Free Verse

Hand of Heart


What is this hand?
Pressing against my heart
I carry the burden alone
Wade through the valley of tears
Abyss of water from eyes seeing the
Hurt in others gaze
Sorrowful wailing resonate
Each step taken is a struggle
To the next
Hand presses harder
The beating heart slows
Death smells victory
Waiting patiently for
The dying rose
 


Why?


Little girl walked alongside her mother
Viewing people of all color
Walking a little ways further her mother
Stopped and took a detour
Down a dirty alley trash and filth
Littered their path
People lay out under worn covers
Some sat under dilapidated boxes
All wore the same expression

Hopeless and forlorn
Spirits broken
If tomorrow came, they didn’t much care
Lost all their hopes and dreams
Some to drugs and alcohol
Maybe to situations beyond
Their control so many stories
Written on their faces

In their eyes beheld their souls
Deep exploration told the tale
Of the fight for continued existence
In the concrete jungle

Little girl held on tighter to her
Mother’s hand frightened by
What she witnessed
Even young she understood pain
Knew sorrow came and buried
Its ache deep into your heart
Eyes wide with fear she gazed up

At her mother
There was something purposeful in her
Stride
She walked faster and faster nearly
Running from some unseen demon
Realizing she was dragging the child
Like a rag doll, she slowed her pace
Apologetic smile traced her face
Coming to the end of the alley daylight

Making its presence known
A breath of fresh air
Rushed into the lungs of the little one
Stepping out into a new world she only
Had one question for her mother
Why?






Whisper

Whisper to thy self of love and
Forget me not’s
Breathe in the vapors of romance
Feeding your soul
Capturing essence of amour
Riding the crescent waves
Of pleasure
As whispers of desire, tickle your ear
I suffer your pain as it wraps its
Tentacles around your heart
Strangling life from your soul
In this abyss you have fallen
Where you find no peace
Sorrow has become your
Shadows and stillness
Your spirit seeks
A place I have known so well
And at times the darkness
So severe light couldn’t find
Its way in
I share your despair the feeling
Of fighting this battle on your own
How many times did I too wage this
War
In my footsteps you’re walking in
Nevertheless, notice there is only one
Set of prints
Pain has its way of stealing hope
Hope has a way of stealing back life
You’ll see the dawn begin to break
Darkness slowly dissipates
Pain vanishes as fog rolls back out
To sea



Good Night Sweet Dreams

Some things not meant to be
Holding on to impossibilities
Chasing dreams always within
Reach yet not close enough
To grasp in palm of your hand
Standing on the other side
Of time making wishes
Futile when they fail
To materialize
You place a soft kiss on your dreams
 In the dark you whisper
To all your imaginings and desire
Good night sweet dreams…


Iridescent Moon





Iridescent moon calls to the night
Through clouds shimmering
Reflection on water’s heart
In the distance silence imprisons
The essence of lost nymphs
Water’s glow evermore
Filled with tears of weeping sirens
Lost love
Forbidden temptation

Desire, hunger screams
Out from the iridescent moon
As the sigh of want
Echoes hauntingly
Moan of need dances

Back to stillness


Atmosphere


You are not the air I breathe
The sunrises as the moon sets
And existence is mine alone
Not to give my soul
Watch my spirit die
Trampled on red grapes
Makes wine
Sour, bitter juice
Drips from lips swollen
Eyes darkened
From too many nights
 Sleep deprivation
 Wrestling with ghost
That won’t let me lay
 Down in peace
 Look out into the night and
Gaze up to the heavens
 the moon
 So far away and wish
Sorrow was even farther
 Not right here at finger tips
Sharp needles pricks
And bleed

She Danced Alone

The lights dimmed
She materialized on stage standing
Graceful and still
Music begin to play
She let the sound flow through her
Eyes closed she became music
Slowly lifting one elegant arm from
It’s resting place by her side
She teased the crowd with her moves
Precision in each step had them
Holding their breath
Giving and taking until she thought
They’d had enough
Her long legs she’d thrust out
Head held high she was truly
A diva
Swirling around her dress mesmerized
As it performed about her body
In fluent movement dancing in
And out circling her swaying hips
Exquisiteness to look at
Exciting to witness her
Beautiful performance
She inflamed all those that observed 
She stared looking straight into their hearts
 Commanding respect
She’d danced till blood filled
Her shoes
Pouring out her heart and soul
One tear drop hung on her
Eyelash
Gradually the music died away
Silence overwhelmed
She stood serene holding her breath
A single red rose landed at her feet







