Hunger

I eat sorrow,

your life, my

loss, settles

in the esophagus

I push with effort

You move on through

chest, diaphragm,

other,

Forced into lower

extremities, 

passing through

the ends of toes,

singeing

a molten liquid, returning

to ground

"ashes to ashes"

"dust to dust"

"ellecee"

Although opposite in character

this poem was inspired by 

Ezra Pound"s Poem - The Girl

"The tree has entered my hands,

The sap has ascended my arms,

The tree has grown in my breast -

Downward,

The branches grow out of me, like arms"

Written for 

Prompt Nights – Light is easy to love. Show me your darkness – [45]

Mrs. Folks

Diminutive woman

Reluctant mother

Widow

Forced through chaos

to awareness

Growing toward autonomy

Nineteenth century dignity

pitted against

twentieth century crass

Bridging the gap

Sometimes frightened

Often lonely

Branching out

Determined to do life well

Pioneer spirit

In her groove

"ellecee"

In memory of my Mother

Reposted for

Prompt Nights – Women are the real architects of Society – International Women’s Day Special 

A Memory

She has a memory of meals

prepared everyday

without fanfare

on an old wood burning stove

Kettle boiling, stew simmering,

scent of spice settling

Table laden with crockery, cutlery, 

tea pot, mugs, buns and butter,

and, alongside,

two chairs,

waiting

"Ellecee"

Posted for

Prompt Nights – It’s in an old kitchen that the best food is made – [43]

photo credit

Meetings

"You look young for your age"

he says and

She laughs out loud

and says

"not really"

and then he wonders

what she means and

he's not sure now

if they should meet

after all

but if he says so

what will his excuse be?

since he's been acting

so eager

and then she says

"are you there?"

and he says

"Yeah

how about the Sylvia

on Sunday

at three"

"ellecee"

Written as a bit of fun for

Prompt Nights – Come chase oh fleeting thoughts of the moment – [42]

Image Credit

Awakening

Tenderness is a lie,

compassion folly,

intimacy a pretender

stealing the night

creating fantasies

dreams with rude

awakening

 

One day all will be lost

secrets revealed

sorrow

awakening

 

I don't believe her

I am beyond doubt

I know his tenderness

is true

His compassion

Our intimacies

that steal the night

our dreams

joy

 

awakening

 

 

 

"ellecee"

 

 

 

Written for

Prompt Nights – Love’s a night-song sweet sung by the tender strokes of wind – Valentine’s Day Special

 



Up in the Morning

"Up in the morning's no for me

up in the morning early"

If I'm disturbed before 'tis noon

you're sure to find me surly

I am nocturnal in my soul

don't miss the sun arising

I spend my eves with muse and pen

which isn't so surprising

I love to sit and watch the stars

the constellations shining

I lose myself in thoughts of love

for which my heart is pining

So leave me to  my late night play

no "up in the morning early"

If I'm disturbed before 'tis noon

You're sure to find me surly

'Ellecee"

Inspired by the poem

Up in the Morning Early - Robert Burns

and written for

Prompt Nights – Writing is both mask and unveiling. (Battle of the Bards) – [40]

.

Cast a Light

Withdrawing, withdrawing,

desiring respite in seclusion

Days drifting, drifting, drifting on

all of life a pitiful illusion

Thinking, thinking, thinking, dark ‘til dawn

Seeming sudden, shadows cast a light

that only poignant dreaming could ignite

“it is never, ever, to late to mend”

even as a journey nears its end

"ellecee"

In response to

Prompt Nights – Belief is the ignition switch that gets you off the launching pad – [39]

Aging

Oh, the play and all the staging

set for aging, aging, aging

Director to the actors paging

come forth on stage and do your part

enable life to create art

Oh, the play and all the staging

set for aging, aging, aging

thin of hair and memory fading

frail of limb, body degrading

Oh, the play and all the staging

set for aging, aging, aging

Thoughts of life with some dejection

not ready soon for more reflection

Oh, the play and all the staging

set for aging, aging, aging

Not to be spared the day of reckoning

I fear the reapers call comes

beckoning, beckoning,

Oh, life's play and all its staging

set for aging

aging

aging

Ellecee

In response to

On Popular Demand – Glimpse into the world of Edgar Allan Poe – [11]

Inspired by Edgar Allan Poe's poem The Bells

Photo Credit

Destiny

In a heartbeat life changes
clouds  roll in and showers fall
a child is struck by a car
someone wins a lottery
love appears, disappears,
we seem so lost
and found

