Gaza Sonnet
A doctor`s house with two daughters came under artillery fire
while he who worked at the hospital in Gaza
Trying to save life after yet another Israeli attack, lost both
His children, the military late apologized.
After the funeral, the good doctor did not seek help for his
Immense suffering , but carried on working while
grief unburdened was eating him up.
One day he went to the beach the sea was calm and blue
He undressed and began swimming he had to get away
A strong swimmer he swam long before an Israeli gunboat
blew him out of the water, red turned to pink and then
ack to calming azure as the warped thinking of the occupiers
said go he should have sought psychological help
For sorrow so deep that no well-meaning words suffice
I didn’t do that.
I didn’t mean to hurt you, you're too sensitive.
I apologized, you seem to have forgotten.
Apologize? Never.
Running your mouth, carefree.
Thinking you are perfect with no faults.
There’s more to life than just you.
Stop manipulating my emotions.
Why wound others with your words and actions? Does it make you feel special?
Why belittle others? Do you rest easier at night?
Why pretend to be friends then gossip about me? Does that boost your ego?
Do you see the monster in the mirror?
That monster you see is a narcissist.
Today I felt the weight again -
at least I'm feeling now.
For months I floated, distant,
watching myself from somewhere else.
Now I write, I climb, I sweat,
learning who I am beneath the numbness.
I saw you after all this time,
traveled far just to confirm
what my heart already knew.
You walked toward me, familiar
but changed, and every word
I'd planned dissolved like sugar cubes
into black coffee.
Your eyes told me the truth
the spark had died, the door
was closed. I broke apart,
apologized for all the ways
I loved you poorly, hurt you,
became someone I despise.
We talked like strangers after,
polite and careful, building walls
where bridges used to be.
Now I ride the late bus home,
crying into empty streets,
carrying love that has nowhere to go.
-
My dog dug a hole large enough to push my husband’s F-150 into.
How do you know?
Because Poochie pushed Richie’s truck in there.
At least he apologized, right?
He is a golden.
I think they have manners.
Not yet.
He disappeared on Wednesday
The day after it happened.
Hey,
It’s me,
I've been thinking a lot lately,
Do you ever wonder,
Why do we want to know when,
When we could just let go and forget,
Did you ever care,
Or do you even know what game you played,
But you shut me out,
Do I mean something to you,
Or was I just a stone to step on to cross the river,
So vast and beautiful,
You never saw me,
Did you?
Hey,
Me again,
Did you ever answer my message,
Probably not,
I'm sorry for what I said,
But really I'm just apologizing for you,
And what you did,
You don't realize what you did,
Do you,
Did you?
Hey,
This is the last time you’ll hear from me,
Just wanted to say,
Didn’t we ever wonder,
Why did that wonder turn to lust,
And why didn’t you care what you said,
Because when you say what you said,
It makes most people believe they are better off dead,
Did you think about what you said,
Did you?
Hey,
It’s me,
I don’t know why I never apologized,
But I’m sorry.
To the best of my memory, the word brainwash
has been used in reference to me only twice.
The first time happened more than 50 years ago.
The second one occurred less than a year ago.
One referred to my religious involvement.
The other was connected to social ideology.
The first one came from a stranger
The other came from a relative.
When told that I had been brainwashed
in reference to my beliefs about Christ, I felt
nothing amiss about such assessment.
In fact, such a veiw of me was acceptable.
However, when charged by a relative that I had
been among certain people and allowed myself
to be brainwashed by them, I was taken aback
and deeply hurt.
I took offense by my relative's accusation and
told him so. He apologized for how it made me
feel, and I have forgiven him. Notwithstanding,
although the subject has not risen again, there
is a very thin wall between us regarding that
encounter. We are close friends, but I cannot
deny that something 'not good' happened that day.
I Got Her
motherhood is fraught with mistakes
hanging from her charm bracelet
hourglass wrist; anchor was hooked
she’s silent as I longed for her to erupt
I needed her warm ear, not judgment
one thing I did wrong; not the worst
much later she stabbed me with her kiss
those lips left a saturated wound; grab chest
I was brave; I handed her the tray of hurt
oh how quickly, blinking tears, she apologized
I hang that memory on my high school bracelet
I tuck it away to reuse when I ostracize progeny
air punches like exhales, soft hands, soft heart
must lay out my cards - she was better than the rest
some moms are rabid, some too friendly
I found my mom just right; her sayings wrong
she advises me, “There’s more fish in the boat.”
