The Fortress
by -tena

This fortress of walls that I have built
To suppress my rage, impatience and guilt
I need them there to keep me sane
To keep silent the knowledge of the pain


I have subconsciously put up these bars
To halt the tears and hide the scars
And forget the years the locust ate
To forgive myself and those I hate

I’ve put them there to save my heart
In case it heals from being broken apart
These are my walls of discontent
To hide my hell to a greater extent...

who dare go next?

TC
Unable to process something new - an old one I wrote awhile back.

Where were you when …..

She slipped from under the play pen, to run from fears unknown.
She gathered her belongings to ramble far from home.
She fled in verbal silence, her heart beating outside her chest,
To escape the painful death of hearing another scream,
To run from the terrible nightmare, of another day time dream.
To hide out in the cold until the limbs no longer felt,
The battered body of the child, was visible to none.
The mind no longer felt the pain, so that is how it seemed,
The struggle of the soul was... unable to be seen.

I needed you …

you are a poet - and quite excellent too!

you can post your poems or any poetry that you may read -
for many years I have read Ms.Emily Dickinson -
as I relate well to her
so I will quote Emily Dickinson for you, dear Miss SunnySide...

Delight becomes pictorial
When viewed through pain,--
More fair, because impossible
That any gain...
_________
~
I am the flower
tread under foot
crushed were my heart petals
of pain~
and though glancing back
does me no good
I do it again and again...

written by tena

Oh be still my heart! Ladies...what a wonderful thread to wake up to!

Tena I knew of your talent but now you have company in our Sunnysidedown.

I have lately discovered Ellen Bass and am slowly devouring her book, "The Human Line". Here is one of her gems.

The End

All through the dark hours
she mumbled goodbye,
as though the word itself
could make it happen.

As if she were a novice witch
learning an old incantation,
Goodbye, she'd say
with fresh determination.

But night after night, the lungs
kept stealing air, the stubborn
muscle refused to give up.

Help me, she begged,
an ashy whisper. Please.
I stood in the cold spot in my heart
from where I could watch everything.
She was out beyond being a mother
and this my brief chance to know her.

In the morning, when the new
angel of morphine arrived
in its full brown bottle,
we funneled it into her throat.

My daughter helped me
and when the rattle began
she was closest. I leaned in behind,

It was like a birth that way -
The baby coming too fast
to change position-
and I thought, Okay,

She'll know how to do this.
And we kept at it together, both of us,
killing her as fast as we could.

You all know I have no education and I stumbled along in the country. As a little girl I found Edna St.Vincent Millay and, as an old woman, I still love her.
And Sara Teasdale and Emily Dickinson and some E. E. Cummings and some ..........
I get carried away.
Thanks for writing.

Wren,

Education happens more in life than in any classroom. We learn from being curious, wondering, searching - no need for formal education. (sh.. - must remember not to put that on my teaching resume! - or hell maybe I should - it's true!) Never equate education with intelligence - just not the same thing!

TC,
I would never consider myself a poet - actually dreaded poetry in school. There were patterns to use, rhymes, etc. I hated it! I like reading poetry periodically. I like writing about stuff but am highly critical of myself so it is hard to share. But I will accept the complement coming from someone who writes so well.

Alffe,
Ty - I don't think TC has anything to wrorry about. Ty for the poem.

Oh we think alike SunnyD....experience is the best teacher! And if we don't learn from our mistakes...history repeats itself! I sound like my mother!

What would you all think about having a poetry thread stickied to the top of the forum? I know a monkey who might be willing to do this!

He is most definitely a reason to live! *grin I'm going to ask that monkey to move this thread up to the top. Keep 'em coming!

they been stickied.

i stickied just the poems. i copied them. that way we can keep replying here and keep the poem sticky "clean". does that sould ok? the thank you button can be added to the stickies.

oh...the sticky isn't locked. so just post your poem both places...or i can copy and paste.