Tag: longing

Bridge of Dreams

NaPoMo poem #2

This is the second of the poems I will be writing each day here in April, in honor of National Poetry Month, as proclaimed by the Academy of American Poets.

• NOTE: these poems will all essentially be early drafts, so edits may occur after their initial posting.

 

 

Bridge of Dreams

•

possessed of all it is I am
I breath a sigh of longing
and wish for what it is I’m not
across the bridge of dreams

I covet not a kingly right
nor scepter gold to rule a realm
I seek to fill my barren soul
across the bridge of dreams

worldly wealth is not my goal
nor power over minions
enlightenment is what I seek
across the bridge of dreams

• • •

rob kistner © 2009

___________________________

• you can find other NaPoMo offerings at read write poem

 

Splendid Fool

NaPoMo poem #1

This is the first of the poems I will be writing each day here in April, in honor of National Poetry Month, as proclaimed by the Academy of American Poets. As April 1st is also ‘Fools Day’, I felt the subject of this piece to be most appropriate.

• NOTE: these poems will all essentially be early drafts, so edits may occur after their initial posting.

 

Splendid Fool

•

spring can make one
act the splendid fool
heady with anticipation
desires sparkle like a jewel

now intoxicated
winter’s pale heart yearns
to feel this grand unfolding
as nature’s great mandala turns

this sweet inebriation
of love’s eager soul
can spark the rash impulsive
and draw one to the jester’s role

be wary – for when one’s
caught in this season’s swoon
that which brittles in january
one might embrace in supple june

the elixir of a world in bloom
is to the lusting lovelorn
a most dangerous of potions
causing clear thought to be stillborn

remember and be warned
under passion’s frenzied rule
spring will often make one
act quite the splendid fool

• • •

rob kistner © 2009

___________________________

• you can find other NaPoMo offerings at read write poem

 

Skyward

 

…photo below entitled “Followed by a Dream”, by Pensiero…

Skyward

•

if I could but glide
to the top of these stairs
like a bird in flight

I would soar skyward
in sweeping circles
lifted on mighty thermals

I would not be earthbound
not a prisoner of these steps
not captive by gravity

and… I would not return to work

this afternoon would be soaring
and swooping
and giving thanks
for feathers and hollow bones

• • •

rob kistner © 2009

 

…poem inspired by a different photo from Pensiero, the individual who created the photo seen in read write image #12, found at “readwritepoem”

 

Love & War (two poems)

 

Love & War

 

The Nightmare

•

my eyes

crisp from the day’s cruel sun
burnt by devastation’s fires
scorched by images of relentless horror

take refuge
in this late-evening fog
settling heavy as a shroud

clinging
opaque
mercifully obscuring

I am sustained
by this damp pall
that descends cool upon me

wraps ‘round my pained countenance
fevered with fatigue
twisted with despair

drawn
by a faded memory of honor
a faint echo of duty
a frayed thread of human dignity

I stumble
broken by this sin I shoulder

not of my making
but of my charge

my sin

unleashed by others
who would impose their delusions
to advance their evil agenda

those who would rule the world

a world now broken
corrupted by their illusions
spoiled by their vanity

a world in chaos
as darkness deepens

this nocturne
I have but this ruin-riddled
highway of blood

of dying dreams
violated innocence
merciless destruction

of horrific death

this path of my duplicity
of my guilt
my shame

and so
I stumble on
bent by the weight of this falling evening
drowned in its drenching sorrow

my spirit hollow and empty
I slink exhausted
into this coming night
and
the next night
and
the night that follows
that always follows

captive on this road of murder
of brutal
human
arrogance

a prisoner
of this lost highway

seeking forgiveness

• • •

 

