" I felt myself a pure part
of the abyss,
I wheeled with the stars,
my heart broke loose on the wind. "
~Pablo Neruda
I walked where death had hard heels,
rebirth meant becoming a stranger.
All the wells of my father’s fires
doused. I am created in my image.
Walk along the banks where history
no longer flowed. I drank the clear water.
Where once the pollutants,
my childhood’s fire burnt
immolated every dream that rose
from the bed -- now, I cut my own course.
My reflection no longer a conversation
prolonged by memory. The stranger
before me finds peace, takes
the company of silence. Fashion
and style worn to portray the man,
not to achieve the armor, applause.
Grappling with ghosts -- years of waiting
for the final blow, holding my breath
for the vindication of one “I love you.”
My collection of awards -- proof --
worthiness freed from judgment
becomes a tornado and only the grass
remains as edifice after edifice swirls away.
After kissing Odessa’s cold lips, smoking
the last cigarette on the ferry ride back,
knowing that living is a second by second
realization -- I let loose the dogs.
Winter passes. Too long in the desert.
Grown tired of not dying. I choose life
one last time and seek to fulfill my own promise.
10:56 PM
02/17/09
Alexandria, VA
In a list
Please tell me what you think, what it makes you feel, how you are moved.
Comments
1 - 23 of 23
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very intriguing piece that evokes many conflicting images and emotions - great exploration of depth from the chosen prompt.
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The path to aliveness, the awakening of self and the moment when vision is bound to spirit is different for each human. Once enlightened there is only one path. Such is my life's lesson. For I have met many from different religious groups, all the truly faithful, awakened are on the same path and without grudge or confusion about the love that enfuses them.
Thanks for the compliment. Thanks for enjoying a taste of my journey.
Peace & Light,
Tom B.
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The words of Pablo Neruda ...
bring to me memories of a time with a dear Mentor, who introduced me to grass root poetry. I loved reading your interpretation and response. May you experience the fullness of a lifetime's preparations of growing towards spiritual maturity.
Love
Myra
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I learned to be analytical at an early age in defense, I learned to breath in the messages of the wood to feel alive, and the ocean called me with courage and power to understand that change is neither sought nor discouraged, just, accepted. When I over came all of the High Anxiety and learned that to live was far more challenging than simply surviving, I took on learning the subtle fabric of my emotional sea.
Thanks for the blessing. We keep one another soaring in flight or healing when wounded by the blessings we share. May the hours ahead of you dance with opportunities to give thanks for all the love that blossoms in your heart.
Love, Tom B.
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it makes me feel
an array of emotions, i want to cry, and hug you, and smile, knowing you wont give up...its turned me inside out, and i love it! thanks for sharing!
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Wonderful compliment, you have given me in your review. I am blessed if the sharing of my journey is a gift of insight for others.
Love,
Tom B.
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I will be rereading this one many times I think. You convey so much truth in your words; reality, hope and desire to seek meaning.
'knowing that living is a second by second
realization ...'
I loved these words and hope that I can place them within my life as this gives meaning to all we do. A great piece of writing.
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Thank you. Wonderful compliment to be promised to be read and reread. This was written to capture the path of self-realization and awakening. We are our history, until we define who we are. Thanks, again.
Peace & Light,
Tom B.
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I know you always kept your promises
I await the promise of you... -
I Love you, for who you are and what you write
You are an awesome man....Sorry the hurts you suffered had to be, has to be for all of us humans. But love can ease the pain of a lifetime if we find the right soulmate.
The wither of nothingness, can be changed to electric happiness if we so choose. Sounds like you found the path to enlightnment.
Old or not better now than maybe younger years.I wish you love beyond measure... Through the grace of God our prayers, finally are answered.
This poem was touching, open, honest and real. Such a gift to your readers and me!
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I can only give my thanks in return for this. I strive to be the best I can be. Often falling short and more often blind to all the possiblities that others seem to believe I possess. Day in an day out I seek the Light and pray that the path I have chosen to follow provides for family and friends. Be blessed.
