1393 - The Path

 

Image by ChatGPT

The Sunday Whirl presents these twelve words for us to use in a creative writing piece.  

souvenirs free touch know cracks siren window waves sting show ring give

Poet & Storytellers had the following prompt: 

"What’s the most important step a person can take?"

My answer is 'forward'.

The Path

"The past is not a tether but a teacher. 

When the lesson is learned, step forward."

— Unknown, possibly inspired by Rumi.

They are everywhere.

Windows on a past life.

Souvenirs fill my space.

Not all mine.  Not all ours.

That’s the sting, of course,

I have become the curator

Of someone else’s loves.

But they do touch me—

I know why they were special,

Mostly.

Special to someone else.

Rings, of course, stay,

Their story is eternal.

But where to from here?

◊

The past.  The future.

The linkages crack,

The grip loosens—

The sirens of life, a living life,

Call me, pull me,

Set me free,

Leading me on—

To the future.

◊

Behind me,

The past waves,

Blows me a loving kiss,

And wishes me well.

I step forward.

◊

1392 - Patience

 

Patience

"thump...thump...thump..."

A dog, 2025.

A quiet retreat

Is sometimes necessary.

That's okay.  I'll wait.

◊

1391 - The Muse

 

The Sunday Whirl presents these twelve words for us to use in a creative writing piece.  

ball whispers shimmering unveil hits strange shedding edge creature sparks fear magic

For the effect I wanted, several of the words have been exchanged for softer synonyms.

The Muse

She is the anima to his animus, 

the yin to his yang... 

-- Germaine Greer, The Role of the Muse.

A nymph of old,

A fairy, if you will,

A figure of insight and wisdom,

Murmurs warmth into his soul,

Stirs emotions, elicits insights.

Sparks—Creative and spiritual,

Reveal beneath the layers

Of self, soul and persona

The aching tremors of love

And of enduring bonds of respect.

They produce a form of magic.

That unveils the present

But also the hidden longings,

It unveils the eyes to a new dance—

Haunting, inspirational,

On the very edge of the mind,

Opening to the loveliness,

The deep luminous loveliness,

Within.

Just as a candle is blind

To the radiance it produces,

For it to truly see its beauty,

It needs a mirror.

◊

Exchanges:

ball → dance 

whispers → murmurs 

shimmering → luminous 

hits → stirs 

strange → haunting 

shedding → revealing 

creature → figure 

fear → tremor 

1390 - No Promises

 

Image by ChatGPT

The Sunday Whirl presents these twelve words for us to use in a creative writing piece.  

churn secret battle names glimpse cradle skins dragons stir flash fringe illusion

Poets & Storyteller's prompt is "Celebration".  I merged the two.

No Promises

“Realize deeply that 

the present moment

is all you ever have.”

- Eckhart Tolle.

The stomach churns.

I don’t want to believe it.  

But I must.

The dragons of fear 

Cast long shadows.

Shadows that foretell

Nameless loss and pain.

Pain with names too.

Do I battle?  Fight it?

Can I fight it?

◊

No secrets held here,

It is a waiting game.

A glimpse of hope

Not a flash, a flicker,

Stirs now and then.

Is it an illusion?

A soft cradle of hope?

◊

A fringe technique

With a name too long

And no promises.

Is it a cure?

Or just a delay?

Is it too early to celebrate?

Only time will tell.

◊

Time does tell—

Silence.

◊

1389 - A Separate Peace

 

Image by ChatGPT

The Sunday Whirl presents these twelve words for us to use in a creative writing piece.  

face fire fists walk brewing back only true space piece mission laugh

Poets & Storyteller's prompt is "Survive out of spite".  I merged the two.

A Separate Peace

Care about what others think

and you will always be their prisoner.

- Lao Tzu

Pity.

I pity you.

The fire you carry

Can only consume you.

It shows in your face,

In your fists, in your eyes.

All of it wasted on me.

My goal,

My mission,

Is to laugh at you,

To laugh openly

At the emotions

That are constantly

Brewing, 

Infusing your life,

With an acidic phlegm—

Corroding the vessel

That contains them.

It is not my role 

To reflect them back at you, 

Neither magnified, nor reduced, 

Just ignored.

That is the greatest revenge,

To make and hold a space

Where I am constant and true

To my own values,

To walk my own path.

To not to give you a piece of my mind,

But to create a peace within my mind,

A separate peace.

◊

1388 - Bedding Down Sydney

 

Bedding Down Sydney

The Opera house—

"Nuns in a scrum".

The harbour bridge

Coat-hanger to some.

Bondi Beach is there

If water's your thing.

The Botanical Gardens

(Give croquet a fling.)

The Rocks are there, Sydney v1,

Much is changed, much the same.

The Art Gallery, of course,

The reason we came.

I'm sure there was plenty to do,

But the trip was over

When it was just beginnin'.

"So what stands out of it for you?"

Well, the hotels do have 

Some lovely linen.

◊