I knew
though I waited for the words
and hoped through the years
that I was wrong
I knew
though I waited for the time
when you felt safe to tell me
or came to terms yourself.
I knew
though I waited silently
and didn’t tell a soul
I knew.
poem- swirl January 16, 2014
Reality spins
into imagination
awakening dreams
long forgotten.
Reality whirls
through intimations
of what seems
downtrodden
Reality curls
into foundations
revealing themes
all new again.
poem- self-fulfilling prophecies October 26, 2013
At four hundred pounds
she filled every room
I am beautiful!
I am amazing!
I am entertaining!
I will help you succeed!
They didn’t question
her self-control
her ugly words
her petty cruelties
her avarice
They accepted every word
and made it true.
poem- your story August 26, 2013
Your story is locked inside
You won’t talk, instead
you find a new subject:
clothes or garden.
‘What’s done is done,’
you say.
‘That was another day.’
History locked away
inside a vault,
leaving fathomless mysteries
names on birth certificates
and censuses.
Secrets saved as treasures,
Truth tucked tightly behind
closed doors
you won’t unlock.
poem- today August 6, 2013
Today
I know what is right
Today
I have seen weakness
Today
I have seen strength
Today
I have seen courage
Today
I have seen tenderness.
Today
I have seen evil
Today
I have seen good
Today
I have seen you
Today
You have seen me
Today
you know who I am
Today
I know who you are
Today
Amid your warlike screeches
I am nestled in peace.
poem- modern illiteracy August 2, 2013
Each day she enters the library
trailing behind her friends to sign out a book-
one they suggest or something near that’s fat
and impressive.
“I could never read a book that thick!”
“I heard that author is great!”
She settles into her seat, and
during silent reading
she opens to the middle and flips pages
occasionally looking at the cryptic shapes
arranged on the page to find words she knows,
but mostly her eyes are elsewhere as she turns
the page, stealthily,
wondering what others see when they read
wondering if they are pretending,
wondering if anyone notices.
At the end of each class,
its mysteries too deep to decipher
she drops the book into the library bin.
“Are you done already?”
“Yes. It was really good.”
common denominator April 9, 2013
I am
the common denominator
in my life.
If trouble comes
time
after time
after time,
relationship
after relationship
after relationship,
What each event
has in common
is me.
.
In Grace Awakening Power, Bright tells Grace that she is the common denominator to the problems. It’s not that it’s Grace’s fault that bad things happen to her, but they aren’t happening to other people, they’re happening to her, and it’s something in her that brings the trouble.
I’ve been thinking about this one a lot lately and wondering how to change the factors that result in the common denominator of my experience. How about you? Can you see how changing one or two things could change your experiences in a profound way?
PS. If find it very interesting that when centred, this poem took the shape of a punching bag. You punch these bags, and they whip right back at you. It seems full of profound symbolism. How do you interpret it?
don’t February 4, 2013
don’t show it
when you’re feeling
crazy angry.
don’t show it
when you’re feeling
upside down.
don’t show it
when you’re feeling
like a bobbing cork
in the ocean:
directionless,
lonely.
don’t show it.
smile.
kiss them all.
glow with laughter.
don’t show.
tell
lies.
masks August 25, 2011
“Man is least himself when he talks in his own person. Give him a mask, and he will tell you the truth.” Oscar Wilde
It’s an interesting idea, don’t you think? I can see how character and philosophy oozes out from between the lines of an author’s work. I know that people who know me laugh when they read my work, because they can hear my voice in the style.
What do you think? Do you think you reveal more about yourself by your action and writings (particularly writing in character) than you do when responding to others?
PS. Still looking for the short story “Masks” as per this blog
Shawn L. Bird 
Quatrain August 4, 2011
Tags: awakening dreams, grace, Grace Awakening, poetry, postaday2011, quatrain, reality, truth, wisdom
Reality is a dream awoken
Truth is perception spoken
Wisdom is a lifetime’s token
Grace is long love unbroken
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