I am stubborn, sulky
and sullen, caught
in a thorned net
of dreams —too many children
in need of rescue,
too many villains
smug, and famouslyunpunished. I am
a glass jar, filled
with judgement
and despair —even as a rainbow
circles the sun;
even as the aspen
sings and shimmersin the wind. I refuse
to take pleasure.
I will not listen.
I will not see.
UPDATE: Andrew has written a response to this poem, thus, perhaps, beginning another collaborative poem dance. You are all invited; just add your poem to the comments, and I will bring it up and add it to the post. Here’s Andrew’s:
I am open to
suggestion, free
in a life of
comfort and choices,my children so
secure and active,
villains locked away
in the jug, silencedforever. I am
a strong breeze, filling
sails of laughter
and life —a rainbow around
the sun, a white gum
by the river
as it shimmersin response. I delight
in taking pleasure.
I hear the city
whispering and see
the ocean lapping.
From Cathy:
Then again
I am a jar
that’s sitting outsideMaybe the rains
will come and the rainwater
will fill and overflow
this jar,till all is wash away
Renewing me back
to the pureness of hope.
From Lynn:
I AM
I am milky, warm
and moist. I am the thing
you see in the mirror
that vanishes
when you look at it
dead on.
I am not your child,
or your mother,
or you for that matter.
I am the thing
that rescues,
that pushes you
to the edge
then pulls you back.
I am what you want
at night, what you won’t
talk about the next morning.
I am your all-access pass,
your movie marathon,
the thing you and your friends
giggle about when you think
I’m not within earshot.
I am tougher than nails.
I am in control.
I’m onto you.
I’m not what you think I am.
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