like a sunny day
before the weather changes . . .
the man Mom once knew
To this day I still recall my strongest childhood memory. Dad is driving us to the seashore.
The sun follows us, a happy fellow, beaming in the mid-morning’s azure sky. In the back seat with my two sisters, I’m looking out the window as I crunch on Mom’s homemade salty Chex Mix, anticipating the warmth of salt spray from the waves I’ll be jumping on this beautiful day -
"Life is a beach" not yet even in my vocabulary.
We are now at the shore, a large blanket laid out, Mom with her bright red hair tied back with a brighter red checked scarf, and my dad, dark-haired and handsome, smiling. So rare is this happy countenance he wears today! For a while I sit as if entranced, watching the waves roll in.
But eventually, and predictably, my joy ebbs like the tide.
Dark clouds are gathering; gray begins to envelop the sky. I look over to my dad; the gray has recaptured his face. In the vanishing sunlight, familiar dark thoughts invade my mind -
Dad, can I see you be happy just once for a whole day?
the man I never knew
living in my memory . .
a sad sunless day
The sea has many moods
It can give the shore a gentle kiss
Its wave can get angry as it broods
Its power is futile to dismiss
As it lashes the shore with a hiss
A chick plucked off its wing
Down the tall oak branches it sung
A song sung nigh free of yearning
Down the hazy amber elm til its life hung
Near the shore, a kindred spirit melted its last candle
Melted under the dark night sky, its damping light drew him closer
Resuscitating his clockwork, its hand ticked, he threw himself in the shore, without a single ripple
A short-lived sight of a light that chose to fly away, and away, further, and further
I took a stroll down an old park, visited by a dream ever so distant
With ideals buried asunder, I selfishly blew those old autumn roses, greenheads who lost their vigor
I dare not to turn back, a bent world was left with carvings reduced to a remnant
With time and life that will soon disappear, I yearn that lost feeling of fervor
"Hush your crashing," whispered the moon to the sea,
as the sound slowly faded from the mermaid's laughter.
Luna heard only echoes on the shore, a silent symphony
that had been ebbing across the sea, perhaps hereafter.
Often, when moonlight glimmered its soft celestial light,
she would allow me a brief glimpse of her golden hair.
It rivaled the glow of stars in the sky's ebon night,
but no longer is she here, swimming in shallows there.
Her dulcet voice was as lovely as any seraphic hymn
How I longed for the possibility of getting closer to her,
but I feared she'd be frightened if I went for a swim.
So, I gave up on that desire, thinking it best to demur.
The shoreline has become desolately quiet and bleak.
No longer does the mermaid ride upon a wave's curls.
No songs from the mermaid, whose vision I now seek.
No sighting of her tresses, nor her necklace of pearls.
I'm friends with a monster,
Inside my head.
But I hate the way he is always
Crawling under the bed when
I want him beside me, holding my hand,
Want him to protect me from all the thoughts racing
Along the shore; a never-ending creed.
I'm so tired of them, the thoughts-
They're scarier than death.
Now I want a gun pointed to my groin,
Another to my head.
Why does he sometimes leave me alone
Confused about everything, scared of
The way people talk, the way they react.
That's when I need him the most
To put a bullet through me; point blank range.
A gentle wave from curling leaf watches in weakness.
Green slips from shore, a purchased release.
Tender roots wash with shuttered sounds.
Steals foundation to a diminished, poison grip.
Inundate with modern gift's inevitable disguise.
The last of life, extinction blazes black.
Down slips the rocky skirts beneath the liquid lip.
A mist of remembrance where stone nuture once lay.
Shriveled trunk, bloated limb, a silent fiasco
We were infinity, now the singularity
Last of our kind, the jewel of what was fading.
As humans watch with insufferable
Shattered,
A city skyline weeps within
Tendrils of the deep
A broken world, time's cruel grin.
The compass needle spins insane
Lost in a dreamscape's refrain
Echoes of what was
Whispers in the silent mist.
The sky bleeds into the labyrinth
A canvas of lives lived out fast
Words etched in stone
that haunts forevermore.
What Jagged maw, extends into eternity
titan broken, spilling gears of city, drowned.
Pieces and parts of a mortal tear
twist in the hollow of time
a nest of nightmares absent of rhyme.
A single, eye stares from the depths
reflecting a desolate shore, a skeletal horizon.
A monument to forgotten industry
in the machinery of despair.
Dreamscapes bleed.,
Tentacled secrets unfurl.
Time is bent and broken
Points on a compass unseen.
Is this rhythm or requiem?
An abyss stares back, unblinking.
We are both creators and destroyers,
Of oblivion.
Listen closely.
The silence unspoken.
On the west coast of Africa
Stood a relics of ancient civilization
A golden shore, a light at the end of the tunnel
A pillar upon which the freedom of Africa is built.
Blessed with so diverse a culture
Yet unified with a strong structure
The Banku, the Kankay, Fufu
The Adinkra, the Kante, the Ankara.
The Koloko lite, the Adowa, the Azonto
Beats together the drums of unity and pride.
