Ink in the Blood Posts

Patricia Alatorre

your family

will have to be

strong for you

for the rest of their lives

they have no choice

your story cannot end

like that

there are countless

children

boys and girls

out there

counting on you

to be

their guardian

Angel

TL

Some Days

it rained

so hard

overnight

the ants

took refuge

in my car

and told all

their friends

TL

The Fourth of July

last night

a kaleidoscope

in the sky

turning over

patterned pieces

of colored glass

opening and closing

a fleeting design

mirroring memory

of a phase of life

twirling and whirling

breathtaking

and free

the possibilities

of something

bigger and brighter

more beautiful than before

and you wait for it

this closing encore

this last hurrah!

before the curtain closes

and everybody, everywhere

goes home

and you ask yourself

in the dark

was that it?

is it already over?

like a blink

TL

“America the Beautiful”

was at first a poem

written by Katharine Lee Bates in 1893

and published two years later

the poem was put to music in 1910

and the rest is history …

“O beautiful for spacious skies

for amber waves of grain

for purple mountain majesties

above thy fruited plain

America, America

God shed His grace on thee

and crown thy good with brotherhood

from sea to shining sea

O beautiful for pilgrim feet

whose stern, impassioned stress

a thoroughfare for freedom beat

across the wilderness

America, America

God mend thine every flaw

confirm thy soul in self-control

thy liberty in law

O beautiful for heroes proved

in liberating strife

who more than self their country loved

and mercy more than life

America, America

may God thy gold refine

‘til all success be nobleness

and every gain divine

O beautiful for patriot dream

that sees beyond the years

thine alabaster cities gleam

undimmed by human tears

America, America

God shed His grace on thee

and crown thy good with brotherhood

from sea to shining sea

O beautiful for spacious skies

for amber waves of grain

for purple mountain majesties

above thy fruited plain

America, America

God shed His grace on thee

and crown thy good with brotherhood

from sea to shining sea …”

Umami

unbeaten

by the rain

he makes his way

in the dark

and turns the lock

and flips the lights

and heads to the back

where hours of preparation

meet the discipline of the mind

each day an empty bowl

he fills

for the ramen lovers

like me

who thought it came out of a package

with powdered packs and a crunchy square

and you could go your whole life long

thinking that …

‘til one day

in the rain

you happen upon a new place

to try

and you venture in

side

and sit down at his table

and order ramen

off the menu

expecting just another bowl

of soup

until they bring it out

steaming

this work of art

and you taste that first sip

of broth

unlike anything

and these noodles

are far from square

this bowl of ramen

is like a great book

that fills all the senses

and makes you forget

where you are

TL

“Wind in the Willows”

sidestepping

tee tiny toads

on the trail

as they try to make it

on their own

and if I could talk to them

I’d tell ‘em to get off the trail

and hop to the trees

the underbrush

far from the joggers

the dogs

the crunch of wheels

but I can’t talk to toads

so, I wish ‘em well

and hope they’ll make it

on their own

like that one I saw by the pond

sitting in the mud

staring at the turtles

warm in the sun

it was the biggest toad

I ever saw

snapped a picture

and headed to the trail

TL

Hush

quiet

in the clouds

as a Cessna bird

wings away

quiet

in the ocean

at the bottom

of the sea

quiet

after the storm

when thunder

and lightning

crash to sleep

quiet

early in the morning

after a night

of rest

quiet

in the car

after the door shuts

and the funeral’s over

quiet

in the recesses

of the mind

after it empties out

like the sky

releasing rain

TL

Archie Williams

he walked out

on to the stage

dressed to the nines

with an open smile

and an easy way

about him

but when the AGT judges

asked him to talk a bit about himself

his story shattered

that initial impression

of carefree

he was 22

when his world went dark

convicted of a horrible crime

he did not commit

nearly 37 years went by

as he sat there in a cold, hard cell

forgotten

waiting for somebody somewhere

to run his fingerprints

against the national database

and after nearly 37 years

somebody somewhere

finally did

and while he’ll never ever get back

the time he lost

he never wasted any of it

on what might have been

but on what could be

instead of getting weaker

year after year

behind bars

he got stronger

and stronger

and stronger

he never gave up

on himself

and his dreams

at 59

he walked out

on to the stage

dressed to the nines

a free man

and sang …

“don’t let the sun

go down on me”

