Poem #6

Eleven Ways Of Looking At Me

I used to imitate

I used to fear

I used to bend in body and spirit

I don’t do any of those now

Not anymore

 Staring at the ceiling in the dark

Cringing at the sound of the woodpecker

Tapping out a midnight rhythm

Keeping me away from sleep

Simple music on the piano

They say practice makes perfect

But they don’t say how much

I imagine seven hundred wonders of the world

Or seven hundred thousand

Do you?

Why does the sun rise every morning?

Surely it would stop

The world would not go on

If one day I woke up

With salt on my face

Clouds in the sky waver

Pouring water into the lake

Ripples on its mirrored surface

I am afraid to make ripples on the pond

But I do

When no one is looking

Indecision

And inconsistency

Two blotches on my unfinished page

 Do the others see every day as a painting?

Do they know that somewhere, right now, someone is happy?

 There is a golden box deep inside of me

Someday it will open

And I will know myself

 Am I better off now?

I can’t erase anything I’ve done

Can I?

Will it be different at the end?

Is there still time to be forgiven?

A Poem I Have Written # 5

Cold Showers

Oh, showers of the frigid cold

I loathe you so

Your waters feel like ice

Rushing over paper-delicate skin

You, icy Arctic showers

You and you alone

Leave me shivering

When I could be toasty warm

Why can’t you be

 At least a little warmer

Stemming from the hot water tank

Even lukewarm would be an improvement

No other freezing waters

Are nearly quite so-- cold

As you

And you alone

A Poem I Have Written #4

Wrinkles of an Elephant

an unnatural line

of heavy gray stones

craggy rock

sprouting from the cold cement

firm and unmoving

enormous

yet friendly

those gentle, gentle giants

the elephants of landscaping

solid in their entirety

worn smoother

by countless raindrops

pounding and weathering

into bulky curves

yet still with miniscule wrinkles

the wrinkles of an elephant

Image credits: http://goafrica.about.com/od/africanwildlife/ss/The-Big-5-Images-Facts-And-Information-About-Africas-Big-Five_2.htm

A Poem I Have Written #3

Waiting

Fourteen family members

Aged from 1 to 88

Sweating

In the sweltering Michigan weather

Nibbling

Greasy leftover fried chicken

For breakfast,

All other food gone

Waiting

For a short trip to the Detroit airport

Or a long drive down to Ohio

More family visits

Snapping

Pictures of the baby

Memories to keep in their pockets

Watching

Cheesy children’s movies

Crammed together on an ancient leather couch

Saturated with the sweat

Of countless unkempt children

Chattering away

Aimlessly

Voices merging with the noise of a solitary fan

The baby

Rolling around with the small, floppy-haired dog

Wandering

And waiting

A Poem I Have Written #2

I Am From

I am from tall evergreen trees

Reaching for the sky

Littering their branches on the cement

I am from the “normal houses”

That border the elaborate hedges

And sculpted birdbaths

Of Inverness

I am from winding roads

Hidden bike trails

A forest inside North Seattle

I am from the gentle waves

Of Lake Washington

Lapping at shell-stained shores

I am from the great outdoors

I am from crystals

Snowflakes covering a hillside

I’d rather be skiing

I am from water

Sprays of bubbles

And laughter

Jewels of color

Moments caught in time

Flattened into photographs

Memories of me

I am from eyes the color of the ocean

Blond hair waving in the wind

Waves crashing on rocks

Dancing

Image credits:  http://myretirementchronicles.blogspot.com/2010/11/big-splashes.html

A Poem I Have Written #1

Longing

the pond

shimmering with the colors of the rainbow

  rimmed with cushioned grass

that shines wet and green with dew

a skipping rock

a splash

 parts the waters

crystal clear

down to the sculptured sand beneath

perfection in itself

a ripple escapes

whispering into the wind

longing

for something more

Image credits: http://twowomenblogging.blogspot.com/2011/11/ripples-by-jay.html