In a heartbeat the world changes
Earthquakes come and leave their mark
rain forests die,
we weep
A new Pacific island rises from the sea
we walk together
seeing

In a heartbeat she changes
the good things become bad
then the bad things become good
She anticipates a warmer world
then finds it remains the same
again

In a heartbeat we are renewed
though issues remain the same
we accept
and like the phoenix
we rise again,
move forward,
meet our destiny
unarmed




Ellecee


Written for
Prompt Nights – Attitudes are contagious, is yours worth catching – [38]

Arrive On Time

Arrive on time

"To celebrate the waking, wake" (Rukeyser)

Don't miss the orchestra

The song

The sentence

The longing 

Love unrequited

Found

Shared

Dispersed 

Family

Children

Losing

Listening

Longing

The dance

The sun

The storm

The funeral 

Arrive on time

Ellecee

Written for Prompt Night

-tomorrow-when-the-sun-will-rise-who-knows-what-the-tide-could-bring-one-year-celebration--

Cold

It's so cold outside. My fingers are tingling even with woolen gloves on. In spite of this I want to be here, walking. My dog rushes ahead of me sniffing at every track in the snow. Hoping for prey. What would she do if she caught something, I wonder. The trees are talking to me, groaning and snapping even though there is little wind. Perhaps it's from the frost. The snow is soft and billows up around my feet like a heavy mist. The dog pushes her nose through a drift for the thrill of it. I hold my camera steady and take a picture as the dog waits for me on the next hill.

It's a long way home

The snow covers our tracks now

The dog watches me

Reposted for 

Prompt Nights – Winter my dear would be cold without warm memories – [37]

I've chosen the cold without the memories, but the haibun in itself is a memory

so perhaps that will count :-)

Cool

Cool, cool

rush of pain

a red haze in darkness

shadows passing

returning

a song

the ticking of a clock

church bell

memories

cool, cool

rush of wind

pause

wait

there again

whispers

never understood

cool, cool

shadows clinging

leaves rustling

arms encircling

cool, cool

day of the dead

final reckoning

"ellecee"

Written for

Prompt Nights – A Million Years Howl When Voices Whisper Among The Trees – Halloween Special [33]

Gone Again

The summer angst is over. What would flower has bloomed; what would be eaten

has been consumed. Cabin dwellers and woodland creatures all happy in their own way. The leaves are magnificent in their dying. The  air crisp as temperatures fall. Gardens are bedded down with a layer of mulch, and bulbs buried to sleep until a new Spring’s blooming. She sits and admires it all, is grateful for all, is faith-filled again, for another season.

Flowers have grown old

Falling petals making mulch

Her pathway follows

"ellecee"

Written for

Prompt Nights – Crunching, Crinkling Autumn swirling in the Breeze – [30]

Invisible

Who left her there?
In a country where
everyone speaks her language
but not to her
Invisible in the crowd
of the living
Against her will
her children suffer
Tears are not a cure
Frustration reigns amid
the chaos left by her
failure to reach out
"They" cannot offer solace
without knowledge
of need
Diagnosis
death



"Ellecee"





Written for Promp Night
When Shades of loss weave with pattern of madness

Routes

To a stranger

she appears lost

seen struggling through

the dense underbrush of

their perceived doubt

she seems confused

out in the open

away from the protection

of supporting friends

she is vulnerable

so they thought

but unknown to them

she has a map

her course is clearly marked

a crooked line highlighted

with a black pen

her destination marked

with a red star

"ellecee"

Reposted for

Prompt Nights – To travel is to take a journey into Yourself – [28]

The Picture

Photo Credit

I see him now

his face an image on the page

this incident which moves us

to yet another stage

of knowing who we are,

no secrets anymore,

thus revealed to me the packaging

of the man I would adore

This man whose gaze directs

itself at me

    in forthright manner just as he

     would be

     In all our interaction large or small

     and all incidents to date

     I can recall

     I move to him somewhat subdued

     He is revealed to me in every mood

     In reality, not fantasy, I am now set

     and thus allow myself not one regret.

     With faith and fortitude we will progress

     and live this story line with smiles

     and much finesse

     with joy and laughter, tears and fun

     we will move together through this run.

"Ellecee"

Written for:

Prompt Nights – A photograph is but a memory in raw format

Note: This is an old poem and I couldn't find the photo it is

describing. But this handsome gentleman will do  :-)