Air Head
•
yes
I agreed
it did make your voice
sound funny
but
I warned you
there might be
negative side-effects
• • •
rob kistner © 4/10/11
Air Head
Author: Rob Kistner
Had Not
•
had not she crossed my threshold
on that september day
had not her voice
drifted like silk on a summer breeze
to wrap sheer and sweet
around my heart
had not I been drawn
like a bloom to the morning sun
had not I been captivated
as a hummingbird
by a drop of nectar
crystal on a velvet petal
had not my love come down
soft as a rolling mountain meadow
had not this dream been born
had not my life begun again
• • •
rob kistner © 2011
Deep Indigo
•
he wakes
unbidden by alarm
lingers in the darkness
warm neath the blankets
fumbling for the lamp
follows moments of procrastination
before he lifts himself upright
slides feet into slippers
to rise ever so stiffly
from the comfort of bed
pulling on his robe
he ambles to the kitchen
takes a cup from the shelf
pours chamomile tea
brewed ready each morning
by the wonders of technology
he retreats to his office
to his chair
where it waits
welcoming
in a pool of soft light
buffered against the chill
of pre-dawn dark
he sits
sips steeped motivation
quietly peeling away fog
that layers his mind
residue of another fitful night
he is somber
but pleased to be awake
to be alive
grateful for the peace
and the quiet of early morning
fleeting though it is
his thoughts
begin to un-blend
to gather
in a cohesive palette
stirring his notice
slowly they sort
in colors of mood
melancholy greys
fear’s dark ebony
purples of pain and anger
the violet of regret
sorrowful blues
gentle peaceful greens
golden joy
laughter’s bright amber
love’s ruby red
the scarlet of passion
this morning
reflections on his mortality
newly threatened
shoulder in coldly
crowding his reverie
pondering his plight
cursing fate
he struggles
neath the weight of uncertainty
a riot of emotions
overcome him
he seeks clarity
he reaches for his laptop
his tool of resolution
his canvass of language
in the spreading saffrons
and corals of dawn
he begins painting deep indigo
• • •
rob kistner © 2011
Shuffle
Shuffle
•
life deals the cards
face down
from a deck
stacked full with jokers
rare
the precious wild card
the game plays out
slowly
turning each card
hand at risk
wild card
strikes a jackpot
play continues
but the jester
hand is bust
player folds
not until
the hand is forfeit
or the final card
face up
is it known
what fate has dealt
• • •
rob kistner © 4/6/11
Lucid 5:00 AM
•
at pre-dawn five am — I see…
all my faults and failures
the importance of forgiveness
precisely why I love my wife
the perfect way to let her know
the miracle of my children
how to be a better father
the power of friendship
the value in being true
how blessed I truly am
the insignificance of my problems
the wisdom of patience
why it should be embraced
the beauty of the world
the essence of it’s magic
the meaning of life
the foolishness of wasting it
…then the rising sun
obscures my clear vision
again I stumble — blindly
• • •
rob kistner © 2011
Ship of Dreams
…I have always loved the fantasy art of Dean Morrissey and James C. Christensen, and this week’s prompt at Writer’s Island put me in mind of their highly imaginative and captivating work, which in turn inspired the poem below, with its “tongue-in-cheek” ending…
Ship of Dreams
•
fantastic is this spell I’m under
magic of a splendorous kind
a world of cornucopic wonder
treasure troves of dreams to plunder
in this kingdom of my mind
here I live a life enchanted
here no fear of any threat
sorrow is by joy supplanted
no limit to desires granted
what I want is what I get
fantasy’s elaboration
a god of pleasure I ascend
soar in sweet hallucination
in ships of my imagination
oh, would this dream but never end
Epilogue
well now, oh dear, that was a bit much
somewhat carried away it seems
euphoria finds me out of touch
with reality, good sense, and such
perhaps I’ll temper my daydreams
throttle back my vision quest
bring fascinations down to size
moderation will serve me best
but dreams are so hard to repress
no limits when you fantasize
• • •
rob kistner © 3/26/11
• written for Writer’s Island
• art piece at top by Dean Morrissey
Limitless
Limitless
•
• written for Writer’s Island
La Nature du Feu
…per this week’s prompt at Big Tent Poetry, this is a gentle rewrite of a poem of mine
originally published in the 2010 RWP Anthology…
The Nature of Fire
A Poem Using Three Lines from Norman Dubie’s “Of Politics & Art”
