Long Hypervigilant Poems

The woman was older, had black hair, angry brown eyes, and wore a perpetual frown on her face. Chel had heard the nurse on the floor refer to her as Nan.  They had had...

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Some children come into the school building dancing, singing, hopping, bursting with uninhibited glee.
They exchange giddy, happy stories about their day at the mall, dropping name brand names,
Showing off their glittery light-up shoes, and light...

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I stand here in front of myself, yelling, stop.
Loudly, authoritatively, sometimes meanly.
Because I know the damage I can do with an angry face, or a disappointed demeanor, worst of all, an “I-hate-you” stance.  
Releasing...

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She wore a skull on her belt, but it was small
And it did not have hair on it or flesh, 
so the parents thought it was a faux skull.
But it was the real deal, just...

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Shush! My dog ears caution me. Did you hear that? I stop sorting coupons, and listen, hard.
My husband is gone, and there are adult footsteps in my house.
Hypervigilant, I hear the fast increased pounding beats...

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The nation is burning in the form of a hawk 
Rising toward the heavens in fiery redness
The rest of the world watches, sadly helpless 
Billions of animals dead, oh, Australia, we grieve for you.

The hawk...

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Elvania queen of the warrior elves entered the jungle
As a cat, with glowing eyes, hypervigilant and aware.
Her keen senses smelled Barley Root, a sure sign of the Slothers.
They had been here, and recently. Her nose...

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Dan had opinions, but he was too wise to share
He kept them to himself, and was not coaxed to talk
A quiet man, he kept his ideas hidden until they were needed
Others trusted him
They confided in...

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She seemed sleek and hypervigilant, like a well-toned velvet puma.
I watched her from my corner of the room, wondering about her swing.
Does anyone else ever sit in that swing? I asked her. 
An ordinary question...

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I am hitchhiking rides to Britt, Iowa this week, and I’m not green.
Fully intend to be named the glorified, brand new 2021 Hobo Queen.
Wish people marked cars like they put hobo symbols on a fence...

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Their love was pure until it wasn’t.
She kept thinking it was her fault.
If she could just outguess him, things could be lovely again.

She tried to dress the right way, say the right things,
keep silent when...

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Little Wolf is my spirit guide; she keeps me loyal.
To the pack, the family, the tribe; I pledge allegiance.
We hunt together, my pack and I.
Auntie Summer is hot; she keeps us down in the day...

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delicate leaf faerie
clothed in naturalness
befriended fox kit once upon a time
his all-knowing amber eyes trusted her
She knew she would never let him down

hypervigilant fox recognized her benevolence 
Her empathetic soul spoke to him
there was a...

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We became friends before she lost herself
Growing up together, we loved many of the same things
As a young wife,  in an abusive situation, she had reinvented herself
A fearful shadow, hypervigilant.

She had been opinionated and...

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Her calm fettered visage reveals nothing
She is as stoic as any sentry
I imagine she is secretly hypervigilant
However, she is unyielding 

A plethora of pernicious bats 
Might have trouble dampening this queen.
She probably enjoyed stinging the...

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He thought no one could love him
Because he was unlovable
He knew this without being told 
in words

His mother considered him a burden
he had felt this from infancy
Left on his own in a crib, 
sobbing for...

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When I clone myself, I will make a marionette the Mime told me.
A great idea, as any observant hypervigilant watcher can see.
I watch her marionette dancing in a happy summer time way.
And I think how...

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