October 18
Where do I live?
Fleeter of foot is my goal.
I race to catch the prize thoroughbreds as they flee. I play chase, I win, I lose, I fall in the
mud, I break my leg. None of this does
anything for the horses either, they are loose and confused; off like a shot,
but nowhere to go. I buy better shoes,
hire a trainer, put reflective tack on the stallions and the mares. In short I go broke. I had the world of possibilities before me
and it ran away; all because I don’t close the barn door.
Sometimes raise your value by stooping
*
OPEN HEARTED GRIEF
Tell a tale of openhearted grief
And closed-minded terror
Bend the limits of misery.
Pour over the damned feelings and tired excuses
Level the cupful of measured terrene
And wipe the drooling face of denial.
The children will not dance tonight
The grass is wet with their tears.
The dogs circle the encampment of desire
And come to sleep when we are settled.
Silly ruffled whimsy won’t carry the freight
But the bus pulls into the drowsy station
Filled with tea lites and pantomime.
The story will close with a hand on the doorknob of hope
An eye on the jelly sandwich of contentment.
Whisper the lullaby to the ones who stay to hear it.
Morning cracks the shell to daytime.
Shattered pieces litter the night
Tremors shade my peace of mind.
Sum up the analogies of broken hearts and twisted minds.
Tell a tale of openhearted grief
And closed-minded terror
Bend the limits of misery.
Pour over the damned feelings and tired excuses
Level the cupful of measured terrene
And wipe the drooling face of denial.
The children will not dance tonight
The grass is wet with their tears.
The dogs circle the encampment of desire
And come to sleep when we are settled.
Silly ruffled whimsy won’t carry the freight
But the bus pulls into the drowsy station
Filled with tea lites and pantomime.
The story will close with a hand on the doorknob of hope
An eye on the jelly sandwich of contentment.
Whisper the lullaby to the ones who stay to hear it.
Morning cracks the shell to daytime.
Shattered pieces litter the night
Tremors shade my peace of mind.
Sum up the analogies of broken hearts and twisted minds.
You are reading selections from More Sober on the Way to
Sane and Lines From My Life by Sherrie Theriault