TL

In the Line of Duty

in whatever line

of work

it’s not always

easy

to answer the call

depending on the circumstance

it could mean life

or death

depending on the circumstance

it could mean

not enough pay

and too many hours

depending on the circumstance

it could mean

being afraid

afraid to go to work

depending on the circumstance

it could mean

being feared

for the first time

depending on the circumstance

it could mean

feeling helpless

to help

depending on the circumstance

it could mean

being judged

fairly or unfairly

depending on the circumstance

the situation

what is required

may not be an external thing

but an internal one

if you expect recognition

for doing your job

right

then you’re never gonna feel

fulfilled

if you feel like all the good you’ve ever done

has been a waste

of time

then for you

it was

if you need constant praise

and adoration

to do your best

day in and day out

week after week

month after month

year after year

then it’ll be hard

and the work will just be work

without satisfaction

but if you know

for yourself

you did your job

and answered the call

to the best of your ability

and the intention

was good

then what more

TL

The Grass is Green

love me

fore you go

just a little

so, i’ll know

i was here

for a time

under the sky

the rise of the golden

sun

spilling into the milky

moon

counted all the stars

but one

the one i couldn’t see

but saw me

sitting there under a tree

watching the rain

i hear it in my sleep

like the waves

that tease me

i want to swim

to the other side

and not feel tired

picked up by the wind

i feel the dust

of the Sahara

the mirage of the sea

where i stood as a child

and believed

TL

Masterpiece

certain puzzles

take time

42,000 pieces

require patience

to put together

some people

are not so good

at solving puzzles

preferring a quick

configuration

that requires less effort

and time

others get frustrated

easily

when they cannot find

the missing pieces

the dog mighta chewed

and they give up

just like that

when they’re almost done

a persistent puzzler

will either start again

with a new box

or fashion pieces to fit

the original puzzle

and it may not look perfect

to the trained eye

but beautiful

still

in its completion

to fill the empty spaces

and even if some pieces

had to be restored

by hand

and carefully placed

to fit existing pieces

the big picture

was worth it

the persistent puzzler

will then hang the finished piece

in the great hall

where there are many rooms

with many panes

TL

Elementary

the abuse

of power

of position

is a corruption

of character

TL

Sacred

whatever may

befall you

however hard

the blows

no matter what

the test

and there will

always, always, always

be a test

or how many times

you forget

the light within

is sacred …

forgetting this

leads to nowhere

to nothing

many times in life

you will find yourself

in circumstances

beyond your control

and wonder why

but there are countless examples

worldwide

of people who have experienced

unimaginable things

in unimaginable places

in an unimaginable time

and yet they did not forget

what could easily be forgotten

in the dark

the light within

is sacred …

TL

if you ever

take a knee

let it be

in prayer

if you ever

take a knee

let it be

in proposal

if you ever

take a knee

let it be

for a toddler

to see you

at their level

if you ever

take a knee

let it be

in peace

if you ever

take a knee

let it be

to plant

a seed

TL

More than Meets the Eye

generalizations

in a glance

never tell

the true story

of what’s really going on

i can remember as a kid

being in a classroom

and two kids acting out

to get attention

but the teacher never knew

which ones were at fault

so, the whole class stayed in from break

and even though we were all punished

it was unheard of

to tell

on one another

even if we didn’t agree

and thought it was unfair

we still stuck together

as a class

but if someone walked down the hall

and peeked in the door

and saw the whole class with their heads

down on the desk

and the lights off

they might assume

we had all done something

wrong

and deserved to stay in from break

and if this kept up

we might start to get labeled

as the “bad class”

that always gets in trouble

and the teacher

no matter how good or bad

might get labeled, too

as a teacher who couldn’t control

their students

and maybe the two boys in class

didn’t get enough attention at home

but got more than enough at school

and maybe they just needed

what we all need

to be seen, to be heard, to be understood

and not thought of

as just a “lost cause”

‘cause one day, those boys

might grow up

and prove the whole class wrong

including their teacher

but especially and more importantly

themselves

TL

Happy Unbirthday

one day

Alice happens upon

a tea party in the woods

where there is singing

at the table  

and the table is long

and full of good stuff

and there’s plenty of seating

to be had

so, Alice takes a seat

and the Rabbit and the Mad Hatter

don’t even realize she’s there

until she starts clapping

when they finish singing

she thinks they were singing

the Happy Birthday song

and that it’s somebody’s birthday

but the Rabbit and the Mad Hatter

immediately correct her

“My dear child, this is not a Birthday Party,” exclaims the Rabbit

“Of course not, this is an Unbirthday Party,” says the Mad Hatter

they go on to tell her that there’s only one Birthday each year

so, that leaves 364 Unbirthdays in a year

Alice then realizes that today is her Unbirthday!

and so the Rabbit and the Mad Hatter start singing again

and they bring out an upside-down birthday cake

and Alice makes a wish and blows out her candle

and fireworks appear in the sky

maybe, the moral of the story is

to enjoy each day as if it were, indeed, your birthday party

think the Rabbit and the Mad Hatter

would toast to that

with tea

(source: Alice in Wonderland by Lewis Carroll)

TL

At the Beginning

hatred

can be traced

back

if you follow the lines

close enough

it will reveal itself

at its origin

babies are not born

full of hate

hatred is a learned thing

it can be taught

early on

verbally, physically, emotionally

and carried on

indefinitely

if you let it

TL

Human Ingenuity

Doug Hurley

and Bob Behnken

who were once children

looking up at the night sky

in awe and wonder

are adults now

but it won’t be men

in that rocket tomorrow

blasting off from Florida

the laughter in space

will come from

the pure joy

of two little boys

TL

In Memory of “Maud”

Ahmaud Arbery

would have been

an electrician

had he lived

longer

but he died at 25

in a senseless

way

in memory of “Maud”

his potential

his hopes and dreams

maybe his family

full of grief

will one day

set up a scholarship

in his name

for aspiring electricians

of any race

who would benefit

from financial assistance

in the pursuit

of their hopes and dreams

for a better life

TL

Lest We Forget

Memorial Day

has the heart of service

at the center

of what sacrifice is

all the men and women

who paid the ultimate price

for our freedom

is apparent

in the way in which we live

the way in which we choose to live

every. single. day

and my way may not be your way

and your way may not be mine

and that’s ok

we can agree to disagree

for we live in a democracy

and we have a U.S. Constitution

that reminds us

of our rights, our inalienable rights

and there’s a flag

that still flies

Red, White and Blue

for the me in you

and the you in me

and that’s called, US

TL