Posted in Writing, tagged COVID, modern poetry, Poetry, vaccine on 10 Jun 2021| 9 Comments »
It is not a needle.
It is not a syringe
It is a key
that fits my front door
but now that I have it
will I use it?
Am I ready
to leave my distanced redoubt?
Is my unmasked heart prepared
to trust those I meet?
I cannot say
but the key turns
the dust-dry tumblers
the bolt withdraws
the door creaks open
I squint at the sun
of a different year
smell the aromas
of an unmapped summer
hear the surf noise
of my lifeblood’s anticipation
and I step outside
Posted in Creativity, tagged friendship, modern poetry, Poetry, righteous on 13 May 2021| Leave a Comment »
In the space
Between their words
They stand
Wondering
How they arrived
At this hollow space
Where neither
Can see the other
Where friendship
Rimed with hoar
No longer warms
Both captive
To their own
Righteousness
k
Posted in Writing, tagged #amwriting, modern poetry, Poetry, short fiction, vignettes, Writing on 11 Mar 2021| 3 Comments »
Fingers deep in waking earth
clearing ferns from wintry somnolence
Their feathered, spiked, serrate fronds
release spores in ochre clouds
Raindrops drum my hat brim
enthusiastic paradiddles of spring
Hands set blade to swordleaf
trimming old stems and rusted detritus
From the center I lift accreted duff
revealing curls, verdant and sleepy
Nestled in that fiddlehead crown
is the confidence of rebirth
Hope is spring’s eternal gift
a promise of life
and all it contains
Posted in Creativity, tagged breach, capitol, insurrection, modern poetry on 07 Jan 2021| 1 Comment »
22 Nov 1963
19 Oct 1964
04 Apr 1968
06 Jun 1968
27 Nov 1978
06 Oct 1981
28 Jan 1986
19 Apr 1995
11 Sep 2001
15 Jul 2020
06 Jan 2021
JFK
Mom
MLK
RFK
Milk/Moscone
Sadat
Challenger
OK City
9/11
Brother
America
Posted in Creativity, Writing, tagged creative writing, modern poetry, Poetry, vignettes on 04 Dec 2019| 3 Comments »
Today
I celebrate an age
I never thought I’d see
and reflect on those moments
when my river’s course
was shifted from its banks
by
arrivals
departures
separations
reunions
by decisions
to love
to hate
to forgive
to survive
Today,
I am the sum of
every decision
every event
every question
every answer
But that sum is fluid
affected by even
the smallest breeze
the least drop of rain
For even now
as these words pass
before your eyes
you join me
in my story
and change
the tally
of my life
Posted in Writing, tagged caravan, creative writing, immigration, modern poetry, Poetry, short story, vignettes on 13 Aug 2019| 4 Comments »
August, without a doubt, is my least favorite month. It’s when the garden starts to pant and parch, spiders build massive obstacle courses in the yard, fruit goes from unripe green to fuzzy grey within minutes, and wildfire smoke descends to choke our skies, our lungs, our eyes.
And this August, it’s also when a “great” idea for a bit of topical poetry falls totally flat. (more…)
Posted in Writing, tagged creative writing, modern poetry, Poetry, short fiction, vignettes on 26 Mar 2019| 1 Comment »
at the cliff’s edge
the earth falls
through giddy space
to clammy sands
sunlight spears the steel wool clouds
and blazes from gunmetal curls
brined winds press me back
with death-cold hands
hot anger fills me
magma of rage
ready to spew forth
and boil the sea below
as I ponder the choice between
a hateful god
slayer of the young
and no god at all
Kurt R.A. Giambastiani 