a poem in my pocket

morning of 9-11-2001…where were you when unimaginable tragedy struck?

at home
with children
husband says,
“turn on news”
watch furtively
shield little eyes
(they saw enough
to fear airplanes)
terrorists fly fueled
deathtraps to fiery
destruction & chaos
hell’s heat & smoke
people panic, jump
screams & sirens
first responders are
brave to rescue the
injured & bleeding
buildings collapse
leveled to street
low cloud billows
of dust & debris
onlookers run as
victims lie buried
below steel cross

the following summer, in month of June
when my father called to tell me mom had died,
(she was our second wife & mother we grieve)
he commented, “our twin towers have fallen.”

From ‘Apple’ by Sarah Connor:
“There is a wholesomeness to apples:
 the white flesh crisp, fine-grained,
 the sweet, sharp scent. The skin.”

remember…

the soft flesh of her skin
fine-grained and oh so white;
breathe in sharply such crisp
wholesomeness: the sweet
appled scent of a woman

From ‘No mail – no post’ by Sarah Connor:
“No words.
 No rhymes, no poeming tonight,
 just this blank space,
 this white page, 
stretching endlessly”

poet’s legacy

will old blogs stretch
into blank white space?
No! corvid words live on
endlessly…in books,
rhymes of poems and
even tonight’s posts,
like letters mailed
lovingly to the future!

Linking to dVerse as a tribute to our fellow poet, Sarah Connor. Thanks to Kim for her interview/conversation with Sarah posted tonight! And may God be near you and your family, Sarah.

it’s helpful to know one’s place
in any family-style community
to know how and where you belong
to be loved into responsible joy of returning love

why rebel against the obvious good fit?

unrealistic expectations turn gentle contentment
into unnatural tantrums against healthy constraints

_______

the darkness of sin’s
shadow covers earth
yet souls yearn for light

our true king’s crown
mysteriously revealed

rebels risk blindness
if we underestimate
your intense glory!

_______

As we anticipate total eclipse on April 8, 2024