Category Archives: The Pen

Insomnia

Sunday Scribbling #306 rest

In the puddled hours
that lay at the base
of the clock,
I wonder if I am leaving
and in the leaving
will there be grace?

I pull the tiny threads
ties that bound and
sometimes gagged,
and feel them travel
down the dreams
of future wonder
undone.

smoothing knots
like a brush drawn
through silver hair,
shimmer waves of
memory,
cascading down,
unbraided
over stooped shoulders.

weary I wish to close
sanded eyes,
and sink into dark.
cradled in safety,
doors barred against
nightmare wolves
that howl at
a gibbous moon.

Cassiopeia

What thoughts spin
through a midnight mind
hung with the stars
draped in velvet regret
a beautiful prison
unchanging eternal
all for a careless word
vanity’s prize

Does she dream
from her heavenly perch
of the daughter
who was bound
for the sin of the mother
and rescued by love
of another

In love with herself
with herself she
remains
now watched by a world
she can never attain

 

Image Credit: http://spaceshipearth1.files.wordpress.com/2010/10/cassiopeia.jpg

Fairy Dust

dark summers night
she reaches for light
magicked feet hold fast to ground

he creeps up behind her
wishes to bind her
brushing stars from her wings
oldest language he sings
she is bound

one tear tells
no love spells

earthbound a prison
though softened with love
keeps fairies from soaring
to heaven above

It Is Well

to breath in rivers
of stinging cold
that tastes of stars
and snowflakes
whispers of secrets
floating down rock-a-bye
sorrow tomorrow
peace tonight
softly curled around
the shivery moon
it is well
tree lights glow
through window panes
with my soul
staring into the dark
feet on solid ground
sweater tightly wrapped
I feel myself grow solid too
it is well

Always Sunset

glory shines
round here tonight
the day is done
peace is nigh
rose and peach
and lavender sky
calls all to quiet
the stillness moves
across the deep
I lay me down
my soul to keep

my soul to keep
the day is done
eyes close in faith
tomorrow comes
and sleeping sun
again will rise
color painting
morning skies
and with the sun
each greets the day
a gift to all
til once again
the evening falls
and sunset calls
the world to rest

another from the AllPoetry archives

Poetry Grill

no food satisfies like
words bubbling
syllabic chewing
soul on a parchment
plate all about
the presentation
pen just so
chewed up
eaten out
loud

more from the AllPoetry Archives

Anticipation

on the edge of the ledge of the jumping
off pumping fist over the topping
I’m hopping on one foot and then
on the other no blanket
can smother the hope and the waiting is
killing me filling me piling excitement
indict me you want to but so would you
do what I do if you knew
don’t be late took the bait
I can’t wait

 

from the AllPoetry archives

So Sing With Me

there is a song a tune
a melody the beat
that meets me where I am
and walks my feet down
greener paths that eyes can see
the breath the spark
the inner heart
the soul the whole of me
that lives and dreams
and has a voice that joins
the world creation told
the thing that makes me
who I am a different being
than you and I will sing
oh I will sing

and
you can sing with me
sing a verse a chorus
all can join us
harmony will carry me
and you and all to
mountaintop and river edge
and pray a hedge around
and round
and coming down we each
will greet our brother
sister father mother
holding hands and lifting
voices sun will set but
we will still be singing softly
as it fades we sleep in peace
the peace we need so badly
all be fed and warm and safe
we pray you stay
forever in the keeping
of the One conducting
orchestrating planning loving
bringing all to the finale

heavenly angels lend
their voices
wings a’brushing clouds
with softest hues we choose
to listen choose to see
with hearts and minds
and hands and feet
so sweet the song
so sing with me

 

from the AllPoetry archives

Chronicles Part 1

 

velvet wings folded round
covering me with grace and peace
“Fear not. I am with you. Always”
Those words whisper
in my  heart and my shivering stops.

“Even in a time of elephantine vanity and greed, one never has to look far to see the campfires of gentle people.”  – Garrison Keillor

Three Adventurers

Sunday Scribbling 297: Fairytale

 

the depths of which
cannot be plumbed
the heights
cannot be scaled
a wilderness
so desolate
imagination pales

yet we the three
adventurers
move on though
pushed by gales
that blow from north
and south and east
and even from the west

but we the three
adventurers
push on to pass
the test
through perilous trail
through cliff and cave
blizzard blinded
onward quest

for we are three
adventurers
brave and strong
and true
though trials and fears
are real my friends and I
will follow through

And later
when the treasure found
we’ll pass the bottle
round and round
and by the fire
burning bright
tell tales throughout
the starlit night
as sparks rise
high and higher still
we’ll laugh and drink
and eat our fill

for we are three
adventurers
home safely warm abide
until the next
we journey forth
the stars our only guide
so merry now
and merry then
and merry come what may
the call to quest
rings loudly out
adventurers obey

image credit: Mobius Cave by Clint Cearley

 

NaNoWriMo 2011 Fini

NaNoWriMo 2011 has been dominated. I hit 50009 words at 10:30 a.m. November 26, 2011.

