Wednesday, 1 May 2013

Poetry from Literary Focus


Predicament

you said it at supper
over macaroni and cheese
“We have a predicament, Dad.”
“That means problem,”
your sister chimed in
(always my teachers as much as my students)
“We love staying and playing with Mom,
and Kindergarten rocks,
but we can’t do both.”
“Yeah, that’s a predicament, Dad.”

“Cute,” I thought. “That’s sweet.”
and the moment slipped away
until now--

It’s your birthday
--can you be five already!--
and I watch you
blow out candles and
the past five years.
You open gifts and
your eyes twinkle
with a future full of reading,
swimming, and two-wheelers.
I see little big girls, and it’s
a predicament
a problem

I treasure our past.
I see a brimming future.
Can’t I have both?

Yes!
In the moment, yes.
Together, on your birthday
we embrace today.
What a present!

21 comments:

  1. Hope
    Third straight day
    Tears fall from face
    Heart in two
    Because of you
    You were my life
    Why did you leave?
    Believed we had everything
    Love that others wanted
    Beneath these stars I stand-alone
    First time thinking about me not we

    ReplyDelete
  2. Pigtails and Velcro Shoes:

    Smacking lips and licking fingers,
    Moving closer under the mid-day sun.
    The taste of peanut butter on lips still lingers
    Feelings his breath as he whispers ‘Hun’.

    I clutch the dandelion close to my heart
    As we swing back and forth.
    Though the petals may fall apart,
    Love’s promise stays strong henceforth.

    Muddy roads and troubling times,
    Our love will withstand any storm.
    The recess bell brightly jingles its chimes,
    Ignorant bliss did misinform.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. best poem ever your going to be famous

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  3. Loneliness, Lovebugs and Morphine

    He wanders down the halls.
    I didn't know before,
    but he's looking for a patient,
    to save and drag to shore.

    He keys in on her loneliness.
    Now blankets her with "nice".
    But soon he'll put her under
    to snare her life inside a vice.

    He addicts her with his morphine,
    through an I.V. in her heart,
    And waits quiet by her bedside,
    as she lays there in the dark.

    Friends start to come with flowers,
    and she feebly accepts,
    but the doctor's at the back door,
    and he leaves with no regrets.

    And in his hand, the morphine.
    And in his heart, a stone.
    He doesn't see who he is leaving.
    He just sees how much she's grown.

    He thinks she's gone and made it,
    that he had helped her through.
    But she's blind without the doctor,
    who starts his search for someone new.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. ooh i like this one :D

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    2. I like this one too!!!! GOOD JOB! :)

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    3. Thanks! It was fun to write. I'd like to know what you guys think this poem is about! Does it mean something different than what it says in your opinion?

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  4. The stares we'd get from others
    As we laughed loudly in the store
    The way your blue hair glistened
    That summer of 2004
    Those crazy hospital visits
    Where we got told to quiet down
    When you beat cancer the first time
    Your blue hair came back brown.
    We made the best of everyday
    Just two kids having fun
    Little did we know that
    this battle was not done.

    2007, you stayed in bed
    Grades, and boys didn't cross your mind.
    For twelve years old you went through tons
    if only we could rewind.
    But summer of 2008
    the fight came to an end
    she said goodbye to a world
    that stole the kid out of my friend.

    I still play back the memories
    they're always in my head,
    I do not feel alone no more
    you are with me till the end.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. This is so amazing! Such a nice flow-y feel to the entire thing. You chose great words and descriptions to make it feel like I (the reader) was there with MY friend with blue hair. I really like this poem. Great job!

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    2. oh hey thanks so much

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  5. Envy Rains


    Fresh and sweet, ahh... the smell of rain
    Sun shinning through each drop
    Bringing hope and life

    Such a shame just to watch the rain
    Deprived and cut off
    Desiring to eat it
    Thirsting for its freshness
    Yearning to bring nourishment, life, and joy

    If only I could capture this moment
    This smell
    in a bottle
    Sent from my iPad

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Favourite stanza is stanza two! Love your choice of words! Shame, Deprived, Desiring, Thirsting, etc. Great choices! Good poem :)

      Delete
  6. The 1st Time

    Mother's Day;
    long ago,
    silly minds
    and children's play

    A game of house
    turned into tag;
    And a shout of joy
    to a dog after a mouse.

