A golden leaf
Fluttered
To the ground
Rested
Crumbled into dust
Nourished a lowly worm
Fed a garden of flowers
And was reborn in a burst of color.
Life goes on.
One nurtures another
The circle must be unbroken
Or all will perish
Insomnia plagues my nights.
She tickles me between the ribs,
plays with my fingers and toes,
counts them one by one
as she props open my sagging
eyelids with her prickly fingers.
She sends shock waves down
my trembling spine. She cramps
muscles well-past exhaustion,
and pinches stretched-thin nerves.
After raking her nails down my
tightened calves, she sits back
and cackles, reveling in my misery.
How I long to slap her face,
To send her flying into my
neighbor’s bed so she can inflict
herself on another unsuspecting soul.
But I don’t.
I restrain myself, praying that she’ll slip
away as quietly as she arrived,
leaving me in peaceful slumber.
Insomnia, you are not my chosen
best friend or my bosom-buddy.
Leave me alone that I may travel
the distant shores of my dream-world,
experience the refreshing dip into the
pools of numbness, and drift deep
into the night, soaking up energy.
Sleep, come to me as softly as
a kitten tiptoeing into my lap.
Lick my parched lips with your
roughened tongue. Caress my
cheeks with your silky fur.
Drip sleep-inducing nectar into
my eagerly waiting eyes, then
rock me to sleep with the rhythmic
beating of your heart.
I await.
If I could choose to be
anything in the world,
I’d prefer to stay me,
an ordinary girl.
Nothing too special,
simply plain ol’ me;
terribly typical
without mystery.
Lacking true beauty
from the outside,
I’ve talents aplenty
on the inside.
Reader, writer, singer,
puzzle-solver, too;
teacher, sister, mother,
friend to folks like you.
I’ve never had a dream
of golden luxuries.
I’m happy as I seem
floating on a breeze.
I yearn for happy days
filled with simple joys,
living, loving, always
playing with my toys.
Call me tteach Terry,
call me your best friend,
call me mistress merry,
forever without end.
I have never been an arrogant person.
For much of my life I’ve been shy,
Backward
Afraid to exude confidence.
Pride does not come to me willfully.
It sneaks up like a mouse in the night.
It catches me unaware, surmising me
When it calls my name.
Even though I’ve accomplished much in my life,
I seldom take an opportunity to brag.
Instead, when I do speak, I do so quietly
With an unassuming air
Because even I am surprised when
Something goes well.
There have been times when I wanted to shout out,
To proclaim loudly those things that
Fill me with pride,
But I haven’t.
Until recently.
I realize now, at my age,
That I have much to be proud of.
Every day of life fills me with such joy,
Such a feeling of accomplishment
That I want to brag about simply being here
On this earth.
Today I am bragging, just a little,
Because I am alive.
The laugh is a miracle waiting to happen
A gurgling stream bouncing over life’s boulders
Riotous, rollicking with on which to lighten
Burdensome weights from heavily bent shoulders
Fluffy clouds frolic freely through each person’s mind
That soon bubble out in side-splitting guffaws
A feeling so wondrous, magical in its kind
Unique in its effect: mood altering awes
Liberally dashed out in portions humongous
No meager spoonfuls for humanity’s sake
Spread across boundaries, in actions so wondrous
That ribs crackle, tears flow, and sides quickly ache
The sun’s golden rays blossom majestically
Illuminating rainbows in bright huse
Emotions explode into sounds musically
Harmonious tunes blend in colorful views
Burdensome miseries removed from memory
Riotous, rollicking times for the taking
Gurgling rivers of life’s hilarious story
The laugh, a miraculous joyous speaking
there is only here and now
and the once was and the soon to be
the should be, the could be, the might be
joined together, past, present, and future
blending into seamless time
beginning at the beginning
stretching off into the eternity
marching in a straight line
from time before all records were kept
pointing to time unknown
dropped in, snuggled in, squeezed in
human beings alter the universe
irrevocably
jumping barriers
leaping across boundaries
in pursuit of dreams
quests for an unholy grail
chasing illusive butterflies of chance
that change predetermined destinies
altering time forevermore
some keeping meticulous track
of minutes
days
months
years
while others intentionally forget the done
glossing over the finished
as if brushing off flies
for by shedding the past
the future lies
untarnished
unblemished
shining bright as the star that led
the Magi to Bethlehem
in search of
the One who would be
the only here and now
To know God,
to truly know God.
