Poetry – Page 52 – Image & Verse

Regal Raptor

Regal Raptor

Oh what joy, to be un-tethered, no longer earthbound, taking flight and soaring skyward! The freedom of feathered wing over hollow bone, riding the thermals, climbing ever upward, gliding and circling effortlessly. I feel the warmth of the sun, as I drift through the heavens, free as the enveloping breeze — such bliss!

Suddenly I dive earthward, wings tucked, rocketing down toward the crystal blue of a crisp mountain lake. My enhanced vision pierces the clear surface of the water, penetrating all the way to the bottom. Spotting my target, I sail out over the lake, racing purposefully, a talon’s reach above the wind-blown chopwater.

In the next moment, I connect. With a slight tilt in my wings, I soar skyward once more, my prize secure in my powerful grasp. I lift toward the top of a massive conifer, towering at water’s edge. Reaching the peak, my wings at full extension, I flap them gracefully backward, pulling against momentum, and softly land. Home — the victorious hunter!

winds urging my wings
lifting me gently skyward
at peace in the clouds

~ ~ ~

https://youtu.be/X3As5kjtdrM

https://youtu.be/6a6lAwbE1J4

https://youtu.be/PnnTy97dG38

https://youtu.be/J74ttSR8lEg

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Unexpected / No No / Snowfall

Unexpected

in the frozen silence
of deepest night
it has come

without warning

bringing down the heavens

surrounding us
close and still
in our moonlit forest

midnight’s snowfall
shimmers like star clusters
under twinkling sky
on the ensparkled boughs
of old growth

it blankets
our high-mountain meadow
in crystal’d down

this night
fell quiet and crisp

a great white owl
echoes
through frosted cedar

lover and beloved

we entwine
‘neath winter’s window
with dreams
and one another

we sleep

in gentle slumber
we traverse time
and space

adrift
in random wonder

we breathe
the ebb and flow
of nocturne

but I’ve drifted
to a winter long ago

you
by firelight
warm and soft
in my arms

the night
that first we kissed

~ ~ ~

—-<|| SECOND POEM ||>—-

No No

the fog rolls ‘cross the lowlands
smothering damp and languid
dense with dread
ominous and dangerous

twilight having receded
moonlight labors hard
slowly shouldering its way
through the thickening shroud

gnarled shape of leaf-dead trees
their spindly spiked branches
thrust skyward knobbed and twisted
their trunks bent threateningly

muffled deep within my soul
a chaotic chill of seeming voices
shiver a darkling quaver
no no, no mo’ snow — please!

—-<|| HAIKU ||>—-

Snowfall

still lands cloaked in white
lakes bejeweled in crystal
winter’s dressing hand

~ ~ ~

Here’s Tina with a tune for P&ST dance party!

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Grace

SCENE FROM A MYSTERY

“What do you mean Eric,” Grace inquired, the strain obvious in her weary voice. “who exactly is going to take on Sebastian — and why?” Her voice trailed off to an exasperated whisper. The why was not so much a question, as it was confused frustration. She seemed to know the answer was much too complicated to address at this hour, and she was too spent, physically and emotionally, to want to hear it.

Grace turned away from Eric, head lowered. Her arms fell limp at her sides, fingers splayed. She was trying her best to process what her friend Eric was saying, to understand him — to understand the recent events that had brought her to this place in time — to make sense of anything. Her head was spinning, and she could feel the fatigue deep in her bones.

She dropped back onto the sofa, half sitting, half lying down — an exhausted slouch. She felt paralyzed, thoughts racing through her mind, fragmented, disconnected thoughts.

She looked at her hands, palms down in her lap, her eyes glazing over. Her vision drifted to her wrists, her left wrist in particular — to her watch. Slowly, through her fog, it came into focus, and she realized she was staring at the broken crystal face of her Audemars Piguet Promesse.

Ever since Sebastian had given her this watch for their anniversary, her life had turned upside down, but it had also turned a corner. Fate had pushed her round that corner, and she would never turn back again. Her life as Mrs. Kensington was over.

She knew this, knew it as surely as she knew she missed her children. Something must be done to get them out of that house — his house. It could no longer be her home, but they would always be her children, and she feared for them. They had to be part of whatever direction fate was leading her.

