~Schism~

11/02/2011

0 Comments

 
~Mary liked to snort amyl nitrate~
  ~smoke a little hash~
  ~she favored a bloody drink~
  ~her namesake~
  ~about halfway trashed~
  ~she’d start talkin’ suicide~
  ~I put a pillow in the toilet~
  ~handed her my locked & cocked .357~
  ~lay  your head down baby~
  ~go to sleep~
  ~closed the door & went to have a drink with her ol’ man~
  ~they didn’t talk to me after that~

~1000 Days~
  ~Day 985~
~Schism~
    
~a man might identify~
  ~himself in the mirror~
  ~& ignore the necessity~
  ~of the bullet in his brain~
  ~marked in the cylinder of his gun~
  ~with the initials of his name~
  ~in the holster~
  ~in the schism of life~
  ~that singular piece of each creature~
  ~faced with the ultimatum~
  ~accept the status quo~
  ~or take the next step~
  ~believe in the power of self~
  ~pull the trigger~
  ~take that jump into the beyond~
  ~beyond what~
  ~backed into a corner~
  ~cowards learn a fresh reality~
  ~that preservation of self~
  ~is not the end & all~
  ~courage is a shade of giving up~
  ~no body no space to claim~
  ~a willingness to sacrifice~
  ~to be or not to be is not a question~
  ~it is a declaration~
  ~we may blow through & vanquish~
  ~formidable enemies~
  ~through the realization~
  ~the absolute certainty~
  ~that no one knows for sure~
  ~flesh is a poor proving ground~
  ~the nether a noble reward~

http://wordwulf.com
WordWulf
  Inquiries: tracy@traceliteraryagency.com & wordwulf@wordwulf.com
  © artwork & words conceived by & property of 
Tom (WordWulf) Sterner ©
Add Comment
 

~If I Father~

06/15/2011

0 Comments

 
Picture
~If I Father~
~eighteen when my first daughter was born~thirty-seven when the fifth child~
~my second son came to join us~
~those three girls & two boys have had quite a time with me~
~sharing life with them~the single most significant event of my being~
~has been a prayer~the oldest of eight children~searching for a lifeline~
~I wondered~if I father~

~I have watched each of them sleep~
~tasted the perfect bloom~
~of their sweet child breath~
~thought of myself ~
~as the great protector~
~keeper of precious fragile flames~
~not so much I think~
~as I witness their awakening~
~into the dawn of youth~
~the embrace of young adulthood~
~parenthood~

~I listened to their stories~
~told one to the other and others~
~voices pure and beautiful ~
~as fine silk~
~texture my ears could touch~
~while listening~
~I learned of their suffering~
~that their lives had been staggered~
~by sullen blows of doubt~
~& fear that I~
~their father~
~might come crashing~
~through those doubting walls~
~to discover them~
~in the company of the ghosts~
~of their imperfections~
Picture
~in the night~
~voices speak to me~
~the tiny ones of my children~
~who have come to go~
~will always remain with me~
~grown past the child whispers~
~I aspire to hear~
~I answer them~
~in fatherly mumbles~
~tears in my eyes & melancholy~
~for what has passed~
~in my time of living~
~you see they are the protectors~
~of my imperfections~

~I congratulate myself on a job well done~
~because they need me less now ~
~than ever before~
~& never so much as I imagined~
~in my fatherly throes ~
~my attempts to interpret~
~fatherly duties~
~do’s, dues, & don’ts
~a symphony of tiny voices~
~echoes ring down~
~the spiral canyon of my years~
~they speak to me~
~in a perfect symmetry~
~of childhood wisdom~
~they fairly embrace me to stand~
Picture
~there are those~
~who accuse me of talking to myself~
~they got that right~
~my children are myself~
~the very ones I am addressing~
~ones I have become~
~I may be answering questions~
~from a score of years gone~
~by and by as I watch~
~my daughter with her daughter~
~my oldest son in conversation~
~with his brother~
~twelve years his junior~
~yes daughters & sons~
~with sons & daughters~

~to all of them I say~
~I am your father~
~that is all I am~
~& in that complete~
~you lend me strength~
~make me proud~
~in a most beautiful revelation~
~the knowledge & carriage~
~of our shared imperfections~
~stepping forward through it all~
~embracing & supporting one another~
~you carry me to a place~
~of unconditional devotion~
~love without fear~
~lighting candles~
~in the dark corners of my spirit~

~I am made to be free~
~a man~
~my children have been~
~& remain yet~
 ~perfect sentinels of my journey~

~If I come to see beyond the shadow~
~If I come to walk into and through the fire~
~If I come to feel~
~to love and be loved~
~If I father~
Add Comment
 

~a message to a friend~

06/14/2011

0 Comments

 
Picture
~I Would~

~if I could be a pillow~
~a safe place~
~to lay me down your grief~
~I would~
~if I could be a basket~
~I would gather all your sorrow~
~cast it out into the seven directions~
~I would~ 
~if I could be a fountain~
~I would flow with you~
~through the seven waters of your spirit
~I would always be your friend~
~I would ~
Add Comment
 

~Venerable Youth~

06/13/2011

0 Comments

 
Picture
~I’m a lucky man~sitting in a lawn chair~Colorado springtime~
~breathing in~breathing out~that’s enough~time spent well~
~my wife’s in California~earning our living~she’ll join me in a couple of weeks~
~she brings home the bacon~til my words find their weigh~I’m a lucky man~

~Venerable Youth~

~wherever I am~
~sparrows’ voices will remind me~
~of this day when I am~
~watching his sister~
~cut his hair~
~these vulnerable youth~
~children of mine~
~it is peaceful like~
~after love making~
~after death~
~on the afternoon breeze~
~before midnight~
~peaceful like~
~sparrow feathers~
~in a burning bag~
Add Comment
 
UA-15153748-2