Lap Dance




Nervous looking over his shoulder
Didn’t know what he actually thought
He might see
Still he kept looking
 He walked into the club
Didn’t know what to expect
Every night was different
Sat down wondering why
In the world he was there again
A question he asked himself
Every time
The answer always the same
Lights dimmed music began
To play loud and raunchy
Had the walls vibrating
Color lights started to spin
 As the women
Took to the stage
Sweat begin to appear on his forehead
Great drops rolling down the
Sides of his cheeks
Quickly he wiped it away as
Beautiful bodies paraded in front of him
He took in a deep breath
Still in his mind questioning his presence
In this sinful place
All his life he was told to stay away from
Den of iniquity
She stood in front of him gyrating up and down
Threw one leg over his shoulder so
Close he smelled her scent
He leaned back
She moved in closer
Removed her leg from around his head
And sat down in his lap
Nature began to stir
As she did her dance
Provocative, erotic
Secretly he was a masochist seeking
To find his high
Each night he came
Each night he felt the
Same self loathing
She leaned into him more
He forgot all about
What his mother always told him
Throwing his head back he
Let out a wild animal cry
As he let the music and
The women do to him
Things he’d never imagined
And like all the nights before
 The music would come to a stop
And he would come back to his senses
Looking into the woman eyes
He saw the face of his mother
Threw a few dollars at her
And ran
He ran and
He ran
Hearing the devil laughing in
His head
Feeling sick to his stomach
He let go of his dinner
In the back of an alley
Wiped his mouth on the back of his coat
Sleeve and leaned against the
Cold brick wall
All this for a lap dance
He felt dirty
His soul violated
Head down he continued on
To his home
Put the key in the door
It opened in slow motion
What he saw made him
Stop…….

Tangible




Transcending poverty
Aggressively defending freedom
Nonexistent entity
Gratuitous inferiority is a label
Inflicted upon
Bowed head to supremacy
Lift my face to the sun
Eradicate the pain that is so
                                         Tangible

Bitter Taste of Honey



Jazz band playing in the back ground
Tears making their round
Her voice carried around the club
As she poured her heart out in song
Everyone sat mesmerized
Ridding each note along with her
Captivated by her beauty


Her soul was raw
Enthralled they sat on edge
Of their seats inhaling the scent
Of her perfume mixed in with smoke
In her tale she sung of a man she
Loved how he became her heaven
And earth
He was her laughter and pain
Still she loved him even more
At night he made love like an angel
But it was the devil she saw in the light
You take the good with the bad
And regrets you drowned in a bottle
Of eyes wide shut
People shouted from their seats
Urging her on
Women relating to her song
Wiped away flow of tears
Men were moved by the
Honesty of her words the truth



She sang in each verse
When the music faded into
The night she quietly bowed
Her head and whispered
“Bitter taste of honey” and
vanished from the stage

















Flame


Lying on her bed staring up at the mirror above her
Making a provocative picture of a woman hungry to be loved
She ran a hand up her thigh pretending it
To be that of a lover
She moaned deep in her throat as her hand
Reached for that hush-hush spot
She rolled over onto her stomach and cursed
Herself for the loneliness she felt
She didn’t have to be lonely
Plenty of men were willingly
To share her bed
Some were so infatuated offering
Marriage or placated her
With the temptation of being
Their mistress
But she was tired of the game
She wanted something more
With substance
Superficial men were a bore
And boredom kills
Rolling onto her side she curled
Up into a fetal position
Her body was a blaze
How long had it been
Since she’d lain with a man
Throbbing inside wouldn’t let up
As hard as she tried to divert
Her attention else where
It always came back to that
Sexual fire burning
She was at war with herself
Feeling lonely desiring something
Of substance and the need
To be fulfilled
Darkness slowly settled around
The room
She liked the night
The enticing secrets it held
Reaching for the near empty
Bottle of Pinot Noir she poured
The remainder in her wine glass
Slowly sipping the liquor warming
Her insides making her earlier
Mood vanish
What was this foolishness she was feeling?
Reaching for her phone she dialed
A familiar number
On first ring it answered
Purring like a kitten into the receiver
She waited for a response
Smiling she ended the call
In the darkness she waited for
Her lover to come and release her
Sexual pain
Sometimes the need is just too great
And common sense strives after the wind
 Nature has to be answered refusing
To be ignored