sky of mottled grey
snow flakes flying through the air
wind that hurts my face
Category Archives: poetry
It’s not about the distance
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You see my shoes,
and you think they might fit you.
You may even wrongly assume
that they had very little wear,
and you could walk much further than a mile.
But my treads are worn,
reduced to a thin layer of rubber,
marred by a life of experience.
Perhaps my shoes are similar to yours,
maybe even close to the same size,
but my shoes will not fit you,
as I expect yours would not feel comfortable on my feet.
This road has been mine to follow,
as your trail was carved out for you.
Conceivably, our winding paths have crossed on purpose,
but your journey is yours, as mine belongs to me.
And as much as you think my shoes will fit,
your feet were meant for your shoes
just as mine were meant for me.
I hope one day we will share a walk,
and our shoes will take many steps together.
And when that day comes,
I hope we walk much further than a mile.
I didn’t want to exhale
3 CommentsI missed you a lot yesterday.
Some days are so much worse.
Lots of funny little memories
flooded back and overwhelmed me.
I thought I could smell your perfume,
Lily of the Valley,
and though it was faint,
even in the earliest days of spring,
with no blossoms to be seen anywhere,
I knew it was you,
and I didn’t want to exhale.
And when the smell of Spearmint gum
overwhelmed my senses,
sometime later in the afternoon,
it was like sneaking into your purse again,
to get a piece of that very gum,
and I didn’t want to exhale.
Those smells keep us connected,
like two worlds coming together
if only for a brief moment.
And no matter how far away you may seem,
those lingering scents make me know that you are here,
standing close to me,
always here when I need you,
and I don’t ever want to exhale.
If you see me
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If you see my reflection,
if my eyes look at you from ethereal places,
know that I am by your side.
I don’t have to be near you
to be with you.
You see me,
at the moment you are in my thoughts,
in the precious seconds
I get to be closer to you.
Your reflection is in my heart.
It is in the air around me
and in the divine breath that lets me stay in this place.
If you see me,
it is because I never let go of you.
~~
Seventeen thousand, five hundred and forty four hours
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You left us in the early hours,
so peacefully your spirit would roam.
Through a gentle wind and the rising sun,
He called to take you home.
A ladder was built for your journey to light,
each rung meant to make you content.
While bathed in the glowing light of rebirth,
you gracefully began your ascent.
Loving arms awaited you there,
curling you into their embrace.
Heaven welcomed an angel back home,
rejoicing her love and her grace.
You leave behind your spirit and joy,
in those who loved you each day.
While our days will be saddened by the emptiness we feel,
we know we will see you again someday.
~
Jane Eleanore Nairn – May 21, 1940 – March 7, 2014
Him
14 Comments
He put his arm around my waist,
pulled me close,
and whispered the word ‘mine’.
I didn’t feel like an object,
I felt protected, loved.
Locked in his embrace,
I felt I was where I should be.
Unlike who I had been,
I let myself feel vulnerable.
I let him take control.
I let the strength of his embrace
assuage any fear I felt.
I just let him love me on his terms.
I curled into him,
and let everything else go.
Because, in that moment,
nothing else mattered.
Nothing but flowers
4 CommentsYou cried,
enduring pain for me,
loving me with never having met me
and I felt blessed.
You stood,
hands on your hips,
a whimsical smile on your face
and I felt anchored.
You embraced,
you wiped my tears,
you listened and never interrupted
and I felt understood.
You watched,
allowing me to make mistakes,
but always there to help me mend
and I felt empowered.
~
I cried
when you left me.
In a dream I saw you,
and watched you float.
You hovered,
our eyes met, you waved,
blew me a kiss
and fell into nothing but flowers.
The invisible sentinels
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In the wee, small hours of morning,
your concern makes my nerves fray.
Distance creates questions,
that hang in the air unanswered
facial expressions unable to be read,
worry unable to be alleviated.
If I could reach out,
touch your arm for the briefest second,
perhaps that contact would help.
It may ease my worry,
and just maybe it would let you know,
that you never have to face your fear alone.
There is an army behind you,
charging into battle with you,
always there, ready to fight.
I did not go gentle
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My love,
I did not go gentle into that good night.
I lingered on the precipice,
holding tight to the memories of the warmth of my days.
My life played like a movie before my eyes,
and it was beautiful.
I couldn’t bear to leave you.
I raged against that white light and held fast to you.
I walk in your footsteps and hear all the words I should have been able to listen to,
words that should have fallen on my ears while you were in my arms.
I float on the words you speak to me, words you are unsure I hear.
I am still with you.
I am the air that dries your tears.
I am the breeze that tickles the wind chimes you love so much.
The sound of your laughter makes me feel alive again.
I did not go gentle into that good night.
I chose to stay with you.
***
I cry a thousand tears
11 Comments
~~
A thousand tears have fallen
and saturated my face.
Keeping alive the memories
that time will never erase.
Salient thoughts burden my brain,
each with a life of their own,
keeping me close to my ardent emotion,
my sadness never far from home.
A rushing wave of sorrow,
an eclipse of what was good,
trying to find the buoy of happiness,
in the sea of misunderstood.
Embracing loss, moving on,
clinging to what I hold dear.
Knowing that the emotion I feel,
others keep just as near.
I cry a thousand tears,
knowing I am not alone,
and I hold tight to those who cry with me,
feeling that they are my home.
polysyllabic profundities 