It was fate that had broken the crystal. Fate, and her quick reflexes, blocking Sebastian with her forearm! He’d lashed out at her in anger, following their anniversary dinner. But why? Had she known his violent nature, things would be different. Where was fate leading her? Her thoughts swirled midst her exhaustion.

To be continued…

~ ~ ~

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Nightfire

Nightfire

the iron door
you fling it open
for the first time
but I’m gone

I have moved on
to be the clarion
for the ages to come
I am become
a nightfire

a whisper of the elders
rising in the night
a hallowed murmur
of enlightenment
a persistent echo
of the knowledge
of the ancestors

a frail flagging flame
of the sacred fire
its embers
now near ashen
but still aglow

in a world out of balance
I will help stir to flame
the smoldering wisdom
from times well past
unto time eternal

I am become

~ ~ ~

https://youtu.be/FBUe_v6Mi70

To check out more poems at dVerse: CLICK HERE

Apparition

Apparition

across the way
backlit by the dawn
she moves languidly
her form fired golden
ablaze in morning sunlight

her silhouette radiates
as if an apparition
as if an angel
my breath catches in my chest
my whole being aglow

then I awake
to heartache

~ ~ ~

Awaking to the sobering realization — she’s gone!
______________

ALTERNATE ENDING COUPLET:
“waking this morn
love newborn”

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Owl & Raven

Owl & Raven

owl owl great and white
will you be my dearest friend tonight
enfold me in the wisdom of the ancients

raven raven dark as midnight
please tell me true — which fable’s right
and tell me which here is a false illusion

moon moon both dark and light
wrap us in your beams tonight
and ferry us off to a magic realm above

where we will live a life to last
to celebrate our sweet contrast
an ever meaningful life of honest love

~ ~ ~

https://youtu.be/wi3LIc9rw0Q

To check out more poems at The Sunday Muse: CLICK HERE

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Hatsuyume

Hatsuyume

a new sun rises
the first dream of the new year
brings hope to the world
let us awake to this warmth
and raise our face to promise

~ ~ ~

https://youtu.be/Ff-0pHwyQ1g

For more poems at Poets and Storytellers United: CLICK HERE

Unmask

“Unmask” by: Maxence

Unmask

outside
the evening breeze freshens
as the copper windchimes
hanging from the eaves
ring from time to time

just beyond
the big roan
rustles in his stall
as the faded red slats
of the weathered horse barn
quietly creak

inside
at the oak table
we sit with dinner
and complacency

there is little resonance

we care for one another
our love goes without saying

meal finished
we clear the table
to the clinks and clanks
of china and sterling
being rinsed
in the stainless steel sink

we converse very little

no need
we know each other
we know without saying

task done
we part quietly

me
to my desk
to write

you
to your chair
to read

outside
golden sunset
softly shades
the side deck
to easy sounds
of settling horses
content from final feeding

tubular bells lilt quietly
in gathering twilight

inside
soft shadows
blanket subtle activity

we are comfortable
in our quiet bond
that goes without saying

outside
a wakening wind
greets day’s end
chimes vigorously keep pace

inside
turbulent uncertainty
stirs

as I type
I wonder

are we really happy
surely we are
that goes without saying

but why is it
we do not say

we wear these masks of coy silence
to hide the vulnerable face of love

how dangerously foolish we’ve become

it’s then
my heart wants to call out
to rouse you
from your pulp and plot

talk with me
I lift my mask
see me now
see me new

talk with me
I can still surprise

let us say
what is not said
unmask our hearts
and talk
before our love
slips away
without ever saying

outside
copper
chimes in the darkness

inside
silence
rings aloud

~ ~ ~

Written by Leon Russell, this song inspired me to write this poem.

To check out more poems at dVerse: CLICK HERE

Letters of Life

Letters of Life

letter by letter
word by word
I reach out

from fingertips flow feelings
mindfully crafting verse
sculpting images

memory engaged
spirit enlivened
my thoughts ignite
my heart pours forth

I share
honest emotion
barriers down

longing for connection

~ ~ ~

rob kistner © 1/19/21

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The Dark Battle

Depression has been a challenge most of my adult life.

The Dark Battle

I sometimes get very dark, my emotions get brittle. Sometimes the great bones of my life feel so heavy that anger at life swells. Try as I might to fight it, this darkness still surfaces, my inner light goes out. But I continue facing it down when I feel its chilled grip.

