(II) The tree

The tree that called to me

Was pale

Barren

I went to her

She showed me tenderness

Her smooth trunk

Anxious to be touched.

Her gift to me

Was emptiness

Her advice to me

Was, "Grow!"

My question to her...

"How?"

Her response...

"Let go.

Be a leaf."

I can't imagine her

More beautiful

Though lush with greenery

And then the brilliant hues of Autumn

She must be quite stunning

It's her wisdom though

That's most attractive

And her willingness to share

I could try

To become a leaf

But perhaps

I am more suited

To be a tree

Passages

Had to post, Ab's first 7th grade poetry assignment...

Passages

At first; there was a tunnel and a boy. As the boy grew older, doors appeared and he pondered the little doors. Simply fumbling, giving up, and moving on. The doors grew once more as he was not anymore alone. As he watched others open the doors he endlessly questioned himself,
“Will I ever find it, the door... that calls my name?”.
But still he held on and unlike most things, he didn't give up. He grew older still and found more doors, but heavier, the paths had more depth, and still he failed. He failed to find the door that called his name.
A year passed as even more people opened their doors and he noticed.
He was fading.
He could not see.
Finally as the last light faded from him. He found it. A golden door with his name in bright glowing amber. As his hand reached to open these doors, the light slowly came back to him. To his surprise he found a tree. A huge tree with millions of nests, birds, fruit, branches-
And people.
Finally he began to see.

Odes to Mee

So, I post poems all the time.  The thing is, they are all poems I've written.  Okay, that's a lie, some have been poems written by my children.  But this is different.  In my move I came across some old poems which I apparently saved from my dancing days.  Since it is unlikely they will make it through another move...I will memorialize them here...

(untitled)

a red dress hangs there,

as if you were there,

to fulfill it.

and yet it hangs

and you ignore it.

when you don it,

cinderella fit the finest knit.

***

Meejong

The sweetest

smiling eyes;

strong

and supple

as a monkey,

she climbs

to the top,

full of grace,

a circus performer

high above the crowd;

she is free

to be.

We earthbound mortals

gawk,

in silent admiration

of youth uncouth

and beauty 

and grace.

Pity those

who cannot see

the sanctity

of nudity

and shrink from

life's best,

seeking

purity.

Uncouth youth

holds us

transfixed

as we stare

at all there is

or ever could be;

such beauty,

such grace,

such a sweet face;

a mere dollar

seems like an insult,

but like a 

sparrow

offered on the altar,

it is graciously 

accepted

with a knowing

smile.

Samurai

My Weekend

The day the spider captured the sun

The day
The spider
Captured
The sun
I was already
Prone
To introspection
The morning air
Cold
On my bare shoulders
The shadows of the night
Had taken residence
Beneath my eyes
And it's possible
I found the space
To cry

If someone
(a child perhaps)
Were to ask
Could a spider
Spin a web
Around the sun
Surely
Before this morning
I would have responded
In the negative

Which is a reminder
To stop thinking
I'm so open minded
When I can't even
Imagine
This

Dear Sleepless Night,

I know
It's not really that late yet
But I feel you
As though the clock reads
5:00 a.m.
And it's time to wake-up
Because I feel
As though there's no escape
From this place
I exist
In this moment
Until the new day
Breaks

So
Here's the thing
My mind
Is racing
The truth
Of my heart
Eludes me
And my body
My body
Just asks forgiveness
For what it feels

Here inside my arms
I hold this little girl
And she questions me
And my decisions
Because I question
Her
And hers
And all I can do
Is hold her
And say
It will all be okay
And struggle
To believe it
In a way
That makes a difference
To us both

Certainly
There is light inside
Or I wouldn't ever
Escape
The darkness

But the darkness
My shadow
My comfortable cloak
My cherished companion
At times I call you master
And at times
I call you friend
Then I betray you
Curse you
And call for that light
Inside
To chase you away

Tonight
I will just hold your hand
And remember
My dark places
And watch
The way you change
When I shine the light on you
And question
Your existence
In the current context
Of my life

It's not
That I want us to lose touch
Entirely
I acknowledge
And embrace
The humanness
Of it all

It's just that,
Darkness,
Fear lurks
In your shadows
And I'm so tired
Of being afraid
Of everything
All
The
Time

So tonight
Tonight
I think I'm going
To do
Some letting go
Maybe even
In time
To get a little sleep

Love,
Mee

P.S.  I never realized Darkness weighed so much.  I feel lighter already.