The College Years: A Poetic Tribute

Amy's Song

Fairytown's quiet quaint houses rest
in distant purple horizon haze.
Crimson splashes maple trees.
Sun sinks behind them. Pink sky
casts pink light on enchanted junk cars
slumbering in next field.
Romping sheep pauses and bleats
Tries to wake them.

I stand on golden prairie grass hill
Sky offers itself to me, energy flows
into me, lifts me up
Solid ground nourishes me, strengthens me
Weightless freedom overtakes me
Breeze whispers. Light skips
and somersaults across field,
slides down cordgrass stalks
and nuzzles foxtail tips

I close my eyes

I am breeze
I am ground
I am sky
I am light
I am energy

Hazy

I am not myself today.
Time eludes my cobwebbed mind,
As does joy or woe or love.
Perhaps, kite-like, memory chose to unwind

But it got lost and drifted away. I am vast, unfocused, nebulous.
I don’t remember yesterday
I feel over-credulous.

I think I woke up today
In someone else’s bed.
Everything feels foreign
Even the thoughts inside my head.

I should be somewhere right now.
Or, perhaps, there is no now and there.
What if I took life to seriously
And now the joke is here?

Society's lies

She sits in darkness and waits for some unknown force
To tell her where meaning lies.
     Tap tick tick tap
          Paramour knocks softly on moon laced window,
                Clock ticks on wall.
                    Tick tap tap tick
Her mind wanders the prairie of her childhood.
Goldenrod and daisies wave to hazy summer skies,
Snake swims though grass,
Butterflies hunt nectar of purple clover
She pulls cold gold chain of desk lamp
      Tap tick tick tap
           Ad layouts bury her desk, beg for approval,
                Computer whines for attention
                     Tick tap tap tick
She opens Word and drafts her resignation

Linger

I feel your presence
Not fleeting as was feared
Happiness endures

I have baby's eyes
Moon tastes gold fields and dark woods
Splendor manifests

Autumn Rain

changing leaf lies on wet cement
feet crush it but do not prevent

the brilliant reds golds and greens
from shimmering like angels wings

Freedom of Chaos

Black windows form glistening sky scraper;
Prosperity and wealth reigns.
Woman exits, not a hair out of place,
Her suit tailored perfectly.
But grass breaks through the sidewalk cracks,
And vines creep up the maple tree.

Outside, concrete organizes all things:
Flowers color concrete urns,
Sidewalks replace sprawling, brazen flora,
Trees grow only in boxes.
But grass breaks through the sidewalk cracks,
And vines creep up the maple tree.

I walk through a park with two maple trees
Each surrounded by tulips
Geometrically grown. The sidewalk
Cuts through mowed grass.
But grass breaks through the sidewalk cracks,
And vines creep up the maple tree.

Backyard draws me in. Here I frolic where
Prairie runs free across hills,
Trees shoot up at random, daisies grow wild,
Chaos organizes life.
Here no sidewalks impede grass
But vines creep up some maple trees.

Men

Did you mean to play with my mind?
I was ready to unwind
but suddenly I find
I can't escape your kind
words running rampant
through my mind
though I have pined
for weeks. They grow and vine
such foliage that, blind,
my thoughts no longer align.

Ben's Song

I took a trip across the sea
The breeze was cold and damp
The ship rocked gently on the waves
The candle flickered in the lamp

The sun spilled light across my face
The morning dawn awoke
I saw green land that kissed red sky
And curling up was smoke

This land was not my destination
But I decided to stop and drink
The wind had stopped and by the time I came near
Dark clouds formed edged with pink

The rain came down in icy sheets
I glanced at the cliff lined shore
The waves were high and mighty
Soon my boat might be no more

I steered and fought and held on tight
In the end the sea prevailed
The salty water crashed over me
It was then my consciousness failed.

