The winter I turned twenty-two
I was down as down could be,
Then I heard this sultry temptress.
Croon her soulful songs to me
Miss B. became my sweet soulmate,
I loved her from the start.
That sultry singing empress -
I learned all her songs by heart.
I sang the blues and harmonized;
Played her tunes both day and night.
I connected to the passion
that within her burned so bright.
As time went by, I learned to stop
and thank the stars on high,
To love and laugh, and let life flow;
Like my soulmate in the sky.
Bessie Smith - I've Got What It Takes (1929)
https://youtu.be/Lb2Ckwsf1ZA
May 8, 2017
May 8, 2017 at 9:05 PM UTC
The evening breath stirs,
as I struggle to cast off
the sins of today.
I cringe when recalling past Vespers.
Your voice – joy to me once,
resounds a heinous incantation.
Chanting, “The hand of God is reaching out” –
You groped, slowly stroking me up and down.
I give in, my body fully physically responding….
Always afterward, I determined I was to blame.
You offered tears, absolution, and admonishments.
All I must do was keep this secret – you warned.
Now as I seek redemption
for my tortured soul,
I fear these torments continue for other boys.
Feb 28, 2017
Feb 28, 2017 at 9:02 PM UTC
Love’s melody
kindles my desire.
As I surrender to you,
we breathe deep
and harmonize.
Sing me your ballad,
I’ll play passion’s song.
Sweet truelove’s combo
plays its tune in my heart –
You are my aria always…
Jan 11, 2017
Jan 11, 2017 at 10:34 PM UTC
she sings soft and sweet
as sunlight shines through her soul
sorrow's shadow shifts
Jan 11, 2017
Jan 11, 2017 at 10:12 PM UTC
Intuitively, I knew his words,
before my father spoke.
Your mother's left us, he whispers.
Left you, I dared to scream out loud.
My young boy's heart
aching, silently breaking.
You had disappeared,
without a trace.
It was not an easy trick,
but one well executed.
Knowing this was your pathway
from his alcoholic pain,
offered me no solace.
Slowly, I became his caretaker,
watching whiskey and
women come and go;
leaving life shabby and chaotic.
Regarding my world with
expectations of perfection,
I became the judge and jury
for myself and others.
Always longing - but fearful to connect,
I stayed safe on life's sidelines.
Dissociate or deny –
Never acknowledge any pain,
Duck and cover from the shame –
That became my coping game.
As time went on
I grew up strong,
but my heart stayed
just the same.
Must I always pay
this price for losing you….
Jan 11, 2017
Jan 11, 2017 at 10:07 AM UTC
Calm follows autumn’s amber sunsets.
Daydreams linger in the shadows.
Evening songbirds wait
for cues to serenade;
as we take time to pause and reflect.
Dec 31, 2016
Dec 31, 2016 at 9:59 AM UTC
As this yuletide time approaches
with its season of good cheer,
midst colored lights and tinsel;
I try hard to persevere.
There was a time I welcomed Christmas
with glad tidings from the start.
Bleak sadness now envelopes me,
my world feels torn apart.
I'll just forget the holiday,
no cheer for me this year.
So solemn now I trudge along,
trying not to shed a tear.
Now alone I sit on Christmas Eve
with a most unusual card.
As I dare to read its words aloud,
something catches me off guard.
Bells ring out their Christmas chimes.
My spirits start to soar.
My anxious, sad, depressing mood
has vanished out the door.
I'm so thankful that this magic card
made my problems disappear.
It's given me a Merry Christmas,
and a most happy new year.
Dec 26, 2016
Dec 26, 2016 at 12:16 PM UTC
Love’s melody stirs
my heart’s desire.
As we embrace
and harmonize,
I dance to your
rhythm of romance.
Sing me a love ballad.
I’ll play passion’s song.
Our sweet concerto
plays on and on.
Dec 13, 2016
Dec 13, 2016 at 10:38 PM UTC
Final touches done to
last night's poem,
I watch as white starlight
fills the window and,
the moon sheds its clothes.
Now in dreams reverie -
you reach for me as
night's soft breath stirs.
Your face above mine,
we struggle for release.
I see shadows of dawn
slide from heaven's rim;
clouds, kissing and cuddling,
matching our concave -
convex harmonies.
Walking at dusk now;
a white winter's kiss is
pressed on tender lips -
A twilight's chill comes on,
you place another log on the fire.
Our intimacies seen
stripped naked.
I'm held spellbound
by this magic.
Nov 25, 2016
Nov 25, 2016 at 8:59 AM UTC
The nights breath stirs,
as I struggle to erase
the sins of the day.
I hear whispers in the wind.
Your voice - joy to me once,
lingers now like shards of glass.
I panic when you speak,
pacing back and forth,
in search of holy sacraments.
Slowly, the night grows bolder.
Unafraid, it opens its mouth,
and swallows me whole
Nov 5, 2016
Nov 5, 2016 at 8:43 AM UTC