Category Archives: Poem

“Ebb Tide” for The Sunday Whirl, Aug 11, 2024

 

Ebb Tide

As we approach that vast alone,
those things for which we must atone
silently invade our world,
as all our secrets come unfurled.
Unable then, to face their ache,
in the darkness we lie awake,
unable even now to leap
into that river dark and deep
that will, at last, sweep us away
into that  most novel fray
from which this time we won’t return,
no matter how our hearts may churn
to give ourselves another chance
to recompense each circumstance
where we feel that we went along
with events that went so wrong.
But, alas, it’s now too late
to change those choices that sealed our fate.

 

The Sunday Whirl prompts today are: vast alone silently novel wake unable secrets world river darkness face ache

“Directionless” for SOCS, Aug 10, 2024

Directionless

I’m shipping out for northern climes, not knowing what to pack.
Am I leaving here for good or am I coming back?
One thing pulls me northwards and another bids me stay.
I really do not know what I desire from day to day.
Some call me indecisive while others call me weak
just because I do not know what it is I seek.
I need someone to point me in the right direction
since I seem unable to make my own selection.

 

For Stream Of Consciousness Saturday: Ship

Campfire, For The Sunday Whirl Wordle 666

 

Campfire

As we gather in the gloaming to shed the day’s despair,
the flickering wings of firelight heat up the evening air.
Good omens dispel shadows and chase away the dark
as the laughter of our comrades drowns out the wild beast’s bark.
In this camaraderie—friendship’s surrounding bubble,
thoughts of ghosts and demons are unfathomable.
At the end of day, this gathering’s a cunning
way to celebrate the end of a day of sunning.
Cool night soothes sunburned skin, providing us the balm
of release from labor and a welcome to the calm
arms of night that furnishes a cradle to the day
and a time to tuck its problems all away,
first in conversation with those who love us most,
and then in sleep, that afterwards is our loving host.

An ominous number breeds ominous words! The Word prompts for Wordle 666 are: demons, wings, flickering, heat, omen, dark, end, cunning, shadows, unfathomable, gloaming, despair. I have tried to try to counter their obvious intent  in my poem.

Here is some information about how the number 666 came to be the “number of the beast.”

*The number 666 is identified as the Number of the Beast (Satan) as mentioned in the Book of Revelation (13:15–18).

*An interesting sideline to the number 666 is this: “On Friday, the Dow Jones industrial average plummeted 666 points. And while that news might be disturbing in a financial way, to people with an interest in, say, money and American markets, that fact was overshadowed on Twitter by the shadow of the beast, the Lord of the Underworld, the Devil himself. Because, you know, 666 is the mark of the beast, which, no big deal, identifies followers of the Antichrist.”
— Lizzy Acker, OregonLive.com, 2 Feb. 2018

*And this: “Preterist theologians typically support the interpretation that 666 is the numerical equivalent of the name and title Nero Caesar (Roman Emperor 54–68 AD). Written in Aramaic, this can be valued at 666 using the Hebrew numerology of gematria, and was used to secretly speak against the emperor.”

So, in writing this poem, I’ve tried to turn 666 on its head and to transform it into 999. If you Google that number, this is what you will find:

  • Angel number

    In numerology, 999 is a repeating number that some say is a sign from the universe, ancestors, or spirit guides. It can symbolize completion and new beginnings, and can have different meanings depending on the area of life it’s applied to:

    • Relationships: Old loves may reappear, but the romance may be ill-fated. It can also mean bringing closure to relationships and making way for new opportunities.
    • Career: It can signal a crossroads professionally, with new job opportunities or projects in your current workplace. It can also mean accepting the outcome, whatever it may be.
    • General: It can mean trusting the process of how your life is shaping out, and not getting caught up in drama. It can also be a reminder to connect with your higher self and explore your spiritual journey more deeply.

    The photo is actually a photo I took of a campfire where friends met to share music and poetry. I have always wondered if the shape of the fire at this point didn’t spell out a word in Hebrew or some other unknown (to me) language. What do you see in the flame?

 

The Ballad of Poor Molly, for SOCS, Aug 2, 2024

The Ballad of Poor Molly

Poor Molly Smith was lonely sure on every weekend night.
No lover had she to insure an end to her sad plight.
She’d read of match.com and then eHarmony and others.
No more would she be chickless hen if she could have her druthers.
She took her keyboard in her hand to find a true love there,
for sparsely was the household manned of this poor maiden fair.
She put her name upon a site and waited for some word.
A day went by and then a night, but nothing had she heard.

