In sun and in rain,
Toils of broken soles and blistered palms.
And the journey, tedious, ends in the dank
Leaves of a breathless forest; so rancid the undergrowth,
Hissing signals of danger in the darkest foliage of mankind.
I cringed alone.
So unkempt this unholy place, where the sun is
Mocked; so ungraceful, yet so glorious.
So cautious these woods, where the panthers,
At noon, watch with the keenest of eyes, silent.
Cadaverous each leaning wood, and misleading,
Every thorny path and track . . .
I have journeyed,
And so precious my journey that I seek life among
The living, and have thus toiled until I gathered and
Garnered the speckled pages of the apothecary’s creed.
Now the leaves in the cauldron boil, squeezed!
The content stored for squirting life into the living.
Cupid's arrow strikes at high noon,
chocolates melt 'neath the bright moon.
Our fate is sealed—a sweet typhoon,
its winds carrying us afar.
Our hearts danced through candle's warm glow,
scars hid pain, which we did not know.
Our souls cringed—a warning throe,
And yet here we are.
white as a wedding cake and bride’s satin dress
feathers as whimsical and frothy as white lace
delicate and delightful, the dove flew into the room
bringing a sense of peace and joy, hope hanging on her edges
the hawks were disturbed; they wanted war and turmoil
they cringed a bit, feeling that God was in the house
creepy crabby Cruella was a cracking crackpot
criticizing creatures until they cringed on the spot
cruel and crosswise, Cruella earned exactly what she got
a crazy, crusty, crotchety old man who smoked yesterday’s pot
Have you read the note?
It speaks of the doom of the liquid element.
An inclement weather, grey, and with the fuss of a bleached lightning,
Besieges the tick of the clock.
Must have been a bland Sunday, which retreated
From the temerity of old wine,
Haunted by the lonesome refrains of exhausted hymns.
The belfry yawned loosely....
But quiet crept in like leprosy,
Hanging loops on loam-matted hair, black and fringy,
And nursing frets we held
When the wetted guitar strings would not strum....
Have you read her note?
Not the one of Mrs. Dalloway
Nor the one of Between the Acts,
But the one she cringed for —
That banal, invidious act, non-virginal,
Which haunts the church to this day.
Goddess of the moon, called into existence from the sea
flowing locks blowing in the wildness of the wind
who had conjured her and why?
Sea foam welcomed her; feeling her magnificence
The warlocks who had summoned her, cringed a bit
Witches came forth and claimed her, as their own
ominous missive
you will be next in red ink
recipient cringed
The overgrown Amazon ape
With his furry tree trunk wide nape
Flew over wearing a red satin cape
Birds cringed at his cumbersome shape
He carried a bag made of crepe
In plum, fuchsia and possibly grape
A fancy one-of-a-kind hairy ape
Standing there wearing
Baileys holding a Glass
of Cognac I notice your
time piece Kremlin findings
as you calmly approached
my shyness I recognised
the untimely gesture leaving
my quarters knowing full
well beruit was near you
offered yourself with no
strings an yet bombs sounded
throughout the night time
air I was taken an yet
startled King we were taken
to stone slabs draped with
teal fabric peppermint oils
garments of silk I wore you
into the night while we
cringed with fright the town
emptied the tower tumbled
I kelp yours smile in view
as your body crumbled into
the rumble of yesterday I
awakened to the sound of
the sun rising in the east
as I returned to blood
soaked carnage absent
from heaven remembering
only your touch your warmth
your illuminated essence burning
my soul whispering dasvidanyia
from Russia with love
born a charlatan
he swindled people
spent his life thieving and stealing
never had a paying job
quackster always had a gimmick
get-rich-quick scheme
took lots of honest guys’ money
we cringed when he came to family reunions
My heart lay barely beating, drowning in a marinade
of salted tears that fell from my reddened eyes.
Blood dripped down my chin from biting my swollen lips
as if they were wounded like a heart pierced by words
that were hurled as if they were whetted daggers.
Whose fingertips drew the target upon my lashed back?
The attack ripped my flesh, inflicting pain without pause.
My cries were echoing in refrain, pleading for the cause.
No response was given as I cringed and groaned
in this shadowed place, this empty void.
In fetal position on the floor, I flinched each time
I heard knuckles wrapping upon my weathered door.
Sluggish was my mind, as if waking from a nap,
wishing I could snap out of Alice's realm where I can't tell
if I'm under a spell or walking in a hellish nightmare
of reality where I wax and wane like sunlight and moonbeams.
Many things that surround me are not always as they seem.
I cringed when I saw her coming straight toward me, she was kamikaze cat.
She did not care who she took out, but she was swifter than a bat.
Fearless, ready to die too, she brutally crashed into my terrified plane.
As we walked into heaven she had the nerve to ask me my name.
Kenya’s Goddess came in hard and fast
With wind that ruffled the grasses of the savannas
The trees felt her presence and cringed
Wondering if she would uproot them
She is all powerful they warned the animals
The lions stayed to watch, but the meerkats hid
Kenya’s Goddess came in hard and fast
With wind that ruffled the grasses of the savannas
The trees felt her presence and cringed
Wondering if she would uproot them
She is all powerful they warned the animals
The lions stayed to watch, but the meerkats hid
The day I looked and saw sea in its entirety
I cringed at its depth and prayed for mercy
I saw the good, the bad, and the ugly, and
Felt compelled to learn from helpful hands
For one hand washes the other hand
Just as the ground that buffers as I stand
I saw remorse in its entirety
For I knew of lives dying to save you and me
I looked and saw everybody
Some undoing the do, some shunning the Almighty.
Beyond eyes, nose, and skin, we are one
Our innermost parts the same held strong
And beauty becomes a thing the blind could see
And forgiveness was born for you and me
I looked and saw compassion in action
For now we stand above ground, and then we're done!
*
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