Love,
Tom B.
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This is so "you"
I love how it ends
"Winter passes. Too long in the desert.
Grown tired of not dying. I choose life
one last time and seek to fulfill my own promise."
with such promise and acceptance of what may come....You are such an optimist and every line shows your willingness to embrace the destiny you were given and find fate and kiss feathers where they land..
thank you so much for entering a lovely and powerful lesson in this piece
Lynda
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Life is not easy. Living takes all we have to give it and often demands more. I am a person who has been gifted with the promise of life a few more times than many. Still I find my way past shadows and the forest of my fears to the center where the Light is the strongest and continue to move forward. Never knowing or sure of what tomorrow may bring. I do my best and that is not always enough.
Times are hard now for many of us in this universe and we must learn how to come together and make ourselves better for living and inspite of all the foibles we possess. If this little piece is any help, then I am blessed.
Love,
Tom B.
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I like how easy your contrasts flowed, how your ideas flowed, it made everything so easily applicable to the readers life and actions. The sense of enlightment crept through each word and hung with every description.
The quote at the beginning was very inspiring too and I enjoyed how the poem ran off that quote - or maybe the quote ran off the poem?
Great write very inspiring and thought provoking!
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I had listened to other poets use an epigraph, so I decided to use it as well. I want the poem to flow out of and around the epigraph, take it to places --unimagined, perhaps -- but fitting.
Thanks for finding my flow lucid and fluid. It means I accomplished what I set out to do in building a coherent picture from contrasting and exclusive areas of the vision. Rebirth is often celebrated as a moment of salvation, but every beginning has its price and the ending of a past life is not an easy thing no matter how horrible.
Love,
Tom B.
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Reading the comments here as well, Tomis, you may not be close to Neruda, but you are a poet in your own right, and an excellent one, too. I especially like that you walk your own path finding it's promise fulfilling your being, your growth in the light, and your expanse of heart...which no one else could trespass if they dared.
We come to judge our own worthiness in life, and may be the toughest taskmasters, too.
"Grappling with ghosts -- years of waiting
for the final blow, holding my breath
for the vindication of one “I love you.”
My collection of awards -- proof --
worthiness freed from judgment
becomes a tornado and only the grass
remains as edifice after edifice swirls away."
The above quote really stood out to me in regard to that worthiness, because love is the lesson we never complete, and are far ahead in the game when we come to understand what it really is. It holds all that we become...forever, the source from which might and being actually emanate. You breathe it daily, you share the tears,
laughter, reason, and sometimes just fun, all the while standing porter at the door of the future. Grasses brown and wither, ghosts dispell in the mist, but you stand firm in the light and that's where your being is...complete awakening.
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There came a moment in time when I learned the "I love you" I wanted from parent had to come to me. The approval I was seeking to make me okay was the one I gave myself and allowed to be sealed by the blessings of God. We are all vast wonderous miracles waiting to be manifested. I started a little late but I think it was worth the wait. Thank you for all of your kind thoughts and faith in my ability. It gives me great strength.
Love, Tom B.
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Your words are so observant of life...especially your own...I see a poet within, a man, a father, a lover, a man wanting to be the best he can be. You really captured the essence of life in these words...I hope other see, feel what I have reading this write....this poem that surely reminds me of
Pablo Neruda. Another excellent poem.....Novy
Pure talent oozing from the page.....
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Hell of a compliment, Novy. I work on getting better with words, holding onto the power that life drives through all of us. If I manage to capture small bits and share them in return with my reader, I feel blessed.
Love, Tom B.
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i love pablo neruda
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I am nowhere close to the man, but I try to walk, clearly, my own path.
Love,
Tom B.
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Now that is an awesome poem...!!! A little darker than you're known for but I relate well to the darker side of things... and this rings solid and true!
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We all have to walk our path, in darkness as well as Light. I have known my share. Thanks for the validation.
Love,
Tom B.
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