Her profile words were erudite, written with such care.
Everything was done just right, yet no man found she there.
She started blogging all day long, “liked” members’ every word;
but still something was very wrong. She found it all absurd.
Other women found true love on OkCupid, but
no pierced heart, no cooing dove released her from her rut.
She sought her profile to imbue and stretched the truth, I fear.
Her hair turned blonde, her bust size grew, her beauty knew no peer.

She found a picture of some tart both sexy, tanned and toned.
Perhaps it wasn’t really smart, but soon a suitor phoned.
They made a date to meet for drinks, then she began to worry.
Her hair had all these ugly kinks, her upper lip was furry.
Her height was five-foot-four, not eight, her dress size twelve, not six.
How could she show up for this date? Poor Mol was in a fix.
She read his profile once again: handsome, rich and funny.
She felt a surge of pure chagrin. He’d humor, looks and money?

She printed up his profile pic and pinned it to her couch.
His skin was bronzed, his muscles thick, while she was flabby. Ouch!
She took a bottle to her hair and died it light as flax,
bought heels as high as she could dare and tummy-control slacks.
She ran three miles or more that day (or she more likely walked);
and thought about what she would say If her new suitor balked.
Could medication swell one out for twenty pounds or more?
Would he accept without a doubt this apologetic lore?

The time grew short. She bathed and fussed and straightened out her hair.
Her body girdled, squeezed and trussed––to sit she didn’t dare.
She’d take a bus and spend the ride standing in the aisle.
The acid churning her inside was turning into bile.
She grabbed her purse and locked the door and sprinted for the bus.
Her girdle crawled an inch or more. It made her want to cuss.
She tugged it down, got on the bus and tried to stand erect.
One way out of all this muss would be to have a wreck!

The driver drove with extra care to take her to her meal.
Yet when she wobbled down the stair, she broke one three-inch heel.
By then her hair had kinked again, her girdle slowly rose.
She had peroxide on her chin and also on her nose.
She almost left, gave in to doubt; but then she stopped to think.
Her curiosity won out. She’d stay for just one drink.
She saw him just as soon as she had entered in the door.
He was tall and golly, gee, was handsome, fit and more!

She ducked into the ladies room to tame her crazy hair
and contemplate upcoming doom. What an unlikely pair!
Then gathered all her courage up and went to meet her fate.
She’d have a drink, forget the sup and end this nightmare date.
She walked right up and tapped his arm and said his name,”Dupree?”
And when he turned, his look was warm, but he said, “That isn’t me.”
She felt a touch upon her hair and turned to find out who
or what had deigned to touch her where she’d recently changed hue.

A little man about her height, really cute, but chubby, too,
was chuckling with all his might and looking at her shoe.
“What in heaven happened to you?” he asked, and then he snatched
and snapped the heel right off her shoe so both of her heels matched.
“My name’s Dupree,” he said, “You’re you. I’d know you anywhere.
You’re tall and slim, your eyes are blue, your hair is straight and fair.
I hope you’re not too mad at my prevaricating way.
I’m really not too bad a guy no matter what they say.

I know I stretched the truth a bit. Not all I say is true,
but how else would I find a fit with such a babe as you?”
She went into the ladies room and slipped out of her girdle.
The date foreseen with dread and gloom was not the foretold hurdle.
They ate four courses, then one more. They laughed and traded quips.
He drove her home right to her door and kissed her on the lips!
Now Molly’s nest is feathered. Of chicks, she numbers three.
And Dupree is firmly tethered with Molly on his knee.

 

For SOCS prompt: Poor

“I Used to Eat Red” For RDP, “Whistle.”

                                                                  I Used to Eat Red

daily life color108 (1)My sister Patti and I, posed by my older sister Betty.  Those are “the” cherry trees behind us. The fact that we were wearing dresses suggests we were just home from Sunday school and church, our souls bleached as white as our shoes and socks!

 I used to eat red
from backyard cherry trees,
weave yellow dandelions
into cowgirl ropes
to lariat my Cheyenne uncle.

I once watched dull writhing gold
snatched from a haystack by its tail,
held by a work boot
and stilled by the pitchfork of my dad
who cut me rattles while I didn’t watch.

