Circles

Final offering for Poetry Month 2010 . . . I hope you EnJoy!

We all have them
these circles of friends
Some intertwine
they go on without end

How do you know her?
I’d never have thought
You’re in different circles
what events have brought

you to know each other
without my knowing?
When did it happen
in your comings and goings?

The longer I live
the more entwined
these circles become
of friends of mine

Circles you say?
Yes, circles for ease
to say who’s included
in one of these

Tentacles that stretch
and grab and hold
may be more vivid
when the tale is told

For these “circles” of mine
they warp and they reach
to embrace friends of friends
to include all and each

So, these “circles” you see
will morph and engross
More to enfold
bringing order of chaos

And as time marches on
the more they will grow
reaching over the earth
to each corner, you know

‘Til each place is dear
a spot that’s so fair
Not for physical make –
it’s the friends who live there

Circles by KLSmedley

Weathering

Not sure where this came from . . . guess I was thinking of more years in the desert and places I would rather be . . . yet there is so much here and people I would not have met in other places . . . guess I needed reminding






Weathering

How does it go?
Weather the storm?
Ah, yes, that’s the saying, but
Weather it well?

At times we have
things thrust upon us
voyages or experiences
not of our choice, just musts

So we begin our journey
Reluctant, even defiant –
I will not be a part
I will sulk and be miserable

But from a nook in our minds
emerge fragments of a poem –
of weathering the storm,
and weathering it well

Ha! – that means nothing to me,
It’s for someone else!
I am right in my resentment
Sure in my fury

The storm may be long
and weather it I will,
hunkered down in a corner of the ship –
Ha! weather it well? What a laugh

And when the storm passes
I will emerge and start
again where I was
'ere forced off course

That blasted poem
it haunts my thoughts
At storm end, to start again?
Why not . . . weather it well?!

My tactics must change –
I’ll stand on the deck,
even lend a hand
and gain strength from this storm . . .

Working side of others,
engaged in the storm,
I will draw from their strength
and do what I can to bolster theirs

I will employ this storm,
whether long, whether short,
to continue my quest –
on to my goal, my destination

This storm MAY delay me
or last longer than liked,
but arriving at the port
my journey will continue, not start again

The strength drawn from shipmates,
and the muscle built of my contribution,
will advance me toward my aim
when I reach the calmer shore

There to rest and look back –
Ah . . . the storm was a part, and I almost missed it
whimpering in misery and resentment,
bound by my pride and ignorance

Oh, the poem about weathering –
'Tis for others, AND for ME!
So I will not cower, I . . . I will embark and be on deck
facing the storm with its grandeur and shaping

Not just of the coast, but of the sailor –
Building strength of the body
and potency of the soul
‘midst all its fury and foam

Shadows

My hat's off to those of you who are stepping up to the Poetry Challenge for Poetry Month! One poem a day, how do you do it? I will continue to read your poems and thoroughly enjoy and wonder at your ability. Your poems have helped to inspire me. Here's my second offering for the month.


Shadows

Shadows engulf us
as we traipse along
No green can be seen
‘cept some clothes on the throng

So many are here
in these shadows so deep
Why do they come?
Why do they creep?

In this world of shadow
there are bits of bright light,
now and then round a bend
Eyes can hurt at the sight

The way becomes narrow
Less crowd persevere
Some quit with exhaustion,
others leave with a fear

The waters run deep now –
refreshing at start –
Here they can chill
Many shrink and depart

Continuing on
with our eyes we now see
what few others have seen
Now, contented are we

Our progress must end,
we must beat our retreat
‘fore the shadows will deepen
We must get to our meet

Returning through shadows
We stumble our way
Rocks interfere
With our search for the day

Encompassed in rock,
some that trip, some that scale
We cling to each other
We won’t shrink, we won’t fail

Then rounding a bend
the light fills our view
The wonders around us
seem so fresh, seem so new

Time warped in the shadows,
while there, sometimes long
But it passed in a flash,
like a few stanza song

Back where we began,
now laughing with glee
What an adventure it was
as we rest ‘neath a tree

It’s a tale we will tell
to our children and such
And, if we are lucky,
we’ll return with the bunch

To again venture forth
through this shadowy land
and witness their wonder
in this place that’s so grand

My inspiration - the Narrows, ZNP

The One

. . . because April is Poem Month . . .

The One

How could this be?
He was the one,
or so he said
But now he’s gone

I must get out
How can I bear it?
Joseph! He will
take me to his home

Joseph - my shoulder
to lean on
when times go wrong
He must be sorrowing too

And so we walked
And we talked
and reasoned about
the way we had felt

We rehearsed it,
all of it,
over and over
We had SO believed

Yet the sadness lingered,
I could not shake it
And then someone
on the path ahead, please no!

It was too late
He saw our grief
and had overheard
He asked us why

WHAT?!
How could this man
be so near the site
and yet not know?

So we began
Our words gushed forth
telling all,
including the wives’ tales

Then he spoke,
as if he’d known
all along about the
cause of our grief

He knew the scriptures well,
as if he had written them,
and pointed out things
we hadn’t considered

Our hearts were on fire
Could it be true?
This stranger seemed
to think so.

Too soon
we were at Joseph’s
Please eat with us!
You must!

The conversation,
or should I say,
his teaching continued
while we gathered our food

We sat and he,
taking a small loaf,
broke it and gave to us.
WHAT!

It is him!
The ONE!