But Ghana is morethan a land of culture
It's a home to great minds and captivating hearts.
Ghana is indeed an enduring power of culture to unite.
A beacon of hope, home of light.
As the sun sets on the shores of the cape coast
It casts shadows of resilience and hope.
As always, you are truly right
The world has lost sight
Of what truly matters—
Genuine human connection, kindness..
Indeed, we've all become disconnected
From not only each other but nature itself.
Like a shadow cast upon a wet painting
The future is losing, present gaining.
I noticed, the race is always on
It's not where we stumble, but where we're bound.
I've seen the straw, her flare is gone
Her words, once solace, now a machine gun.
As you wisely imparted
Look not where you fall, but where you tripped
My ship was wrecked, my heart was stripped
Stripped of true emotions, left with hate.
True —time, like the tide, waits for none
In mere months after you're gone, I've transitioned
The man you foresaw, weathering storms
Now glimpses the shore, a new future reborn.
Let us cherish each moment we have,
Embracing love and words written.
In our private garden,
Among a rhapsody of blooms,
Please come meet there.
In our garden,
Is the love of poetry and roses.
Glorious garden where two souls meet.
Like a rainbow after a storm gives assurance,
Please touch my deep interbeing!
Reach deep with your melody.
The color of your eyes soft and warm
Leads the gardener to enter the
Window to your soul.
In this garden of where our souls touch,
Let us dance with rhapsody!
Never tiring__
Lovers' arms forever entwined.
Captivated by the colors and fragrance divine,
Of this our magical place.
Embracing the spontaneity of life’s dance
'Twas like an absorbing rainbow after a storm.
Love’s beauty will always have a place,
In our hearts and minds,
When we think of this cherished moment in time.
It will come like the rhythm of ocean’s waves.
Upon each beach’s sandy shore, a steady flow.
In moments of quiet interludes
Of our lives, a flash of memory will entreat us so...
In springtime's realm, by a lake so fair,
A princely duck, with a crown to wear.
His consort, a beauty by his side,
In love, they swam, on waters wide.
In my little lake, a royal scene,
All ducks joined in, the waters between.
Migrating geese and seagulls gay,
Daffodils dancing in the sun's warm ray.
Amidst the roses, a fragrant delight,
Under skies of blue, love taking flight.
The princely duck and his queen so rare,
In their love, a tale beyond compare.
But one day came, a shadowed hour,
A loss felt deeply, a wilted flower.
His mate, no more by his side,
A love once vibrant, now a fading tide.
He stood on the shore, a lonely gaze,
Waiting for her in the sunlit maze.
Every day, a hopeful stance,
Yearning for her in nature's dance.
Till one day, he joined her, on heaven's shore,
Their love eternal, forevermore.
In the azure skies, their spirits soar,
A princely duck's love, forevermore.
A rhythmic refrain on the shore
As waves caress it more and more
A gentle breeze in fluted strain
On the shore a rhythmic refrain
As clouds pass by I hear a tune
As wispy notes above are strewn
A cadence floating in the sky
I hear a tune as clouds go by
There is a song among the stars
Twinkles make up musical bars
Moonbeam rhythms play along
Among the stars there is a song
On moonbeams a lullaby rides
As it shimmers upon the tides
When slumber takes you to your dreams
A lullaby rides on moonbeams
1-21-2024
Swap Quatrain
Summertime when the children gladly play
Silver lights on their faces brightly glow
On a park by the right side of the bay
Blooming smiles on young happy faces show
Holding hands walk together by the park
Of lovers that are deeply caught in love
Their scented smiles make a glowing bright spark
That charm the rays of the sun up above
Tourists flock on a tidy sandy shore
Savoring the beauty of the summer
Howling crowds swarm the faces they adore
Bright smiles in their hearts are far from simmer
Above shiny shore, a song sparrow sings
As she leaps towards sky to spread her wings
White
sand beach,
alive with
laughter, children's
squeals, grown-up shouts, the
swoosh, swoosh of waves against
the shore, a distant rumble
of thunder - symphonic sounds of
summer on a sweltering July
day in the Sunshine State of Florida.
Written: June 24, 2023
______________________________________________________________
Soft waves embrace the clean seashore.
Caressing the sands we once walked before.
Leaving footprints imprinted on the land,
A memory crafted by nature's loving hand
The shore, a canvas of dreams,
Where sand castles stand tall, it seems
Guarding our secrets, our laughter, our joy
Until the waves of high tide destroy
Plovers dart on fleet feet,
Spread out on the damp sand, the fleet
With grace and precision, they dance and play.
Adding life to the shore's enchanting display
Pebbly and pure, the sand beneath our toes
Soft, wet, and cool—a sensation that flows.
Beige and tan, a palette of hues,
The shore's gentle whispers—a symphony to amuse
Whispers of the shore, echoing in the breeze,
The love and memories that forever seize
The tender tides, akin to kisses on the land,
Caressing the shore with a gentle hand
The smooth shore holds our footsteps dear.
A testament to the moments we held near.
Sandcastles stand guard, proud and strong.
As the tides rise and sing their song.
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