I did what I set out to do. What I wrote in 2011 is better than what I wrote in 2009. There was an outline, and even though I changed the plot in some major ways, I kept everything in sections, marked revisions, added note sections, and best of all…I still like my characters, I want to spend more time with them. Considering the rewriting and editing that will have to happen before I can call this complete, it is a good thing I don’t want them dead yet.

I learned that for me, sitting down and writing whether I feel like it or not is important. Even if I write utter garbage and bore myself to tears, if I just force myself to keep going, it gets better. It seems very similar to exercise. The whole talking yourself into doing something you really don’t feel like doing. The stiffness at first. The settling into a pace that feels comfortable, and then picking up the pace as you get into the zone and feeling the burn at the end.

The good tired feeling at the end accompanied by the sense of accomplishment.

NaNoWriMo is a race against yourself and the clock but more than that, for me, it is about developing a habit of stepping up to the keyboard and just doing it.

I know this will all need to marinate and I may read my story later and decide that I hate it after all but for now? I will watch the little NaNoWriMo winners video where everyone applauds and congratulates you for “winning”. Basking in the afterglow.

Back to the world.

NaNoWriMo Outtake Jae and Aedan Update

I cruised past the 36000 line this morning. This week will be tough with the holidays, a trip out of town, and family coming home. I plan to do some solid pushing ahead this evening to see if I can’t get ahead.  I have changes and rearranged, plot, point of view, tense and now have a mishmash to wade through after November. I tried to keep it in labeled sections and if they are rewrites, I marked the version. I think I might need to invest in software designed for novel writing. After November I will be researching what is available and see what would be a good fit for me. Something that lets me keep track of characters, places, versions, and lets me reorder pieces that I write out of sequence.If anyone has experience and is comfortable with a particular piece of software (preferable one that doesn’t have a huge complicated learning curve) I would love to hear about it.

Creative copy Challenge 195: fail, trivia, master, dirt, swerve, memory, drive, bed, touch, right

We had been at it for hours. I was exhausted and more than a little pissed right now.  Aedan had my mother’s spell book in his lap. I had tried and tried to commit the words to memory, the actions as habit, and I just couldn’t seem to meld the two. I never had been able to do two things at one time. “You don’t have to drive me so hard. I’m tired. I want to take a shower and go to bed.” I sounded petulant even to myself. That just managed to irritate me more.

“This isn’t some kind of trivia game, Jae. If you don’t learn to control your power you will not be ready when Lucia comes back. You can master a few moves for defense, you have the touch. If you fail, you die. I will be with you all I can, but what if we get separated?” Aedan stood and placed the book on the chair. “Try it on me. Maybe that is the problem. You have no clear vision of where to aim the magic.”

“What? No! What if I hurt you? I have little control.” Now he was just being stupid. I was mad at him but it wasn’t his fault. He was just trying to help. I didn’t want to hurt him.

Aedan snorted. “You haven’t been able to cast enough to give me a pimple! You fade in and out as you shift and as a wolf, you try to swerve and run into a tree. It takes you forever just to shake it off and pick yourself up out of the dirt. From what I read in her book, your mother would be embarrassed. I am not worried. “

“Oh you did not go there!” I felt cold anger take me over.  My mother would be embarrassed? My hands were a blur of motion in the air and words I didn’t know were in my head poured out of me. I saw nothing, not Aedan, not the cabin, just red like blood. I felt it all, pouring through me, out my fingers and then a bright flash and I crumpled. My heart was pounding and my head throbbed. The cold receded and something whispered in my head. Aedan was lying on the floor a few feet from where he had been standing. I tried to make my limbs work and managed to drag myself to him.
“Aedan? Oh my god, I’m sorry. I’m sorry. Please wake up!” I knew this was a bad idea. Aedan moaned and turned over. Holy shit Jae. You trying to kill me? His words sounded funny, as though he had a bad case of laryngitis.

I started to cry. “You idiot! I thought you were dead! Why did you do that?”  I fell back on the floor next to him, shaking uncontrollably. “Guess I am stronger than I thought.”

Aedan reached for my hand.  “Looks like we found the key to your magic. Remind me never to really piss you off.”

I hate it when he is right.

We Remember The Garden

We bore the shame
for mankind’s blame
gave birth in pain
and grieved the same
and at days end
our life’s blood spend
We give our power
for one sweet shower
of rain that falls
on Eden’s halls
We storm the walls
and cry out loud
Eternity’s shroud
will cover us
for dust to dust
is but to trust
there will be more
we storm the door
with prayer and plea
Oh let us see
The penance done
The time has come
For we remember
how it felt
to walk the ground
where God has knelt
and by his hand
made man to stand

Somewhere in dna memory dwells
hidden in blood and bone and cell

and we remember
yes we remember