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Creek SideI am rooted creek side
listening to what the water has to say
it was talking when I arrived
and will continue long after I am gone
telling of the trees and the fish
the moon and the sun

A waterfall interjects its wild stories
in a cacophony of splashes and spray
of cataract canyons and gigantic boulders
they have worn down through the ages
before they join their liquid brother
passing along to wherever creeks go
I listen; my roots grow deeper creek side

Still Trying

"I'm coming out" she said,
she didn't mention
she was coming out of her head

trying to turn over a new leaf
one without the drugs or
all the men caused grief

alcohol wasn't doing it either
though apart from the chemical haze
intoxication was a nice breather

She's found silence in this space
Splitting her numb world
With amazing grace

she's still trying;
still lying on the floor
still blocking the door

© John Hardesty 2009

Be StillIt's my time now
now or never
never lose the will
will I ever forgive?

Deafening is the silence
silence; a prayer to forgive
I forgive and I forget
I forgot to forgive

I am now someone else
else I am who I am
am I looking back?
back to warmer days

Time marches on
on through the night
nights are forever
forever, in darkest December

I forgot to forgive
I forget to forgive
I forgive to forget

When Everything DiesDoes it really matter if there are explosions in the skies?
what time does, time doesn't wish to explain
and in time, even silence eventually dies.
I can almost see you in the dawn and embrace
your memory, your touch, your taste
I want you, wishful thinker, that is why I'm lost
I dreamt of you, I can almost see you,
but our worlds end with me.

This will destroy you, a whisper in the snow
the sounds of absolution slowly collapsing
into a beautiful, echoing memory.

I just wanted to make you sleep

One day, all this will happen
you, falling on the bank, with me
watching the world go by,
watching our worlds go by
Time will never come back,
so

8:30 A.M. Mountain TimeI was late for work
but I always put on my shoes
in front of the television
and watch the news

I wish I hadn’t that day--
I saw buildings burning
humanity falling
death from above

People falling
who had no wings
I cried for them

I sat on the couch in
stunned, unbelieving silence
staring at the carnage
that had already passed

It was 8:30 A.M. Mountain Time
It was 10:30 Eastern Time

I was late for work
I watched the South Tower fall
over and over and over again
then, the North Tower fell, too
over and over and over again
I cried for them, too

and then I heard about the Pentagon
and about Flight 93
my shoes remain

Speak To Me of Magic 2Speak to me of magic
using ancient words
the earth shatters
in high places
leaving just
bits and traces
of dust left on the page.

Holding out a bloody sword
feeling like you've lived too long
with no enemy to point it toward
days slowly tear your soul
as if the constellations
lead to dark places
like a friend.

Hum a Few BarsMy cats don't like my singing
They flee the room with
Fearful backward glances and poofy tails
When the volume increases

This feeling that I get while singing
Makes me feel alive
I wanted to share it with them
Not so, it would seem

They run; They hide
They cower under the beds
With saucer-shaped eyes
Until I notice they are gone

I stop singing; abashed
But, they still won't come back
For fear I'll start up again
An octave or two out of tune

…God damn critics

Idle TimeYou're all I ever knew of love
idle time
like a string tied to my soul
pulling me away
meticulous and beatific
driving a poem
through my heart
you're all I ever knew of love

Another DayAnother day
Coffee in the cup
Sugar on the counter
Spoon on the floor
Eyes roll
What now?
Why now?
Why not?
I'm on bottom
I'm on top
I'm slide-ways
Falling up
Under the horizon
Under the top
Under the weather
underwhelming
Raining now
Clouds over me
Nothing to see
Wet shoelaces
And wrinkled feet
Carry me onward
To the one day
That day; this time
Will see
My majesty
My honor
My humility
My hope
Overwhelming
Another day

ArtI draw pictures of mountaintops
coldly covered in snow and ice--
dragon caves dotted along the way
to the top of my perilous route to

VICTORY!!!

But--

There are no damsels in distress;
there is no Kingdom to save;
I am not a brave knight on
a personal Quest or a
common peasant showing
his worth to his King--

I am a kid in art class
with a new pack of crayons
except for the black one--
that one I used to create a piece
I call, “Crows at Night.”

© 2009 John Hardesty

My Grandmother's EulogyMy memories of grandma Toni are certainly different than anybody else’s. What do you remember about her? Her smile? Her twinkling eyes? How such a small and unassuming woman could become larger than life when properly provoked?

I remember all of that and a little more. I remember how, after the initial shock of seeing small, hairless or featherless animals brought into her immediate vicinity by her small and seemingly innocent grandkids, would be grudgingly, but lovingly, cared for. Sometimes for years and years, except for mice and snakes. Grandma didn’t do mice and snakes at any time. She was pretty firm on that one.

Do

It Goes UnwrittenIt goes unwritten
the story about Anna
who has a degenerative disease
trapped in her own body
but her mind remains clear

It goes unwritten
about the love she has kept secret
how heart flutters when the Doctor
enters the room--her room--
to assess her condition

It goes unwritten
how her mind and soul is preserved
in a cyber-world when her body gives up.
Now trapped in a micro chip
she plots escape--to resurrect herself

It goes unwritten
how she framed her doctor of a heinous crime
to keep him from marrying another;
sending him to the Astral Prison
until she could become human again

It goes unwritten
about her re-incarna

In The Nick of TimeIn the nick of time
Someone doesn't die
Another gets to see the sunshine
When closed doors suddenly open
In the nick of time

In a heartbeat
Someone walks by
And looks you in the eye
You understand their soul
In the nick of time

In a fantasy
Pawns on the table
Regard each other with trust
And walk off the board with majesty
In the nick of time

In the blink of an eye
I was lifted from darkness;
A troubled niche in my mind,
By your graciousness
In the nick of time

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That Road

by *Corvidae65, Nov 6, 2011, 9:52:03 PM
Literature / Poetry / General Poetry / Free Verse

That Road
The one less traveled
the one that curves to the left
the one that takes me there and back again
If I close my eyes, I can feel the bump of the wheels
I can smell the fresh autumn air and taste the coming winter
along 'That Road' everything matters and nothing means anything
I mean to spend my life there--living my life;
loving myself. Being myself again.
It's the less traveled road
That Road

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That Roadby *Corvidae65

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A poem inspired by

Karens photograph titled...

That Road...

Please check out her galler ynad get to know her if you don't already. She's a great lady!

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Submitted on: November 6, 2011
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*AlecBell Dec 24, 2011

The ghost of Robert Frost would be pleased.

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*Corvidae65 Dec 25, 2011

That would be incredible for sure, Alec. Thank you

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Mood: Love

*PridesCrossing Nov 26, 2011

Wonderful poem John!!
This is for you my friend! [link]

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*Corvidae65 Nov 28, 2011

Thank you very much Sandy

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Mood: Love

*PridesCrossing Nov 28, 2011

You're welcome my friend!!

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`caddman Nov 16, 2011

...nice work my friend...

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*Corvidae65 Nov 22, 2011

Thanks bro

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=LeashaHooker Nov 13, 2011 Photographer

I love this road John! Excellent writing and perfect for Karen's image!!

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*Corvidae65 Nov 13, 2011

Thank you Leasha

Karen's image spoke to me

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*JonnyGoodboy Nov 12, 2011 Hobbyist Photographer

Love that image of Karen`s and done justice by your lovely accompanying words brother

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