    Light blue eyes,
    a simple hello;
    catching glances
    I felt like a spy.

    I never thought
    the would fly;
    Or I might call you mine.
    I never thought I would be caught.

    ReplyDelete
  7. Is This As Good As it Gets?

    Is this as good as it gets?
    Heartbreaks
    fake friends
    rumors spread.

    Is this as good as it gets?
    Homework
    minimum wage
    social life?

    Is this as good as it gets?
    Cold hearts
    warm intentions,
    failed attempts.

    Love, lasting friends, secrets kept.
    Less stress, good job, late night with friends.
    Heart to hearts, follow through, success.

    It may not be that good yet,
    but that's about as good as it gets.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. This is one of my favourites! It's very awesome!
      From Jenna... (to lazy to make an account)

      Delete
  8. That day in September

    Early Septmeber,
    not to hot
    not to cold,
    The days I don't want to remember.

    Trampoline springs;
    falling and rising
    As I bounce.
    What of these things?

    Then that dreaded fence;
    skipping ropes,
    and plastic buckets,
    You were my defence.

    Never thought it was a fling;
    random words
    and wasted time.
    I never thought it could bring;

    Wild white snow;
    cold long nights,
    lonely thoughts of lonely minds.
    The things I did not know.

    ReplyDelete
  9. Melancholia

    A perfect blend,
    of water, salt, and emotional proteins
    whisper down cheeks.
    Bloodshot eyes and
    lashes black in tears.

    Nodding my head down,
    so people can't see me crying.
    But inside, I pray they will.

    Bolting from rooms
    filled with people and claustrophobia.
    I bawl
    and snot.

    Screaming down the highway.
    Wailing to God.
    With smudged vision.

    Grasping sense and comfort
    in Tupperware packed with white rice,
    butter melting in rivers and salt brightening each bite.

    Curled in a blanket-cave,
    Leaking tears on a pillow.
    Clutching a "happysad" book.

    Sometimes it's best if I laugh,
    people pop jokes
    and I laugh and splutter.
    Sometimes I need to run away
    and scream in my own head for a little while.
    Throw a desk against a wall with magic strength.
    Somedays it's right when
    I'm held tight against the heart of a friend.
    And they whisper gentle words
    that sail to my ears and tickle my hair
    while I let them hold me still.

    But no one gets it right,
    it's hard to talk when your lungs
    are full of tight aching sorrow.
    People stand on one foot, and
    squirm a little closer than they really want to.
    They are nearby,
    but not close enough for them to touch my hand
    and too close for me to be able to edge away.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Wow! I mean...wow! So much good stuff in this.

      Delete
  10. The Rain.

    As the rain falls I walk alone.
    The streets transform from dry to wet.
    And I walk.
    The droplets hitting me like missiles from an unknown army determined to keep me gloom.
    And I walk.
    The drops of water reminding me of my dreams falling to nothing.
    And I walk.
    The water seeping in through my old shoes tingling my feet with its icy touch.
    And I walk.
    To my desolate home where I watch the rain all alone.

    ReplyDelete
  11. June 24,2013

    The day we put on the cap and
    gown and walk across that stage
    is also the day that we walk
    out of childhood and into
    adulthood.

    13 years of education and now it is
    time to further our minds and
    experience the world around us.

    June 24 is the day that no one
    wants to come, but we all know
    has to. It is a day that's filled with
    excitement and trepidation.

    A mix of excitement and fear
    will be in us as we venture out
    into the world of the unknown,
    with God at our side guiding
    us to who knows where.

    ReplyDelete
  12. Fading away

    Walking through the gate,
    the aromas of buttery popcorn and tasty snacks,
    water my mouth with desire.
    The rays of sun on my back,
    warm me as I move through the crowd.

    In line, I hear distant screams.
    Anticipation runs through me like a trickling brook,
    flooding my every nerve and thought.
    I pass the ticket taker my crumpled slip.

    Making that slow vertical climb to the top,
    a smile creeps up my face.
    Looking down, watching the people below melt away
    until they’re specks on the pavement.
    My stomach flips as we fly down.
    A scream of excitement escapes my lips
    but is lost in the bellowing whoosh of the wind.

    ReplyDelete