When I hear the words “marching band”,
I think of 4 am’s eating donuts on the bus,
Piled in big heaps to conserve warmth,
Not caring who we were laying on.
I think of lips on fire,
Sectionals that drag on and on in
The scorching sun, and staying
At attention for longer than you can bear.
I think of impossibly quick changes into uniforms,
Asking your friends to zip you up,
Band moms wiping off bibbers and shoes,
And when you’re all ready, realizing you didn’t put on your mic.
I think of falling on turf during
25 mph wind gusts, hearing the hail smash your instrument,
Not being able to feel your face,
But knowing you have to play on just the same.
I think of eating at weird times,
Breakfast at 4 am, lunch at 10 am, and supper at 10 pm,
But knowing that when you get you get a chance to eat,
The band dads have got you covered.
I think of laughing so ******* the bus
You’re crying, sobbing even, sprawled across
Your best friends, and you think you’ll never calm down
Enough to ever play your instrument again.
I think of the drum majors’ voices yelling
LEFT LEFT LEFT
Over and over again until the freshmen finally understand.
There’s always that one that never does.
I think of the moment of utter agony
Before they announce the last place in your class,
And you’re squeezing your eyes shut, praying
That at the very least, you won’t be last.
I think of that moment of utter relief
After you hear the last place in your class,
And it’s not you, and your prayers have been answered
That at the very least, you were not last.
I think of the last competition of the season,
When the seniors are bawling and it seems like
Your entire world is crashing down,
And nothing will ever be right again.
This poem could go on forever,
But finally: finally.
When I hear the words “marching band”,
I think of that triumphant moment right
As your show ends for the last time,
That last horns down,
And you know you’ve given it your all,
And no matter what your score is,
You feel in your heart that you have put everything
You have out there,
All the music, the drill, the blood, sweat and tears,
Out there on that football field.
And that moment, you can get no where else, but
Marching band.

At daybreak I awoke alone
With a sadness I could not quell,
Without a love to call my own,
And now, morning's waving farewell

No one pitied the tears that flowed,
Not one word cheered my dreary day;
Alone I walked this lonely road,
Watching the noon hours fade away

No one held me close to his heart,
No one looked at me lovingly;
No chance this pain will soon depart
Now that evening has been set free

To my lips no kiss found its way,
Alone I watched the setting sun;
No one said he loved me today,
And now ..... the day is done

We sleep at the base of the mountain
Waiting for the path to be made
Through slopes and trees
Great boulders and caves
Back to the summit above
Yet as we wait the mountain grows
Every day whether an inch or a foot
Extending further into the sky
Unreachable and unattainable
We were promised soemthing greater
Than all those who came before us
And yet here we are
Below their accomplishments
With no way forward and no path up
To the summit of the mountain
We begin to understand
Something is missing
Something hidden or obscured
Whether by time or by purpose
And without this knowledge
Lost as it may seem
The glory of the summit
May never be revealed
So let us search now
Within and without
A hunt unending beyond what we know
That we might come at last
To stand atop that mountain
The birthright of us all

I know we're on a roll babe,
I love the time we share,
I know you love me now though,
I've yet to travel there,
These voices in my head dear,
They toy with me so much,
I worry you will tire love,
I'm not afraid as such,
Just thinking way too loud but,
My quietened mind is close,
For you have made a promise,
And you, I trust the most,
Just tell me that you love me,
And love my quirky ways,
So we can get to living,
Our next one million days...

(C) eileenmcgreevy@ymail.com 22/01/2020

Your sun is laughing in my heart...
...خورشید تو در قلب من می خندد
Your eyes laughing with me...
...چشم هایت با من می خندند
A light on your lips, maybe
شاید نوری روی لب هایت باشد
I don't know...
...نمی دانم
The sky doesn't smell of you
آسمان بوی تو را نمی دهد
Wanting my young and happy ******* with you
من سینه های جوان و خوشحالم را با تو می خواستم
The frenzy of my eyes, will make you fall in love?!
آیا شور چشم های من, تو را عاشق خواهند کرد!؟
The innocence of your eyes, will take me to my childhood?!
آیا معصومیت چشم های تو, مرا به کودکی هایم خواهند برد!؟
The only place that I can be a bird
تنها جایی که می توانم پرنده باشم
Learning the flying freely!
! آزاد پرواز کردن را یاد بگیرم
I've brought your hands
من دست های تو را آورده بودم
Your eyes laughing with me
چشم هایت با من می خندند
Feeling the greenness of the trees
درخت های سبز را احساس می کنم
leaves, laughing
برگ ها می خندند
and the wind,
،و باد
whispering woefullest season in my heart
غمگین ترین فصل را در قلب من نجوا می کند
The sun, should be yellow?!
خورشید، باید زرد باشد!؟
The white clouds, should be far away?!
ابرهای سفید، باید دور باشند!؟
The air is young for me...
...هوا برایم تازه است
Your hands have two jasmine flowers
دست هایت دو گل یاس دارد
and I will taste them till the end of my life
و من تا آخرعمرآن ها را خواهم چشید
Loving your eyes ''The God of jasmine flower''
'' چشم هایت را دوست دارم ''خدای گل یاسمن