The Return

•

distant
slurred
reverberant

like a voice in a canyon
I hear you calling
from the past

my name
rolling sweet as nectar
from your lips
soft as orchid petals
full as a bursting peach

glistening deep coral
as they wrapped softly
‘round each pouted syllable
when you bid me tender farewell
so long ago

our fingertips had strained to grasp
until the final sensation of warmth
of touch
had faded

and they drifted apart

I had struggled
to tear my eyes from your tears
that glistened on your lashes
and around your swollen eyes
blue as a deep summer sky

to slip softly
over the crests of your velvet cheeks
down the contour of your face
flushed as sunset
to lightly salt your quivering lips

numb and dazed
I tunneled down the loading gate
toward the jet
that took me to hell

in those final moments
I locked the image
of your sorrowed face of love
deep in my heart

there it lives as my salvation
my only grasp on sanity
in these horrific years

my lips too
had quivered on that day
from the sting of separation

from the chilling knowledge
I would soon taste
the bitter blood of war
foul with the stench of death

not yet departed
I had longed
on that day
to gaze once more
into your brilliant blue eyes
and taste your sweetness on my lips

as I return this day
trying to face reality at 30,000 feet
I taste the salt of sadness

I fear a kiss from me
with my killer’s mouth
will forever defile
the fragile innocence of your lips

soft as orchid petals
full as a bursting peach

that glistened
and quivered
when last we parted

• • •

rob kistner © 2009

___________________________________

…photorendering entitled “Blood Orchid” by: rob kistner © 2008

 

The Shine

 

 

The Shine

•

I sit

watch the flow of people

the shuffle of feet
with their different sounds
according to their shoes

I see wan faces
of unsmiling lips
their void curves denounce this night

yet unseen
is the gossamer curtain’s fall
that defines their soul’s duality

the divergent reality
through which truth stumbles blind
to move in the world
rough as a rope
taut as every promise made

frayed as wisdom
leaned in
whispered from behind

grab at time like dropped money

I might learn something tonight
if someone will release the light
so I can shine like a child
who likes ice cream most of all

this child reads old men’s minds
and notices the shoes
the belts all made of leather

I feel a shiver
of sad imbalance
a confliction in my soul

so I will watch the shoes
and practice non-attachment
because I can

but pieces of me
stick to whoever gets too close

you may have seen me
silhouetted against the sky
the coldest night in January
howling with the frozen moon

then moon and I sneak
through fate’s construct
among cages of studs & trusses
we run

from room to imaginary room
the whole world close enough to touch

we eat a midnight lunch
of damaged bread
seasoned by caution
and foreign lands
with onioned thoughts
layered deep

show mercy
peel back the layers

peel me away
thin by thin
skin by skin
to my quivering soul

I hope I am not ugly in your sight

these thoughts
become too heavy to hold
to tough to chew or swallow

my thoughts

bone-white lies of morality plays
open for you to peek

hope they are not ugly in your sight

hope they do not make you weep
as you peel back all the layers

onioned
thought
layers

held fast and firm
like a carapace
to which I’m stitched and welded
and can no more leave
than you can truly enter

they tie me down
sometimes
but sometimes barely so

inescapable optimism
in my barebones grin
flashes in the brittle moonlight

a stranger comes to where I sit
to see

his stare
blinds the stars from my eyes

behind his fey smile
his radar dreams
scan the forgotten creases
and clandestine getaways
in my mind

standing over
he peers down
with probing gaze

one of us will learn
a thing or two this night

• • •

rob kistner © 2009

 

___________________________________

…photorendering entitled “Cornered” by: rob kistner © 2008

 

The Hunger

 

 

The Hunger

•

filled with passion
you gaze longingly
upon the tender treat
that’s spread before you

waiting

the flesh is soft
and moist
and pink
as slowly you penetrate

then gently lift

you feel the quivering mass
slide full upon your prong
to turn
and eagerly lay
upon your bed of fire

the heat consumes
as juices flow

senses stir
while desire mounts

aroused in hungry anticipation
of the ultimate pleasure
and heady bliss

that is
a perfect loin

• • •

rob kistner © 2009

 

…more poems of hungry passion found at “readwritepoem”

 

Sunrise Requiem

…this poem was inspired by two wonderful lines of refrain provided by Michelle McGrane…

 

 

Sunrise Requiem

•

the afterimage has yet to dim
emblazoned in my mind
the sun fresh on the horizon
my eyes follow your graceful silhouette
moving away from me
the taste of you sweet on my lips

if you are lucky
you will carry one night with you

my gaze held fast
until there was nothing
just the rising sun
the cruel sun
that disrupted our tender night
with the promise of another
but no warning
how very dark and deep

if you are lucky
you will carry one night with you

no warning of the bitter cold
that would set upon my world
no warning that this sunrise
would burn into my heart
our final sunrise
the taste of you sweet on my lips

if you are lucky
you will carry one night with you

• • •

rob kistner © 2009

 

