In the town of Grumblegroan,
Lived a curmudgeon all alone,
With a scowl so deeply sown,
His smile was rarely shown.

He'd mutter, "Humbug!" to the breeze,
And chase off kids from climbing trees,
But deep inside, with great unease,
He loved the antics of the bees.

One day a child with sunny cheer,
Skipped right up and stood so near,
She asked, "Why do you never hear,
The laughter ringing in your ear?"

The curmudgeon paused, then gave a sigh,
For in her eyes he caught the sky,
And with a twinkle by and by,
He let a chuckle slip and fly.

As days went by, the child returned,
With tales of wonder she had learned,
The curmudgeon listened, slowly yearned,
For joy his heart had long adjourned.

They'd sit and chat by the garden gate,
She'd talk of dreams and stars of fate,
He'd grumble, "It's getting late,"
But stayed to hear her tales so great.

One fine day, she brought a kite,
"Let's fly it high, up to the light!"
He grumbled, "Not in my sight!"
Yet joined her in the laughter bright.

Up the kite soared in the sky,
With colours dancing way up high,
The curmudgeon smiled, he couldn’t deny,
The joy reflected in his eye.

From that day forth, in Grumblegroan,
A friendship bloomed, a kindness grown,
For every heart, even stone,
Has a softness of its own.

I’m scared.
Scared of everything.
Waking up,
Going to sleep.
Falling in love,
Falling out of it.
Traveling the world,
Leaving my bed.

I’m scared.
Scared of everything.
To make new friends,
To miss out on connection.
Trying something new,
Leaving my comfort zone.
Risking it all,
Playing it safe.

I’m scared.
Scared of everything.

What if you fall?
But what if you fly?
You'll never know
'Til you give it a try
It's holding you back
Fears whispering lies
Your wings wouldn't flap
If they weren't meant for the sky.


❤️

1
you come home
and there's bill
(not your friend
but the bill from
your internet provider)
for your cellphone and such

you read your bill
and your son
has to call up the ambulance,
further increasing your bill

2
your 16-year-old daughter
tells you:
"I've got news;
good or bad
depends on how you look
at it: I'm 4-months pregnant -
and before you ask me -
I ******* don't know who"

3
Your grandpa comes back
with his I-just-met-her girlfriend
and she tells you
to move out
and stop sponging on an old man
Your grandpa nods in admiration
and says: "Good on you, girl
I never had the heart to tell him that"

4
The chicken you had for dinner
at the restaurant
(and enjoying which
you went "ooh-wow")
was actually snake meat
topped with dog paws and ears

5
The kid you turned away
in your Scrooge mood
with no treat at the door
stands now at 2 am
beside your bed
with his head in his hands

Why Men Cry in the Bathroom

For so many reasons.
I will tell you the why.
I think you know,
Or perhaps, you think you know.

Men are always O.K.,
Even when not.

We expect the worse,
Accept the worse,
Nonetheless,
We are forever unprepared.

Wearily, we cry,
In the bathroom, in private,
Lest sighs slip by,
We be unmasked,
Early warring, strife signs warning.

Copious, tho we weep
Before the mirror confessor,
It is relief untethered,
Unbinding of the feet,
An uncounting
Of beaded rosaries,
Of freshly fallen hail stones,
Of night times terrors
By dawn's early edition's light,
and welcomed.

But look for the mute tear,
The eye-cornered drop,
*** tat, that never drops,
But never ceases formation and
Reforming, over and over again,
In a state of perpetuity of reconstitution,

The tippy tear of an iceberg revealing,
And I see you peeping, wondering,
What is beneath

Look for:
the torn worm-eaten edges of spirit,
thrift shop bought, extra worn,
grieving lines neath the eyes,
where the salt has evaporated,
discolored the skin.
worry lines,
under and above,
browed mapped, furrowed boundaries.
the laugh line saga,
where better days are stored,
recalled, as well as recanted,
publicly, privately.

Why just men?

I don't know,
Perhaps,
it is all I know.


Jan 6, 2013