That’s what I want more
than anything.
He’ll come to me as a friend
and sit by my side.
He’ll sing to me of love, joy,
and inner tranquility.
He’ll tell me what a godd person
I’ve been all my life
and how pleased He is with
the paths that I have chosen.
When tears run down my cheeks
He’ll wrap His arms around me
and hold me tight, not letting go
until the shuddering subsides.
We’ll share cool water,
homemade bread and a bowl
of fresh fruit picked off trees
in my backyard.
Before we begin we’ll bow heads
and offer thanks for
all the good and kind people in the world,
for peace, for love and for self-acceptance.
When He bites into the apple
and juice runs down His chin,
I’ll snap a photo and we’ll laugh.
He’ll take a picture of me smiling
so that I may treasure it forever.
After our meal I’ll invite Him to spend
the night. We’ll have a slumber party
with popcorn and a G-rated movie.
He’ll sleep in my bedroom.
I’ll be on the couch and when I close my eyes
I’ll sleep more soundly than I’ve ever
slept in my life.
In the morning He’ll wake me
with the warmth of His smile.
I’ll tingle all over and even after
hours have past, I’ll recall the happiness
that spread throughout my body.
Before He leaves He’ll pull
me aside and whisper
like a gentle breeze, but I’ll hear Him
say He’ll be my best friend forever.
Feed me a soul-satisfying meal
Krispy corn flakes will not seal the deal
No rib eye steak with golden fries
No onion blossom to greet my eyes
Chicken enchiladas? Surely not.
Or even hamburgers nice and hot.
What I really need comes from afar.
Can’t be retrieved by plane, boat, or car.
Please give to me a thoughtful caress
Given simply, without duress
Prepare for me a heavenly dish
Designed to nourish every wish
Mix in prayers for a peaceful life
Whip forcefully to erase all strife
Today I need to stuff in my face
Food that is filled with amazing grace
Fortune laughs in the old woman’s face
Shuffle all that’s left of dancer’s grace
Wrinkled arms that once would fling and flay
Hang heavy and refuse to obey.
Her heart, weak and constantly famished
Cries for her torture to be finished
No longer she yearns for love to feel
Instead waits for heaven’s bell to peal
Eyes as tired as Victorian lace
Blinded to God’s everlasting grace
Steal bindings encircle shriveled chest
Restrict the ability to rest
In hardened bed of thorns she reclines
As witness to loneliness she pines
With every sinew, bone and ounce
She besieges Master Death to pounce
Oh please, oh please, Lord do me allow
To end this torturous life right now
I’ve lived my life as best as I could
Upon my principles I have stood
There is nothing now that I regret
Except for people I did forget
Forgive my sins, for I am weak
Give me the release, which I do seek
Then with smile upon her wizened face
She experienced God’s loving grace
Flying free of her skeletal frame
She joyously sand out God’s name
I am the sole of your shoe,
The dirt that you spit upon,
And the excrement of fish
That sinks into the silt
Quickly becoming invisible.
I am the one who sits in the
Last seat, in the last row,
Who never says a word or joins
A group or makes any sound,
Trying to be invisible.
I am the one that you never see,
Even when you brush against
My back or shoulder in a crowd,
The one that you never grace with
A smile, for I am invisible.
I yearn to have a friend of my own,
Someone who shares secrets with me,
Holds my hand, carries my books,
Asks for my phone number so that
I will no longer be invisible.
I am tired of sitting alone, day after day,
Munching on my cardboard lunch
While others around me joke and speak
Of adventures of which I will never know,
For I remain invisible.
I ask for your attention, your time,
Which you so willingly give to your
Chosen few, the “in crowd”, those that
Raise your status, your time card, but
Not me, for I am invisible.
I beg you to stop just once and ask
My name, to hold the door and let me
Enter first, to invite me to join your group
For lunch, or to be my partner, to wipe away
My cloak of invisibility
So that I may be seen for who I am,
A child of God
A blessed soul
A friend in waiting.
Words and Thoughts 