Saturday, April 5, 2014

PAD - Day 5 (8 Discovery Poems)



St. Thomas - pkp



Beneath the dancing

Beneath the dancing young
woman at the crystal water-
shore – sunshine spilling on
brown smooth shoulders sun
flashes from waggling fingertips
as she jostles a baby on her hip
Beneath her laughing song soaking in aqua-
marine bouncing to the hazy horizon far, far
in the distant “to be” – beneath curls the clawing
old woman a semi-colon in the futured “now” -a small dry
white haired woman clutching the jacket of a grown man to her side
as sunlight fades
the song silences



~

All Illusion

A child rides unicorns
to cotton candy houses
wishing on sparkling stars
in navied nights where terrors
are testaments to a vivid imagination
snowflakes fall each unique on tongue
tips outstretched
toward Spring
as white blossoms
fall from tall trees
arching pathways
to summer solstice
a child rides
into forever
shining possible
knowing that cotton
candy melts on the
tongue and unicorns
prancing will land in
whirling park carousels
a child knows that Daddy
waiting with a raven haired
smile at each turn around the
calliope will always be there smooth
faced, muscled arms folded until the
ride stops
a child knows
that unicorns can fly at will
and cotton candy reappear
the woman sees only what
is there – crumpled wrappers
sticky faced children and the
long ago thunk of clumps of dirt
sealing Daddy away forever
woman- hold fast to youyr cotton-candy
child on the unicorn – hold fast to the painted
horse until the softness of its mane warms and
tickles your fingertips as your father waits with a knowing
soft smile – ready to lift you in strong muscled arms to the
ground


~

The Discovery Method

Something new the teachers beamed
and wrote with sure fingers on clean
blackboards
DISCOVERY
and we small children racing “the Russians”
who were busy learning to beat us in this race
were to figure it all out
on our own – no instructions
given – no hint that two plus two
equaled four –
“Think” they beamed
You are Americans
and we nail-bitten-to-the-quick
first graders raced with anxiety
and nationalism our only tools
to “discover” the simple facts
that they so well-meaningly
with-held
Our papers returned with red
circles but no grades
we calculated our A’s and D’s
and worried that if multiplication
eluded us a mushroom cloud would
appear – all the doing of our lack of
imagination


* there actually was a method of US education called “The Discovery Method” which was intended to boost critical thinking by having children “discover” the concepts driving even the most elementary learning.


~

Discovery

He took her to the door
and waved
it is all yours
but for the taking
it took only a life-
time of reaching to
realize it was a pretty
lie from father to child

~

Discovering motherhood

I pushed the ducky pin
hard through the plastic
my mystic magic new-born
lying splayed on soft cotton
I pushed the ducky pin hard
and two-day old arms froze
akimbo – tiny face purpled
and a scream ready to pierce
the heavens rose from us both
as a drop of blood from his tender
pricked flesh rose in the sunlight
and a mother was born


~
In the Woods – Grimm

There in the moldering leaves
a fragment of yellow tattered
sundress peeks
pointing the way
to Kaitlin
dancing
four-year-old
missing Kaitlin
dancing
barefoot across
the soft summer
grass – swallowed
by the darkness

*
* for those unfamiliar with “Kaitlin” she is not a real murdered-raped-four-year-old but a little girl who “appeared” during a long ago PAD challenge and found her way into a still to be published novel – she seems to peek in and out sweet, blonde and in a yellow sundress – and just won’t be left out – no matter how many she upsets with her state…


Love in a friend

they sat on the beach
falling comfortably against
each other – old friends – he
asked if she would spread a bit
of sunscreen on his back and she
did – shocked at the pleasure of the touch
she rubbed in widening wandering wondering circles until
he turned

~


a watched flower bed
yields only a furrrowed brow
Spring comes as she will

3 comments:

  1. Love all of your discoveries...

    ReplyDelete
  2. I enjoyed your poems but I loved that photo!

    ReplyDelete
  3. Your poems always bring me to another place that is mellow and sweet and full of beautiful images.:)

    ReplyDelete