I lay down the ace, “Yes, Mom, and they’re all dead.”
she’d fall upstairs, get blood poisoning, eventually cancer,
loved her soaps, got news from the tabloids - I got her!
you’ve passed by this intersection enough times to know whose light turns green after
you’ve had those petty fights enough times to know that neither of you really mean what you say
you’ve been in this traffic jam enough times to know that it was actually better to take the other route
and you didn't take the other route enough times to know that you always, somehow, make the wrong choices
you’ve broken up with the same lover enough times to know that the break-up isn’t really a break-up
you've messed up your life enough times to know that you might be the problem
you’ve known you were the problem enough times to realize that you probably can’t do better
you've apologized for the same mistake enough times to know that you’re not actually sorry
you’ve made the same promise enough times to know that you can’t really fulfill it
you’ve heard the same line over and over enough times to know that it’s never going to get better
but there is no such thing as enough.
and you’ve said that enough times too.
Until it's you
Didn't realise that I was enclosed
In the frigidity caused by kin
The sorrow engulfed me
Not the soul but the inlet of ardour
Which made me in a cold sweat
To air my passion
Just not for you but for feelings
It made me feel like a sinister
For none, for having a gab
With you I have no boundaries.
Until it's you
I have no companions
Not of support but of satiety
Didn't realise I apologized
Constantly even not being a part of it
A small hat tip is never enough
For the convo of simple words
Which makes me feel serene
The radiance you hold
Even while concealing not
Just face but my refuge.
He said he’d watched a tutorial.
He said symmetry was a myth
fueled by Big Geometry.
I laughed. That was my first mistake.
My second was passing him the scissors
without asking him about his dominant hand.
(It was vibes. His hand was vibes.)
Snip.
He called it edgy. I called it
accidentally spiritual—
because seeing your own scalp
before coffee
is a kind of awakening.
He apologized by making pancakes
in the shape of angels.
I joked, You know these look like ghosts.
He replied so sincerely, I don’t see it.
And that was the moment I knew:
this is who I chose. The kind of man
who conflates confidence with capability,
specters with satiety, and bad haircuts
with love.
I could have done worse.
That bald spot grew over,
like a lot of mistakes—
as if nothing had happened.
But when I hear the snip-snapping
of blades testing the air, I still flinch.
Just a little.
Which is to say, I’m older now,
but still not immune to vanity,
or apology, or pancakes,
especially when they’re fueled
by good intentions.
You never wanted to hear me out,
neither in the beginning nor in the end
But I stood at your door,
and so you stood your ground
"You never loved me," you mouthed with a stupid face
I apologized to you as many times
as there are stars in the sky,
but the dark clouds obscured your view,
so my love remained hidden in plain sight
even when I was gone you held your flag above our grave
The Mistake
He had been invited for dinner in Peking by a group of business leaders who had invested much money for his venture and success, but they thought his fee was too much. I wanted to discuss the matter
He took the plane to Pekin; when he landed, it was mid-morning, but there was no one to greet him, which annoyed him
He called his secretary, who apologized that there had been a mistake. What she had meant was a Peking. The Peking Duck Cafe in Oslo
He didn’t like to meet those stuffy wealthy people with their stilted language, instead, he bought a Chinese electric car business that gave him pleasure
Those idiotic Europeans who bought a car that was made in China had intended to sack his secretary, but pleased with his business acumen, he asked her if she was a good mother material.
.
i crossed thuh
um
writer
who'd uh thunk
i'd
shake
squirm in mine
what
the ballast uv mine
where mine rrrse 'tiz
settled
giving mine duke's digits
freeness
explicating
whilst sat in
mine firm
cathedra
here you are
"Fear"
yourn wordy
mistake
Thump
Rrrrr
;|
*For thuh poet who apologized
to thuh one who iz lie'n 'neath
mine feet
never apologize to a lead balloon
')
Matt’s dog was a sweetie, a retriever who loved everyone
New female friend thought bringing her cat would be fun.
The dog was giddy, glad to have a new furry friend.
Until the cat got persnickety and bit him hard on the rear end.
The dog gave a yelp and ran off to hide from the beast.
Jim tried to bandage his tail; he apologized at least.
His new amour laughed; said she had a ferocious cat.
This was the end of her relationship with good-natured Matt.
And when I asked if you knew of the bet,
You said you didn’t, pretending with no regret.
Then I started to ramble, all confused,
Apologized a thousand times, felt used.
When I tried to explain, you shut me out,
I kept on apologizing, left in doubt.
I sent you a message on .. again,
You unblocked me but said nothing then.
I told you, no need to reply at all,
But why block me then, build a wall?
I was sad, messages back and forth,
It all seemed pointless, little worth.
You blocked ..., months went by,
I didn't know why, felt like a lie.
In English class, I stayed so still,
My efforts on the poster, against my will.
I pushed it aside, .. praised it then,
But you said yours could speak again.
And then you came back in my life,
With a face that spoke no light.
I walked out, tears in my sight,
... brought my things, and it didn’t feel right.
But now everything’s going to change,
I regret nothing, it's not so strange.
Maybe next year, we'll meet again,
If you're honest this time, not like back then.
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