with

blooms in purples pinks yellows whites

fruits red blue green purple

vegetables enough for

now Thanksgiving bounty saving for winter

it is with love

I build a good soil

joy comes with harvest

Invisible Child (The Invisible Man)

Wake up to mother's general call

to all brothers sisters

Time to get up

Sit at the table

behind the row of cereal boxes

spread for each to choose

Eat in silence

Dress for school

Walk alone thinking alone

Take my seat in the classroom

saying nothing

following directions

Walking home thinking alone

come in the door to my

shared room without hello

Pick up a book

lie down on my bed

to read my mind's adventures

Dinner nervous time

dad is intelligent stern aloof

mom sighs too often

Back to my room

to read in peace not even

wondering how many words

I have said

or not said this day

of invisibility