They are pulled from me;
Stretched, knotted, and
Burned in a fireplace
Where trust and human emotions,
Are turned to blackened ash
I am left an empty roll.
The ribbons of my feelings,
Manhandled, manipulated
Mitigated, and misunderstood.
......
The harbingers are come. See, see their mark;
White is their colour, and behold my head.
But must they have my brain? must they dispark
Those sparkling notions, which therein were bred?
Must dulnesse turn me to a clod?
Yet have they left me, Thou art still my God.
Good men ye be, to leave me my best room,
Ev'n all my heart, and what is lodged there:
I passe not, I, what of the rest become,
......
Remember when Khrushchev said
"We will bury you!"
on the cover
of Time
I thought he was
employing a metaphor
as in "Braves Scalp Giants!"
on the back page
of the Daily News
I pictured the Russians
......
Grow old along with me!
The best is yet to be,
The last of life, for which the first was made:
Our times are in His hand
Who saith 'A whole I planned,
Youth shows but half; trust God: see all, nor be afraid!'
Not that, amassing flowers,
Youth sighed 'Which rose make ours,
Which lily leave and then as best recall?'
......
If I were tickled by the rub of love,
A rooking girl who stole me for her side,
Broke through her straws, breaking my bandaged string,
If the red tickle as the cattle calve
Still set to scratch a laughter from my lung,
I would not fear the apple nor the flood
Nor the bad blood of spring.
Shall it be male or female? say the cells,
And drop the plum like fire from the flesh.
......
They are pulled from me;
Stretched, knotted, and
Burned in a fireplace
Where trust and human emotions,
Are turned to blackened ash
I am left an empty roll.
The ribbons of my feelings,
Manhandled, manipulated
Mitigated, and misunderstood.
......
I built my house of wood and stone.
I built my house with sinew and bone.
I built it strong to withstand war,
but I put a welcome mat at my door.
I built it here near the sea,
so I can watch the ships sailing free.
And I built it with windows wide
to better understand the world outside.
From here you can feel the ocean breeze
and hear the songbirds singing in the trees.
......
A bird goes to a feeder
And finds it full of seeds
He seeks to grab a mouthful
Of the sustenance he needs
But to the bird's displeasure
The seeds are stale and old
Some spicy, moldy, soggy
Some too hot and some too cold
......
I was aspiring to be a professional dancer, which had long been my dream,
As rogue planets head out on their own, from the stars that reign supreme.
I was awash in unbounded enthusiasm, like yellow sunshine's fresh sheen,
Or premier, perennial days of springtime, the time all is budding and green.
But, despite my unfailing readiness, I had a likely insurmountable problem,
In the fact that my dancing was mediocre, artless to the beat of the drum.
Though this was somewhat discouraging, I continued practicing and trying,
......
Sunrise, the beginning of day, awakening of life
Bringing new light, creating a story
With that which can’t be bought
But only with cherish, tender and humble
The dispersal of seeds, a migration of life
Ever reaching, wanting growth
Like birds roaming the skies, longing, searching
The young forever seeking, hoping, wishing
......