That is what life is, keeping the good fight, finding the balance, because life is all about balance. The keeping of it, and the regaining of it when it’s lost. And it does get lost at times, very lost

But waging the battle’s an opportunity to confront the profound, and the mysterious. The great mystery we are not meant to solve, but rather to ponder with grace and wonder, in the embrace of love. For love is the gateway to the great mystery. And it is love that will light the darkness.

~ ~ ~

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Bewitched

An homage to the golden days of Hollywood, and the sultry sirens that sizzled on the big silver screen.

Bewitched

goddess of the silver screen
every man’s fantasy
luscious charms beguile bewitch
a most gorgeous mystery

golden lady of sensuous gaze
a beauty sure to mesmerize
face sculpted by a master’s hand
so seductive as to scandalize

her stare whispers come hither boy
as it floats above a comely pout
spellbound by her big magic eyes
she holds your soul with no way out

her tongue tip teases her top lip’s. edge
like a supple paintbrush flowing
this woman-girl’s smile will hypnotize
then wrap around you knowing

you are now her helpless captive
quite hopelessly addicted
in the velvet grip of this smoldering vamp
but is she an angel — or fiery wicked

~ ~ ~

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Sunrise Sage

Sunrise Sage

on the boulevard below
last night’s rain puddles
midst the chaos of metro-clutter
held hostage by tire and curb
as if abandoned
by the disinterested waters
of mother earth

it shoulders its way through the gutters
in search of a welcoming sea

as the rising sun embraces this morning
day begins golden and crisp
bird songs echo empty sunrise streets

prisoners of this quarantine
me and my loyal iPad
we sit by this morning window
with coffee and curiosity
quietly perplexed by this morning’s news

I read The Atlantic online
CNN drones on my wall TV

occasionally distracted
I avoid both angry screens
growing troubled by our human plight
amazed how we never learn
when the answers seem so obvious

in this moment
my head drums
my frustration rises
my spirit slips
my mind drifts
lifting on the vapor ribbons
wafting from my steaming cup
until I stare unfocused

TV announcer’s mouth continues sculpting words
but I have fallen deep into my thoughts
imagining how different it would be
if I ruled this fucking world

~ ~ ~

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Wonderpages

Wonderpages

this is not a book
it is a rocket into space
taking you to amazing places
beyond your wildest imagination

where you can watch
the golden clouds of Telure
wafting up its emerald climbs
high over its warm cerulean seas

where you can hear
the shrill haunting calls
of fast coral-winged Lellurts
racing into Droon’s violet skies

or see the copper hues
of rustling Parmus fronds
fire the indigo ground mists
beneath Gemin’s crystal trees

or maybe a genie’s lamp
carrying you off to Xanadu
to Kubla Khan’s pleasure-dome
where the sacred river Alph runs

or perhaps an enchantment
that introduces you to Bastian
and you two adventure to Fantasia
to save the kingdom from The Nothing

no, this is not a book
it’s a time travel vehicle
a portal to parallel worlds
it’s a key to unlock wonders
it’s imagination’s magic carpet
it is anything you dream it to be
but it’s definitely not — just a book

~ ~ ~

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Ghostin’

Ghostin’

~
ground red ghost pepper
just the very smallest dab
will do ‘ya
ground red ghost pepper
it adds a fiery flavor flair
ground red ghost pepper
makes flamin’ foods that rip
right through ‘ya
soon you’ll be cryin’
as you’re kneelin’
deep in prayer

To watch and hear me sorta SING Ghostin: CLICK HERE

~ ~ ~

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https://youtu.be/5Kahhl5Qhus

Tender Tart

Tender Tart

tender apple
round and ripe
twas I
took that bite
last night

my mouth upon you
hungrily
oh lush plush pink lady

I bite you
firm but gentle
sweetly as ambrosia

you glisten
honeycrisp
trickle from my lips

you taste
golden delicious
tart as jonagold

tender flesh
so succulent
saucy treat sweetango

again I bite
with such delight
your tantalizing treasure

my soul’s afire
heady desire
such luscious juicy pleasure

~ ~ ~

To check out more poems at The Sunday Muse: CLICK HERE

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