I felt white muslin bleached into my soul
on Sunday mornings in a hard rear pew,
God in my pinafore pocket
with a picture of Jesus
won from memorizing psalms.

But it was black I heard at midnight from my upstairs window––
the low of cattle from the stock pens

on the other side of town––
the long and lonely whine of diesels on the road
to the furthest countries of my mind.

Where I would walk
burnt sienna pathways
to hear green birds sing a jungle song,
gray gulls call an ocean song,
peacocks cry the moon

until I woke to shade-sliced yellow,
mourning doves still crooning midnight songs of Persia
as I heard morning
whistled from a meadowlark
half a block away.

And then,
my white soul in my shorts pocket,
plunging down the stairs to my backyard,
I used to eat red,
pick dandelions yellow.

 (This is a reworking of a poem from my book Prairie Moths.) 

For RDP Whistle

For MVB, July 31, 2024

Abandoned

Shack+Pump3.jpgPhoto Credit: D. Hammock

                             Abandoned 

Grass sways by the abandoned house
I cower inside––a trembling mouse
exposed to the bright flash of day
when all else has gone away.

First my father, then my mum
go away and never come
again to shelter, feed or love.
Life is a winging mourning dove

that makes us and then flies away,
making green grass into hay,
the flush of life and then decay,
a harsh light turning shadows gray.

Life swells  like paint–a curling blister.
It peels away my older sister,
then also takes my younger brother
and never comes to bring another.

A shadow passes over me.
A sparrowhawk. I dare not flee,
for life is mainly perilous.
It makes us just to feed on us.

Outside I see the preening cat.
It waits for me––patient and fat
in tall grass by the abandoned house
wherein I hide–a trembling mouse.

 

The MVB prompt for today is Abandoned. (This is a repost of a poem  I wrote years ago.)

Double Reversal, For the Sunday Whirl Wordle 665

 

Double Reversal

The silhouettes of leafless branches of the jacaranda tree
sketched by the sun upon the surface of the wall
recall the windswept tangle of your hair.

Call back the edges of memories long buried in a deep back room.
Stolen kisses made illicit by your ex’s change of mind.
Senseless posturings and  unsuccessful reversals.

Finally coming back to what we were before.
You were the prize hard fought for,
and I, the inevitable ending.

 

For the Sunday Whirl Wordle 665, the prompt words are:  tangle surface call back deep room kisses edge sense sketches silhouette windswept

Sticking to the Straight and Narrow, for FOWC, July 28, 2024

Sticking to the Straight and Narrow


Sticking to the Straight and Narrow

(Mother Superior’s Rejoinder)

Please do not lollygag. There’s no time more.
We’re closing the shutters and locking the door.
Wipe those dreams from your brain, for it is our fear
that your thoughts will diverge from the prim and austere.
Make sure your spirit is pearl white and pure
with no sinful streaks to compete with demure.
Deadly sins number from one up to seven,
and striated souls will not make it to heaven.

This is one of my favorite photos, taken at the Shrine of the Virgin of Guadalupe in Mexico City. I love the one nun on the left, turned around to look back, plus the one with her arms crossed in back. I should perhaps crop it a bit on the right. Will next time I use it.

 

For FOWC, Narrow

 

At the Olympics Awards Ceremony (For RDP)

IMG_3700 (1)jdbphoto

At the Olympics Awards Ceremony

You are the one we’d love to beat.
We train, we strain, we sweat. We cheat.
Anything to win the heat
and gain the glory of your defeat.
You are so handsome, fit and neat.
Sure of hand and swift of feet,
with fame and glory, you are replete—
the hero of each match and meet.

You are not boastful, do not bleat
your successes down every street.
You are humble and discreet.
You do not replay and repeat
each mile covered. Nor do you greet
those you’ve defeated when we meet
with prideful leer or smile cloying—
but still, we find your fame annoying.

You win each medal, then repeat
year after year at every meet.
Your well-toned muscles, hair like wheat,
make you every lady’s treat––
propel you to the winner’s seat,
your win made obvious and concrete
while those below complain and cuss.
Could you not leave some fame for us???

For RDP, The Olympics

Truth of the Matter for The Three Things Challenge, July 26, 2024

We found all sorts of hidey holes in the front yard.

Is Mom watching? Oops. I’ll just hide again.

Truth of the Matter

Shy Creeps,
Sly Lurks

Shy, Creep and Lurk were the words for the Three Things Challenge today.