Spazzle.NET » Poems

(Lack of) Love Poem

Katie — Mon, 11 Oct 2010 15:24:07 +0000

I found this image of a poem while stumbling.

At the Corner Store

Katie — Mon, 11 Oct 2010 02:16:27 +0000

My Religious Quest professor read this beautiful poem for us in class the other day, and I just thought I’d share it with all of y’all. Enjoy!

At the Corner Store
He was a new old man behind the counter,
Skinny and eager.
He greeted me like a long-lost daughter,
As if we both came from the same world,
Someplace warmer and more gracious than this cold city.
I was thirsty and alone. Sick at heart, grief-soiled,
And his face lit up as if I were his prodigal daughter
Returning,
Coming back to the freezer bins in front of the register
Which were still and always filled
With the same old Cable Car ice cream sandwiches and cheap frozen greens.
Back to the knobs of beef and packages of hotdogs,
These familiar shelves strung with potato chips and corn chips,
Stacked – up beer boxes and immortal Jim Beam.
I lumbered to the case and bought my precious bottled water
And he returned my change, beaming
As if I were the bright new buds on the just-bursting-open cherry trees,
As if I were everything beautiful struggling to grow,
And he was blessing me as he handed me my dime
Over the counter and the plastic tub of red licorice whips.
This old man who didn’t speak English
Beamed out love to me in the iron week after my mother’s death
So that when I emerged from his store
My whole cock-eyed life -
What a beautiful failure –
Glowed gold like a sunset after rain.
Frustrated city dogs were yelping in their yards,
Mad with passion behind their chain-link fences,
And in the driveway of a peeling-paint house
A woman and a girl danced to contagious reggae.
Praise Allah! Jah! The Buddha! Kwan Yin,
Jesus, Mary, and even jealous old Jehovah!
For eyes, hands,
Of the divine, everywhere.
- Alison Luterman

The Unfading Beauty

Katie — Tue, 05 Oct 2010 02:00:02 +0000

Earlier this evening, I came across this wonderful poem about beauty by Thomas Carew. I just thought I’d share it with you all.

The Unfading Beauty
He that loves a rosy cheek,
Or a coral lip admires,
Or from star-like eyes doth seek
Fuel to maintain his fires:
As old Time makes these decay,
So his flames must waste away.

But a smooth and steadfast mind,
Gentle thoughts and calm desires,
Hearts with equal love combined,
Kindle never-dying fires.
Where these are not, I despise
Lovely cheeks or lips or eyes.

-Thomas Carew

To Risk…

Katie — Wed, 23 Jun 2010 15:14:16 +0000

To Risk
To laugh is to risk appearing the fool.
To weep is to risk appearing sentimental.
To reach out is to risk involvement,
To expose feelings is to risk exposing your true self.
To place your ideas and
dreams before a crowd is to risk their loss.
To love is to risk not being loved in return,
To live is to risk dying,
To hope is to risk despair,
To try is to risk failure.
But risks must be taken because
the greatest hazard in life is to risk nothing.
The person who risks nothing, does nothing,
has nothing, is nothing.
– William Arthur Ward (1921-1994)

Love said…

Katie — Mon, 21 Jun 2010 04:06:30 +0000

In case you haven’t noticed, I have been particularly into making lists as of late. The past three or four of my posts have comprised of bullets, dashes, and numbers galore. I mean, lists are FUNctional! And who doesn’t love crossing things off? When it comes right down to it, I feel so accomplished. That’s why sometimes, if I know I have a long, busy couple of weeks ahead of me, I add silly little things that give me a confidence boost. Hey everybody, look, I put two of the same socks on today!

Anyhow, now that I’ve started to ramble on about lists, I forget what I was actually going to make a list about. Oops.

I did, however, find a beautiful poem about love on Jason Mraz’s blog, so I’ll repost it here.

Love said…

i was dead
i came alive
i was tears
i became laughter

all because of love
when it arrived
my temporal life
from then on
changed to eternal

love said to me
you are not
crazy enough
you don’t
fit this house

i went and
became crazy
crazy enough
to be in chains

love said
you are not
intoxicated enough
you don’t
fit the group

i went and
got drunk
drunk enough
to overflow
with light-headedness

love said
you are still
too clever
filled with
imagination and skepticism

i went and
became gullible
and in fright
pulled away
from it all

love said
you are a candle
attracting everyone
gathering every
one
around you

i am no more
a candle spreading light
i gather no more crowds
and like smoke
i am all scattered now

love said
you are a teacher
you are a head
and for everyone
you are a leader

i am no more
not a teacher
not a leader
just a servant
to your wishes

love said
you already have
your own wings
i will not give you
more feathers

and then my heart
pulled itself apart
and filled to the brim
with a new light
overflowed with fresh life

now even the heavens
are thankful that
because of love
i have become
the giver of light

Rumi, Fountain of Fire
Translated by Nader Khalili