(the borrowed lines are italicized)
•
here
on the farthest point of the peninsula
an office building is burning
ignited by a single match
careless or criminal
not yet known
inconceivable
that such a structure
can be so wholly engulfed
but the fire was too fierce
and the distance too great
for rescue
but what of the fury
in that single first flame
to have leapt so viciously to consume
to ravage
to devastate so absolutely
it is always there
la nature du feu
like the rage of a repressed
and violated being
too long held down
unjustly deprived
confined
all potential denied
where there is great potential
spirit squelched
where there is great spirit
sometimes a whole civilization can be dying
until finally a single incident
the spark
unleashes a righteous inferno
that has no bounds
it is always there
la nature du feu
all around the good people gather
stare in disbelief
how is this possible here
not realizing that such power to combust
to blaze so brilliantly
can only be suppressed for so long
it is always there
la nature du feu
ready to explode
like the fury in the head of that match
and when the smoulder becomes full flame
all will burn
out here on the peninsula
and in here
at the still and protected center
• • •
rob kistner © 2011
Poet In Arms
Poet
abandon vague image
do not weave a fabric of myth
or speak to us in grand verse
telling of the song of the spheres
or the days before this dark time
you see many things poet
but you talk in riddles
you avoid the cold hard way
for the soft path of platitudes
of metaphors
of meter and rhyme
but this is not the time
look poet
look into the flames
the fire of human suffering
feel it burn your eyes
char your soul
tell us how that feels
tell us how to see
with our own eyes
help us see the real place of light
you must tell us poet
in the power of plain language
in the clear voice of truth
tell us what is real
we will listen
with a pure heart of justice
raise your shield of words
lift your pen poet
like a sword
show us the grip
we will save the beauty
celebrate the wonder
protect the unique splendor
or we will join the battle
to strike down imbalance
to drive away sorrow
lead us poet
we will follow
*
rob kistner © 2011
Written for: Magpie Tales
Poetry at: dVerse
Poetry at: Poets & Storytellers
Poetry at: earthweal
Equinox
Equinox
•
winter’s journey ends
lengthening light bears witness
spring crests and breaks
here at the equinox
life bursts forth
poking through pliant soil
unfurling on barren branch
here at the equinox
nature stirs in song and call
celebrating new birth
sustaining the cycle
here at the equinox
my heart leaps
my spirit dances
to this rhythm of renewal
here at the equinox
• • •
rob kistner © 3/20/11
Inseparable
•
if far not near
if there not here
one is not
without the other
so is up to down
and on to off
in to out
as hard to soft
it’s good or bad
happy sad
young or old
if hot not cold
it’s stop to go
either yes or no
as is likewise
fast to slow
dark and light
as in day and night
the quintessential
he and she
it is the one
defines the other
inseparable
as you and me
• • •
rob kistner © 2011
…written for Writer’s Island
Soul Breeze
•
thoughts drift by gently
my mood is mellow this day
I linger at rest
dreaming of the spring breezes
that tickle my soul to life
• • •
rob kistner © 2011
use ‘mellow’, ‘breeze’, and ‘tickle’ in a poem…
Young Flower
Young Flower
•
velvet soft
passion’d purple
newly bloomed flower
full and succulent
tender plumped folds
glisten with dewy nectar
heady fragrance
pleasures the senses
luscious form
ripened blush
delights the eye
a gentle touch parts silken petals
reveals the inner bud
swollen with the urgency of life
intoxicating
such vital beauty
consumed
one savors slowly
exquisitely delicious
this young flower
full bloomed
• • •
rob kistner © 3/14/11
…written for Magpie Tales
The Mourning
•
the hollow wallow
aglow in the spotlight’s heat
to boast odes of praise for him
in death
who had few words of warmth for him
in life
while those who love him
pay true tribute
with searing tears
of silent grief
• • •
rob kistner © 2011
The Keepers
•
from the spark of cognizance
at the dawn of awareness
through the ions of fire and conflict
forward past the dark times
beyond the ages of change
into these centuries of new growth
they have kept it
locked in their hearts
burning in their souls
the keepers of the secret
and now
on the threshold of actualization
realizations unfold
its safeguard is the catalyst
it must never be told
• • •
rob kistner © 2011