Warm Heart(h)

back when I wished I could still fit
into your apron’s pocket
I watched time t(r)ick(le) off the kitchen wall
& pool in those delicate smile lines
you assembled so carefully over the years

the stories you told sounded like
filtered sunlight & the clatter of dishes
while you let me dangle my feet
off the kitchen counter
(cheeks sticky with ssshh! secret apricot jam)
when no one was watching
but you.

---

It has been years since I visited dVerse Poets Pub due to my lack of time to write… but for their 8th year Anniversary I just had to pen down a couple of lines. This time, Brian asks us to take a memory/moment and paint a picture of it… I hope I accomplished that.
Pay them a visit if you have a few minutes… they are wonderful poets.

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Once Were Warriors

you used to cover the walls
with pictures of times long past &
between the wooden frames
there was no breathing space
for the present & the future —
but in your eyes
neither the stone grey of perseverance
nor the creeping chill of stale memories
lingered.

Colorblind

a cardboard-boxed wish,
labeled ‘undaunted’,
next to blood-red pumps,
long faded to rust (& ruin)

the old days —
when her heart still thundered
& the tip of her tongue
suffered no regrets

now
she wonders
if her lips
ever tasted like him.

___________________________
… based on the poem Escapade

Siren’s Song

the lingering trace of maybe,
clinging to scuffed stiletto heels,
reminds you of those so(m)ber days
when there was just
you & the vast sea —
boiling over.

Through The Cracks

who would have guessed that
false dignity would leave a ring on my coffee table —
when viscous words seeped through the cracks
& shaped a mosaic of volatility
for me to witness later;
sticky-sweet.

Ten Little Toes (Haiku)

your spark ensures that
my feet never touch the ground —
nineteen eighty-eight

– faint –

Sepia

night falls, thickly
with a taste of tangy orange
that masks the lump in my throat
while I think about
saying goodbye to you, predestined,
in the early hours of morning

discomfort slouches at the back of my neck
& I tap my nails on those angular customs
as I see myself squirm in this crammed space —
You and Me were all sepia smiles &
so much more than worn wooden benches

I will keep our moments
in a pudding cup,
squeeze them joyfully
a little too hard
& still raise your voice
long after the silence.

Phoenix

despite your broken wings
you touched the sky
fier(cel)y —
in all your forms.

Paper Cuts

your story lingers
not in those letters ~
your feeble voice
never ruffled fragile pages,
nor did your truth
ever drip from fear-tainted quill

your story lingers
not on the cover ~
you never made it through
the cracks that hold a symphony
of old & worn

your story lingers
in paper cuts, resonant
on eager fingers, now stilled ~
then
I still had reason
to decipher you.

Unaccustomed

once, I was wrapped in
a symphony of daffodils, milky white
on vibrant skin &
nothing
could keep me
from facing the sun.

Reflections

I saw you
in the passing face of a
faith-stained goddess, wound
around her wrists like
the very first snake; bound
to her stride by your
need of fulfillment & mirrored
in those long-lasting shadows,
left behind.

Watered Down

in glyphs
my mind comes alive &
I trip
over your ghost,
skulking in every puddle.

I hope the rain won’t also
wear your face.

Devoured

swallow me whole ~
for the cannibal in me
never wants to feed again.

Dewdrops

misty mo(u)rning shivers
in the crystal clear cold
& dives, frog-legged,
into the still green-stemmed ocean.

it is a marvel to see
strain strip
down to nothing but
a dewdrop necklace, suddenly smiling ~
and deep within the heart
the golden dragon
stirs.

tUScany

beyond the 10-hour-glass-front
(knotty-legged in this familiarly backstabbing seat)
an ocean of rye, harboring
this groggy wooden chair, tilting drunkenly;
young poppy blossom on tiptoe, reaching
to lend a delicate hand to the Seasoned ~
the bus crescendoed, sputtering,
and your eyes grew distant.

“I never liked olives,” you said that evening,
and flicked the black through liquid gold, bumping
into its younger brother,
like marbles on chipped china.
wild capers scrambled through
the cracks of shattered amphorae, nested
in a jungle of vines ~ you took
a sip of ruby red & I
saw the aaaaah in your eyes, lips sealed in a secretive smile ~

in a matter of minutes, we found ourselves
deeply rooted
in the Garden of Eden.

_________________________________________________________________
Written for Karin Gustafson’s prompt over at dVerse. Today, we’re doing Poetics Italian Style. So good to be back… grab a pen and join us at the bar!