One of Those, a poem by my father

This poem is by my Dad.... he won 2nd place in the annual Dylan Days contest (Bob Dylan, that is), and I'm so proud... my Dad is a world class poet.  Here it is:

One of Those ©....by RAK

if equinox delirium is moving in to stay
if all the good king's horses
are striking for more hay
if the earth should settle
into a final pose
give me time to draw my lines
and I'll take one of those

for every two-bit hustler
is a man of wealth and worth
and for every hard luck story,
there is one of myth and mirth
out as my days grow shorter
there is no scent of the rose
if only there were dreams to spare
i'd take one of those

talents's a judicious thing
it over steps it's bounds
as quickly as it's recognized
it's fired in rapid rounds
all that's left is skeleton
ten fingers and ten toes
as for moonlit melodies
give me one of those

a man insists on harmony
a man thrives on turmoil
soon the two are blended
absorbed into the soil
a man can see the future,
as far as tales he throws
what's happened to each second man?
i'll take one of those

there's something i've forgotten,
it's rotting in my brain
it disappears into the night
like a speeding train
with an all consuming appetite
I oversee the rows
of people lost and longing
and find i'm one of those

no drowning in self - pity
no torturous reserve
for anything you do in life
you get what you deserve
you've complicated matters
like weeds it grows and grows
and humans are mere numbers
and i am one of those

RAK

Basket

Fray

Who am I

behind everything

that hides me?

Who will I be,

how will I find myself,

when all is stripped away -

even my faith,

and the words

emblazoned

When I'm laid bare

what will be

found left

of me

to say

I was here -

a survival

in existence

?

All of this,

all of this,

could disappear,

dissolve -

it could all

disintegrate,

tatter,

fray

 

 

The In-Between

The In-Between

In the in-between,
I hold on to symbols
that carry me
as they resound

Gifts to consciousness
from unconscious mind,
the present presence of
hours between waking
and dreaming

Here and there

moments sway

with sudden depth

and I am overcome

Awareness fills in
the holes
created by collisions
of time and space

And because of these
brushes with eternity,

I am made whole.

I am made whole.

Architect of Light

There's a freedom fighter I admire,
her name is Aung San Suu Kyi.


One day,
while searching for inspiration
with the words "glinting light splinters"
as I wrote the poem Shards Of Light,
a satisfied smile came
when I stumbled upon a poem
 - A White Architect of Light -
all about Aung San Suu Kyi.

"She came back from the land of democrative destiny and dissolved
into the chaotic void.
Fighting for the freedom of reality
Building the light house in the darkest hours of life
Fixing up the spiritual essence through the existential nothingness
in the valueless zone

Layers by layers, realities of life theatre are turned into distilled light
out of trapped reflections

Mother of modern Myanmar honoured by consciencious tree of life
Curving away all the unnecessary parts
Curving away all the necessary parts"

by Nyein Way

It satisfies me to stumble upon finds like this,
because Aung San Suu Kyi is well-known as a powerful, peaceful freedom fighter,
she has a book published that is called Freedom From Fear and other writings,
and this is my year of freedom.


And I will post bits & pieces I've gathered about her recently,
here on my blog this week.

Dream Silhouettes

A poem by  my Dad.  

Happy Father's Day.

Love you. 

Dream Silhouettes

when dreams come into play
and dance round the shadows
of yesterday’s nitemares,
all those old fears
now laying buried in the rubble
about out of luck and
already into next weeks trouble
dance ever merrily
sweet dreams of tomorrow
what morals uncovered
from ash ‘neath the rubble

what fires re-kindled

when once thought

dreams dwindled

they’ve re-ignited

and fleshed out the form

opposed to the norm

the crescent moon smiling

and fueled by the serpents

of tides ever wilding

and once

just a thought

i thought long forgotten

spoiled and mildewed

decayed and gone rotten

a lost thought

distraught

now bought a new ticket

not merely an idle idea

gone wicked

oh no,

bare assumptions

now dare to come forward

the movements improvements

now justly rewarded

 

staggered,

as dreams dance silhouettes

the cargo’s been lost

as well as the debt

no payment on pavement

no concrete nor stone

instead just a dream,

full grown and well flown

more banner headlines

more chaos and riots

more slogans on flags

if the banner fits

fly it

soar,

aviate,

go high, then go higher

the truth will now torture

the tongue of the liar

and dream now the dance

enhanced and enthralling

the embers ablaze

to the universe calling

what parts must be played

become ever clear

there was not an instance

when no one was near

the mirror imagines

the image you see

but the dream

gives it credence,

far-flung-fantasy

and back to the dream

to the stage

to the play

a dream with in grasp

gone its own way

it was no more

than a moment in time

a richness so subtle,

oblique and sublime

a moment in time

so close,

within reach

gone as a cloud

like a figure of speech

gone as the night time

blends into dawn

when the thinking man

saps the strength out of brawn

now all that remains

is a puddle of dreams

however bemuddled

however it seems

transfixed now,

translucent

but the stage lights

now dim

be ever thankful

you know how to swim.

