a galaxy of queries
drizzle down her nose
rainbow nigh imperceptibly
beyond sun’s flimsy filterings
responses kaleidoscope
diamond sharp
razor glittering
drop crystalline in place
artistry in perfect pictures
until the slightest shift
hint of flick in the wrist
nod to a blink of eye
rough- hewn or whispered mis-perception
tumble resolutions hurly-burly
burlesque Crayola mish-mash
showering puzzles meteoric
upon shoulders
yoked with perplexity
mama robin’s scolding
bold, protective and persistent
removed, a flight, from nestlings
tweets universal maternal quandary
how close is close enough
supportive and unsmothering
what distance is sufficient
grants independent flight
observant of their liftoff
glides with watchful winging
she warms them from her core
downy with fine-tuned essence
nudges them aloft
despite timid trebling
warbling with temerity
overcoating apprehension
fledglings falter woozily
soar dizzy-heighted, heedless
of foes or feinting hazards
mama maintains her perch
alert and vocal sentry
awaits their safe return
come walk with me
on the dunes
could you,
would you dare?
no stroll here
for fainthearted
I am chockfull of resolve
in nearly every weather
bursting with conviction
I toe barely any lines
this excursion a mission
exercise in self-determination
each climb scaled
a peak in confidence
every descent a milestone
I hope you will accompany me
I’d love the company
though my pace
may not proclaim it
I keep on charging onward
while feet slow, sink-sliding
scaling sandy heights
silent crowing on each crown
short of breath
and stubborn-striding
I never pause for long
you may wish to reconsider
if you join me on this trek
my quest may be misguided
or leave us both a wreck
windswept dogged footfalls
falter, stagger on
persistence swells undaunted
in search of hard-fought shores
I am fierce, goal-driven
or are my demons driving
this hardscrabble pursuit
the grit between my teeth
rubbing among my toes
echoes that of spirit
surviving deep travails
I would imagine
you slow, skeptical
of the wisdom of this journey
I can’t blame you
in the least, as I
don’t know how to saunter, yet
I would love your company
if you would walk with me
(photo:mine)
she hitched a ride
on a moonbeam
it knocked upon her wishes
in silent shimmering summons
promising exotic adventure
if she but climbed aboard
she acquiesced, instinct akimbo
sung in somnolent nodding
threading wistful fingers
through diaphanous tendrils
she clambered silken
evanescent rungs
woven mythological
and heaved herself on deck
denuded of earthly woes
she floated weight- and effort-less
nestled among silvery strands
traversing sea-studded starscapes
shining in unison
she soaked in heavenly whirlpool
oiled of Astraeal balms
sipping enchanted elixir
dusted with glittering brilliance
she drifted on her moonbeam
wafting o’er Elysium
gathering infusions of stardust
for future potent potions
she absorbed ancient secrets
of all heavenly bodies
draped across her
warm and glistening
ethereally satin sheened
as she fluttered
sated, homeward
she sprinkled cerulean moondust
upon all hearts wounded or sore
in the darkest days
she disbelieved
in the possibility of smiles
that future laughs
would shake her ribs
take her breath away
nor would she permit
the notion that she should
break the shackles
binding her to guilt’s
ball and chain
she had doubted
in the potential reconstruction
of a life beyond existence
worthy of enthusiasm
energy or zest
in those days of torment
she had disavowed the promise
thrust at her, in good faith
that bonds torn and frayed
could, in time
with patient perseverance
be re-knit in colors vibrant
incorporating her
where once she was ripped out
today she laughed
spontaneous, authentic
while dancing barefoot in the grass
to son’s retro music mix
today she was true mother
to moments of meltdown
steady at the ready
cherished role returned
in moments interwoven
unmarked, unplanned
unannounced
she lays a few more bricks
in her own reconstruction
(artist: unknown)
let’s go for a stroll
on the beach
a seashell hunting wander
rays will toast our shoulders
waves waylay sandy feet
we feel no need for conversation
this sultry afternoon
I hunt rainbows in fragments
shining, in ripples underneath
surf crests unpredictably
while fingers are hungrily hunting
knocks me off my feet
spray drenches face and eyes
you help me aright
eyes crinkled in playful laughter
as another swell ambushes
tugs bikini askew
giggling erupts anew
we’ll hush in solemn study
of sandpipers’ scurry
focused, as my camera
on impressive zig-zag flurry
in dart and dash and scuttle
leave scant footprints
bright breasted memory imprint
we’ll ramble along the shoreline
across the afternoon
drizzled in amber rays
refreshed with blue-limned breezes
as the sun descends
stretching scarlet starbursts
toward horizon
sky and water merge
in pomegranate amethyst finale
we amble home, contented
your pockets overflowing
as our senses, loaded
with collected bits
of priceless treasure
vacationing with ghosts
packs apprehension in her luggage
specters of years shared
memories made
moments tasted
linger in the back of her throat
as she swallows melancholy
apparitions of her beloved
shadow every room
stroll in tandem
down windy country roads
sunbathe beside her
lakeside, longing
they drift among the hours
lazy and relaxed
haunting lackadaisically
ever-present reminders
of love lost, never forgotten
phantom remembrances
hover, visions evergreen
sunsetting in mauve
water, in its depths
holds mysteries of eons
secreted stories shipwrecked
ages of allegories in algae
yet retains no resentments
trees, branched and leafed
conceal ringing tales
of history and seasons
drought, flood or plenty
yet seal no future fates
birds, feathered emissaries
carry generational geolocation
wing thousands of miles
to nesting grounds unknown
yet fly without animus
in nature’s timeless cycles
survival o’er centuries
bequeaths wisdom unfettered
hearts, though gravely hobbled
soar upward after all
waves lap gently
smoothing shoreline
and disquietude
with familiar kisses
swooshing placid rhythms
assiduously soothe
calloused trouble-layers
as sand does weary feet
pensive breezes
flutter nostalgia
in ultramarine waves
refresh fatigued spirits
practiced intimate demonstrations
mimic a long lost lover’s
mollifying caresses
she had languished
nearly submerged
semi-conscious
in the skin-pruning depths
of the deepest dank well
clinging with full tenacity
achieving uprightness
in incremental measure
nostrils hovering
barely clearing
oily-scummed surface
in fits and starts
she slithered and clawed
wedging toes
scrabbling fingertips
ignoring the slough of dermis
fighting swamping suck
of shame
that feeds night creatures
from her putrified detritus
quivering in exertion
infinitesimal rising
climb, arduous and wearying
beneath shredded digits
stoned grips dry
slime drips off
truth stretches her limbs
stench thins
diluting its nasal infiltration
above, the rocky lip
backlit tantalizing
beckoning daylight
zenith surfaces, as does she
(image: Wikipedia, artist Jean Leon-Gerome)
Arisen from the Conflagraton 