a letter about Elizabeth

Lizzie on swing
Originally uploaded by Callooh.

she carries
my heart, in a bucket of sand, she
uses to make sandcastles,
collects water from the ocean
with seashells for its walls.

she regards me with eyes
older, more profound than
her oceans;
questions the universe,
in the voice of a child,
tapes letters to God
to her window.

Elizabeth walks barefoot, climbs
trees on an earth
she has tread long before;
senses its pulse, breathes its skies,
and later, paints them in
watercolours.

she dances, (barefoot) and giggles,
with raindrops and snowflakes,
cradles earthworms and spiders
as precious treasures, before
returning them home;
and helps me bury small birds
in our yard.

she carries my heart
in a fierce little body,
born with more wisdom,
more compassion,
more love,
than I may comprehend.

a letter about Graham

Graham
Originally uploaded by Callooh.

He cannot, step lightly.

Graham’s heartbeats and footsteps thunder.
the world, left without choice, expands
in the presence of absolute life,
resting, only when he does.

his eyes regard you with utter openness,
his soul, laid bare upon his pale, and bandaged skin.
is free to look upon,
to touch, to embrace, and sometimes, even kiss;
if you can bare its raw beauty.
for he has not yet learned how to guard it,
to shield it from his worlds blows, or joys.

his sorrows wrap themselves around the moon
and the oceans feel their pull.

in ecstasy he is flings brightness to the stars,
and they twinkle back their gratitude;
on earth branches arch from leaves’ laughter
a mere home may not contain such elation.

his heart, he sometimes carries
cupped, in his still small hands;
these are the times I glimpse the man,
he will become.

untouchable

transformation
Originally uploaded by Callooh.

my naked feet

pierced by stones

barbed limbs caress

my undressed skin

kiss my face

with incisive stabs

somewhere

I lost faith in
life
god

sex
love

the most profound thorn

impales
my chest

pierces
my heart

now untouchable.

forgive me

moon
by Callooh.

last night
I made you my hero.

you,
my protective lover,
to walk with,
to care for.

last night
I made myself, safe
in your strength, trust
in your love.

forgive me. my dreams
they approach me, unbidden
please,
forgive me. I will never
speak them to you.

still life

jack of clubs
Originally uploaded by Callooh.

pencil stub, eraser erased

a life spent for

middle school math

unacknowledged,

forgotten,

waiting for the impending

dog teeth, the

slow and splintered death.

he finds temporary solace

in the company of an

odd forgotten mitten

whose mate's

been left frozen beside

the half melted snowman

on the lawn.

alone, she is not touched,

her mate lost
to her.

the dime, slightly dulled

and dirty, but remembering

always remembering the

shinier days, anxiously awaits

his rediscovery,

his return to his musical,
and magic kin.

neglected and discarded

little plastic game

once in a brightly coloured

birthday bag, briefly treasured

quickly broken

now abandoned

prays not to be discovered

and placed in the black bags

that leave and never return.

sitting up, I drink my tea

and return to my book.