I dreamt of many colors
Swimming, spinning then they formed
A face quite smooth and pale
All I saw then faded like the sun did when it stormed

I awoke next to a fire
In the shelter of a tree
I was covered with a blanket
Someone had rescued me

I looked around me quite confused
Remembering how I came to be here
Although I lay in an island paradise
My hand still trembled with fear

The waters were angry and violent last night
They should have killed me very fast
How could anyone have saved my life
In the conditions of the evening past?

Where was the man who rescued me
Why did he leave me alone
Half unconscious under a palm tree
Then I saw a face that shone

The sunlight glistened on his reddish hair
And twinkled in his eyes
To see me lying there awake
Must have been a surprise

H smiled shyly and I melted
A nicer smile I'd never seen
For it was the smile exactly
I had encountered in my dream

"how ya feelin'?" He asked me
I told him I felt fine
"A little weak perhaps"
In his presence I felt divine

"Are you hungry?" He asked me
"Yes" was my reply
He gave me a piece of bread
It was hard and dry

Then he gave me water
I took a sip and it was cold
I finished it and felt refreshed
His kindness made me bold

I asked him how he got here
"What is your name, where are you from?"
He said his name was Ben
And as for how he'd come

He was sailing on a ship
Whence attached a pirate band
While they looted and they slaughtered
Ben had jumped and swam toward land

He waited and he waited
For some whip to come to port
But as the island was deserted
He soon gave up that sport

He grew to love the island
He finally called it home
He built a little tree house
Only problem: he was alone

He sat on the beach day after day
Gathering food and fishing
In the evening he built his boat
His nights were filled with wishing

Wishing he could be home to plan
His brother's bachelor party
Wishing to taste his mother's stew
Warm and rich and hearty

He lets out a sigh then says to me, "Soon,"
"Soon what?"I, confused, asked
"I'll soon return home
"I'm almost done with my task."

"The boat's almost done," he said
"I guess you'll be my first mate."
I smiled and nod, but inside I frowned
My adventure over so soon, but wait

"When will you be done with the boat?"
"In a few days, I think."
In that time I'll acquaint myself well
With this island and it's flowers pink

The next day I spent exploring
I found cliffs, ravines, and streams
I found joy and pleasure hiking
In those dark woods from perilous dreams

I returned at dust and brought
With me some stuff for stew
Glad I'd studied wild plants
How they looked and how they grew

Ben had built a fire
A large shell I used to cook
When he tasted my creation
He gave a pleasèd look

He began to talk for hours
Of adventures, fictitious and true
And before we realized the time had passed
The fire had dies and the coals were few

Soon Ben had it started again
And he said it was time to turn in
"I've only bedding enough for one,
"But you can have it," he said with a grin

I'd rather share it with you, I thought
So I talked to him some more
When the time was right I kissed that man
Then we walked along the shore

I held his hand beneath the moon
And kissed him once again
I laid him down on the sandy shore
As he held me I moaned, "Oh, Ben."

"I enjoyed our time by the fire so much"
I whispered in his listening hear
"I loved the way you create stories
"How I can help you create them, dear.

"I want to be so close to you
"Feel the heat of your body in mine"
I slowly removed his clothes
My God, you made him fine

He's naked now and I kiss him
Every inch from head to toe
Compared to this wonderful moment
The rest of my life seems full of woe

I tough him and move him inside me
And to the rhythm of the sea
We make sweet love with passion
I feel so wild, so free

I say goodnight to my lover
And we sleep on the beach until morning
We awake and make love to each other
Then spend the day exploring

In a few days the boat is finished
And we can soon sail home
But part of me wants to stay here
Where Ben and I are free to roam

We took the ship back to the states
And landed safe and sound
We said our goodbyes and returned to our lives
As I was leaving him, I frowned

I visit our island often
In my private jet
I enjoy the salty air
And remember Ben's salty sweat

I hope someday I'll find him
And with him share our island once again
This time I will not say goodbye
To Ben, my favorite of all men.

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