Sonnet 1 (Closure)

The years go by without ever seeing,

And never knowing what happened that night,

Were you watching me as I was fleeing?

Or turn away as I ran out of sight?

It wasn’t my choice to turn and run out,

That decision made completely by you.

Whatever the reason; love, hate or doubt,

The answer was something I never knew.

I’ve come to realize after all these years,

The truth is something I’ll never know.

It’s time to put away sadness and tears,

And bring all those memories to a close.

The time has come to pack away the pain,

Leaving memories before that night came.

6/2/14 TLA

Autumn (Rondeau)

Waiting for autumn to show its face,

The heat of the summer it will replace.

The changing leaves they sit atop,

Multi-colored before they drop,

To float to the ground with grace.

The air gets crisp with just a trace,

Of the heat of the summer in this place,

And very soon they will make the swap,

Waiting for autumn to show its face.

For the Earth is ready to slow its pace,

Slowing down from summer’s warm embrace,

Readying itself for the first raindrop,

Knowing it’s time for the heat to stop.

The poor scorched Earth it will erase,

Waiting for autumn to show its face.

6/1/14 TLA

*First attempt at Rondeau poem

Goodbye (Villanelle)

Goodbye

Sometimes you have to say goodbye,

To those you meet along the way,

Then they’re gone and we never learn why.

Some are gone in the blink of an eye,

They’re here and then they go away,

Sometimes you have to say goodbye.

We rage, we cry, we try to deny,

We get on our knees and pray,

Then they’re gone and we never learn why.

Others linger, they will defy,

They do all they can to stay,

Sometimes you have to say goodbye.

But, no matter how hard they try,

They eventually fade away,

Then they’re gone and we never learn why.

Some walk away, others die,

There are things you never get to say,

Sometimes you have to say goodbye,

Then they’re gone and we never learn why.

6/1/14 TLA

*First attempt at Villanelle poem.

Reflection

That reflection that I see each day,

The one that always stares my way.

Why can’t I accept the one who stares,

Why must I continue to always compare?

Why can’t I change it; the one that I see?

Why can’t I accept the one that is me?

6/1/14 TLA

Decisions

If I could only have one wish,

Would I go back and change the past?

Would I change the mistakes that I have made,

Or leave the die as cast?

Would I choose another path,

And start is all anew?

Or would I own up to all my mistakes,

Of which there are more than a few.

Would I keep the love as is,

All the love and pain and sorrow?

Or would I give it all away,

To have a new tomorrow?

But all I am and all I’ll be

Is based on what I’ve sown.

So I think I’ll leave it all intact,

Everything that I have known.

6/1/14 TLA

Lines

There’s a fine line,

Between love and hate,

The space in between is lies.

Lies that spill forth,

Without any guilt,

And always in disguise.

Disguised as the truth,

It’s so hard to tell,

Even within your eyes.

Eyes that deceive,

Just as your lips,

And the truths that they revise.

Revise the line,

And the line gets crossed,

And all that’s left are lies.

TLA 5/7/14

January 31, 2014

Startled awake by a boom,
Wondering what's happened,
And whether I should get up.
I lay there waiting,
And here is comes again.
It starts out low and intensifies,
Until it's booming over my head,
And I can feel it in my nerves.
I lay there and listen,
While it runs its course,
Seeing the light flash,
Behind my closed eyes.
It calms and I drift back to sleep.

January 30, 2014

Will there ever come a day,
When I can stop sabotaging myself,
And do the things I know need to be done?
Will there ever come a day,
When I can overcome myself,
And be exactly what I want to be?

January 29, 2014

Shoulders tighten,

Neck stiffens,

Head feels like it will burst.

You try to grasp hold,

Before it all blows,

But acid flows out in waves,

Before you know what happened.

January 28, 2014

Get out of my dreams,
Leave me alone,
You should have been gone,
A long time ago.
Leave me in peace,
Let me move on,
Stay out of my dreams,
Let it be done.

January 27, 2014

Yes, I deliberately didn't acknowledge,
What I knew the other day to be,
As much as I wanted to.
It's time to lay the past to rest,
And stop coming back to it,
In the loneliness of the night.

January 26, 2014

So far away from home,
And just want to make it back.
Your eyes tell you they're not up for it,
But you know you can't rest until you're there.
Struggle through it,
Fight it all the way,
Tell yourself you'll make it,
And then grab some caffeine.

January 25, 2014

Eyes barely open, 

Trying so hard to hold on

But losing with each passing minute.

Eye lids get heavy, 

Slowly closing,

Finally out for the count.

January 24, 2014

Such a long day,

Feels like it will never end.

In a week full of long days, 

So glad it's Friday.

January 23, 2014

So much work,
So little time.
You can only do,
What you can do.
Never enough hours,
In the day or the night.

January 22, 2014

Too many people complaining,
And not enough who are grateful.
You think you have it rough?
Open your eyes and see what you have.
Open up your mind and appreciate
That which is before you.

January 21, 2014

The only sound is the dryer.

The kids are tucked away,

While the cats are resting up, 

Resting up for their nightly adventures.

For now I sit and enjoy the mostly silence.

The dryer stops, signaling.

It's time to turn in.

January 20, 2014

Oh, Juno,
Sweet Juno!
Please stop eating and clawing my things,
Just because you're mad or bored.

January 19, 2014

Take me as I am,
Or don't take me at all.
Don't expect me to change.
I've been there,
I've done that,
I won't do it again.

January 18, 2014

Another year older,
And hopefully another year wiser.
I'm not afraid of wrinkles,
I'm not afraid of growing old.
I will be happy to have the opportunity,
To be here as long as I'm allowed,
And savor all the time I have.