Ink in the Blood Posts

Mothers

She told me

she was 21

Had a baby

At 17

Laughed and said,

“5, 3, and 3-months”

How she quit school …

how her boyfriend

quit her

Still she smiled

As if her

Heart were whole

Down the way

Another lady

Spoke

Of how she finally

Took a chance

On love

Only to be left alone

With a bundle

Soon to be 3

She told me

She never knew

What love was

Until her daughter

taught her

Later

Driving home

Hours after

A day later

Thought about

These women

And how

I hoped

One day

Their children

Would know

How much

Their mothers

Loved them

so

                    TL

Dad

Sad you see

Wished it’d been me

Never felt the rain

For all the pain

River wide

Closed my eyes

Sent up a prayer

Like a beggar

On the street

Stood up

As you went by

Sat down

And said,

“Goodbye”

Laid down

In a field of stone

And dug

A trench

To put the tears

17 years

Underground

And still

I wait

For a single

sound

                       TL

Fountain of Youth

Hands on the wheel

Never meant to turn that way

Straight ahead was the plan

So why all this desert sand

I don’t know this land

So hard, and rough, and course

Had it mapped with water all around

So, how’d I end up in this town

A child echoes back

But which direction did it come?

Four corners of the world

Somewhere the kid got lost

Must have been somewhere between the sandbox and the jungle

Or maybe it was somewhere between the sea and the sky

I don’t know

But there’s no backtracking now

The flower can’t be far

I heard it grows in the sand and doesn’t need a drink;

For the sun wakes it up and warms its center

Said to be a hardy breed that survives

The worst of weather

It can’t be far now

                                                         TL

Narrow View

The boy went by

His small face troubled

From his backseat window

I could see myself

Sitting there

Way back when

Never looking past the flash

In front of me

Wanted to honk my horn

Roll down my window

And YELL at him

“Hey, you, that’s right, you there,

Don’t look so sad

Trust me, boy, it won’t always be this bad!

The light will change, before you know it.

So, buckle up, boy, and hold on tight.

You’re gonna be all right!”

Instead

I drove ahead

                                     TL  

Yesterday

Saw a white-haired woman

Standing in the wind

She looked about

Taking it all in

Seemed she’d lost

Something

And couldn’t quite remember

When

By and by

Wondered of the woman

Standing in the wind

Why if she’d only turned

Her stare

She would have found

Her door

Was just right there

                                TL

Pre-School

Silently

Please don’t go

Aloud

Go have fun

Silently

Stay with me

Aloud

Go make some friends

Silently

You’re my only friend

Aloud

Go learn something new

Silently

You’re the best teacher I ever had

Aloud

I’ll pick you up soon

Silently

Now what am I going to do

Aloud

There’s nothing to be afraid of

Silently

I’m afraid of losing you

Aloud

Have a good day, I love you

Silently

Let’s just go home and wait another year

                                                TL

Rocking Chair

There is no hint

Of weight or worry

No surface scratch or scar;

Just peek-a-boo winks

Of wear and tear

That rocks the soul

But goes nowhere;

Spit and polish,

Good as new

Few look further

Than the body

Fewer still

Past the bones

To see beneath

The angled eaves

At the bottom

Of the soles

Where the grain of wood

Is worn and weary

From too much rocking

Back

                And

 Forth

                                      Joy rolled forth

Pain rocked back

                                                     And between the flurry

Lied a longing

                                             Creaking ever more

O to be a chair, just a chair

Once more

                                            TL

Wait Awhile

Go tell it to the moon

Don’t give your heart away

Too soon

Save it for

Someday

When time has taken

A trip around the world

And brought you back

Upside down

Hanging by a limb

Where the sun will surely shine

And cast a shadow down the line

Of the shoe

Standing there

In front of you

That fits your sole

Front to back

And side to side

Like a magic carpet ride

That sweeps you up and off your feet

To touch the stars

And toe the ocean

Roaring in the wind

Yawn the sun and wake the moon

Clear the runway

But not too soon

                                              TL

Wishing Well

I have no doubts about my life

How it took shape and form

And why the chisel cut so close,

Without tire

As the excess dropped down;

I longed to scoop a handful up

To pocket away

But better I knew

Better still

The lesson hard

Learning and relearning

Taught by ticking time:

To let go …

Of

Youth beyond

Love old and new

Pots of gold

Color of a rose

Touch too warm, to be cold

A dusty road, concrete

Puddle of regrets,

Boxed underneath the bed

Words left unsaid

The face in the mirror

Death your own

Understanding that

In the fullness

Opening and closing

It is less, not more

That is required

To live

Well

                        TL