…wonderful poems found at “readwritepoem”

 

Seasons of Love

 

 

Seasons of Love

•

I take you in a park in May
in the cool Spring breeze at the end of day
on the silvered beach of a white-capped bay
at the mouth of a moonlit waterway

I take you in a tree-filled park
on a matt of fallen aspen bark
to the Summer song of a meadow lark
on a sunny day until the dark

I take you by the garden wall
in the dappled shade of a willow tall
on the scattered down of its leafy sprawl
on a crisp, and heady day in Fall

I take you by the oaken mill
‘neath an autumn tree on a grassy hill
I will take you in the early chill
when our Winter comes — I will take you still

• • •

rob kistner © 2009

 

…wonderful poems found at “readwritepoem”

 

Faster Faster

 

 

Faster Faster

•

lay down your weight
put down your worry
slow down your pace
cease with your hurry

soon you will get there
life rushes by
you wonder when
so harder you try

to fill up what’s empty
as faster you fly
wondering when…
who’s wondering why

• • •

rob kistner © 2009

 

…art piece entitled “Faster Faster” by: rob kistner © 2009

 

Ghost of Love

 

Ghost of Love

•

(In loving memory of my son, Aaron Robert Kistner)

in the tears of this turbulent night
you come
as a breeze
stirring through my open window

a plaintive zephyr
yet sweet

you come
as a faint sound in the darkness

an easy laugh
rich voice

a song

you come
as a comforting thought

kindness
strength

a gentle way

you come
as a remembered presence

warm smile
clear eyes

peaceful eyes
full of wonder

the beauty of youth

you come
as a moment recalled

that precious last time
we stood embracing

this night
you come as a ghost of love
a specter of my longing heart

• • •

rob kistner © 2009

 

Drawn

 

Drawn

•

seduced by the fog
I seek the mystery
it enshrouds

always just ahead
round the bend
over the hill

behind the heavy gate

my ears prick
to its distant call
just beyond clarity

my heart longs

my soul is drawn
to the unknown
down the path
around the curve
over the crest
into the mist

where
shut away

the clarion awaits

• • •

rob kistner © 2008

Remembered

 

 

Remembered

•

leaning comfortably
into the curves

wind whipping
through our long hair

we wind our way
into the mountains

into the evening

alive
with 2-wheeled freedom

on the open road

not counting days
not keeping track
just being – free

we glide

feet up
knees tucked

captivated
by the thrill
of the throttle

we rocket

dive from light to shadow
to resurface once more
in the light

again and again

as the sun reveals itself
from time to time

warming us
from between peaks

as it begins to settle
behind the western slope
of the Rockies

four friends

four adventurers

fresh on the heels
of the summer of love

dedicated
to a critical mission

spread the peace
share the love
save our sanity

and above all else
keep the party rolling

we’ve thrown off
the structured mantle of life

to venture
into the random

the unknown

to embrace
the magnificent perfection
of living in
and for
the moment

•

it’s nearly four decades
since those days of freedom

memories have cooled
grown hazy

I take license in their recall
grateful they remain at all

I’m blessed by their refrain
no matter how faint

my days are not so light now

I’m rooted in responsibility

balancing the blessings
and the burdens
of life

sometimes bent
by the yoke of worry

made heavy
by the weight of loss

yet
occasionally

I still feel
the gentle breeze of freedom
stir

as I stand
feet firmly planted

braced against
the changing winds of time
and fate

tonight

adrift in the eternal now
awash in recollection

I smile within
warmed by remembered times
with beloved friends

those days of wonder

falling deeper in reverie’s embrace
I can almost feel that wind
on my face

tossing once more
my youthful mane

almost hear the laughter

see the glow
on the faces of three friends

now far away

I whisper a promise
to my awakened spirit

someday

before it is too late

I will again
pick my feet up

• • •

rob kistner © 2008