-RAK-

Rusty Wishes

wish whispered prayer

flies through the air,

is caught by hand

longing to hold

the ephemeral

palms touch

metal, rust

upon skin, fleshed

with the puff of dream

caught flying

~Brianne

Strong

When I led a workshop on Creative Journaling recently at Women's Wellness Weekend, one of the exercises we did was to "Fingerpaint with Words", an idea from the Gypsy Mama.  I passed out an envelope filled with words and each person chose one at random.  We timed ourselves five minutes to write about whatever came to mind based on that word, then read what we wrote out loud. 

Here's what I came up with; my word was "strong":

to be strong, i need resilience and reinforcement like the wire word sculptures i make, i need to be wrapped in copper & brass because even steel can lose its strength...

to hold my form, i need reinforcement - others surrounding me who will encourage me deep, hold me up with support, and pray for me.  to be strong i need to keep firm, be determined, and courageous.

tough to the point where i can withstand hardship, but not so tough that i cannot feel anything...
for there is power in tenderness and strength in realizing i am vulnerable

~Brianne

Memories

Memories

Memories are a special gift
to cherish all your life,
To remember on a rainy day,
or think about at night.
They bring upon a happy thought
you can think about again,
Whenever you are feeling sad
or alone without a friend.
So store up all your memories
safe inside your head.
They may come in useful someday
In the many years ahead.
Whenever you are feeling sad
or alone without a friend.

~Brianne, 1997

Acorn Hearts

Seeds fall off trees,

break open wide,

and hearts

are shown

inside.

Sharing with Clytie who has me looking for hearts (and finding them!) everywhere, and has created such a wonderful place to visit in the blogosphere to gaze in awe at the hearts others have found and just smile.

Bleeding Hearts

Feet carry over bricks

pressed down to pave a way

pushed up by living tree roots

underground growing with strength

We walk hand in hand,

hearts beating,

absorbing all

our senses behold

Crouching down to see

hearts, bleeding -

a relentless appearance

for our sight to deem

Boundaries, pushed

edges unfurled,

as from beneath

emerges encouragement

to feel.

Linking with:

Thank you Clytie for featuring this post at Guest Heart Thursday #108!!

Fragile

Fragile, Life

Lace Encased

Throbbing Slivers

Handle With Care

Delicacy Requires

Fine Quality

Subtle Elegance

Rare, Exquisite

Held, Selected

Choice Picked

Cushioned

Edges Sharp

~Brianne

Sharing with:

And thinkin about the fragility of life and how very vulnerable we are....  Rest In Peace, Charlyn Esi Minor, our dear cousin...  Your life was too short, but you're home with Jesus now. 4/25/12

Shards of Light

light splinters

through cracks -

loose pieces

can't hold back

its steady streaming,

breaking through darkness

until the release

of gleaming

sheds shards
of shine -

pure shine

- into this heart

of mine

~Brianne

Prism Thoughts

Above my sink,

reflective surface,

light reflects refractions

through facets

of prism hung

to catch light waves

and deflect radiance

of color hidden

within invisible

streams of air.

Clear glass

cut, shaped

by grinding -

its capability

to be brilliant

dependant upon

the number of

plane surfaces

it's been given.

Thoughts are

contemplative

as the grime left behind

is cleansed, wiped,

washed with water

and sunk

below visibility.

Over my sink,

I place items

special to me,

reminders

of what I seek -

that throughout my days,

as I pause at this place,

I may absorb

transformation.

Prism thoughts

of how to be

a reflector

of the Light

that shines on me;

of immersion

with the Truth

that will enable me

to emit

crystal clear

transparency.

"You are the Sun" by Sara Groves:

Because everywhere He is, there is warmth and light.

Over my sink, there is warmth and light.

I keep turning my face to Him, because otherwise
what light can I reflect?

My prism reminds me of precisely this.

Sharing with:
                  and

Resilience

this is dedicated to one

of my dearest and

most loyal friends

today

there is brilliance in resilience...

the ability to recover the shape

of original molecular design,

and add strength besides,

when shock rushes in

like a comet streaking through the sky

relentlessly bombarding life

in an attempt to stall kinetic movement -

but you don't let it...

the pressure simply fortifies

the physique of your bones,

and your muscle cells re-member,

embodying elasticity,

adding suppleness to the facets

of the gem that is you,

assuredly able to reflect radiance.

all this, my friend,

is nothing short of miraculous -

a sure sign

of God-alive at work in your life,

bending beauty

as you respond -

expanding under compression

with keen, alert mind,

resiliency shines

through your life

spreading change

to mine.

2 Corinthians 4, New Living Translation

^{7-9 "}We now have this light shining in our hearts, but we ourselves are like fragile clay jars containing this great treasure. This makes it clear that our great power is from God, not from ourselves.  We are pressed on every side by troubles, but we are not crushed. We are perplexed, but not driven to despair. We are hunted down, but never abandoned by God. We get knocked down, but we are not destroyed."

If you please, click here to watch

Israel Houghton perform

Chris Tomlin's Our God is Greater,

declaring these lyrics: 

"and if our God is for us, then who could ever stop us,

and if our God is with us, then what could stand against?"

Peeling

Shedding Skin

by Haryette Mullen

Pulling out of the old scarred skin

(old rough thing I don't need now

I strip off

slip out of

leave behind)

I slough off deadscales

flick skinflakes to the ground

Shedding toughness

peeling layers down

to vulnerable stuff

And I'm blinking off old eyelids

for a new way of seeing

By the rock I rub against

I'm going to be tender again