READ MY LIPS POEM
Here in the American Midwest, waking up to sub-zero lows the past few mornings reminded me of a poem I wrote one January more than two dozen frozen winters ago, titled WINTERDREAM….so I dug the poem out of cold storage, blew the snow (or was it dust?) off it, and re-read it for the first time in some time. As I did, it dawned on me that, although published before (both in paper journals and online), perhaps it could stand one more exposure. Then, near poem’s end, I re-came upon the word “lips”….and that settled it (reference the last two sentences of my last post, LIPS SERVICE). Here, then, one last time, is….
WINTERDREAM
Suppose a homeless man
found a tattered hat,
abandoned, like himself,
to the elements….
and in that tattered hat,
tucked inside the band,
a winning lottery ticket
could transform his life;
but first, he must see it –
and then, seeing it,
not toss it to the wind,
as life had tossed him.
Let us further suppose
the deadline to claim
its prize came at midnight
of that very day.
That night, in winter’s turn,
the man had a dream
that he could live his life
starting all over again,
knowing as much at birth
as he knew this moment,
so that all the choices
and hidden chances
of wasted turning points
lay exhumed ahead….
but the thought made him
cringe: regret was a fire
that gave pain without heat.
He awoke in cold sweat
to the taste of blown snow
on the cracks of his lips,
and pulled down the brim
of yesterday’s fortune.
What luck to have found
a buffer against fate.
mentalnotes1 12:10 am on January 31, 2019 Permalink |
What luck to have found
a buffer against fate.
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leggypeggy 12:48 am on January 31, 2019 Permalink |
Ah fate does it again.
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mistermuse 1:34 am on January 31, 2019 Permalink |
I thought it had been at least two years since I’d published this poem here, but now I see that the last time was Jan 2, 2018. At my age, time flies when you’re having run out of reliable memory. 😦
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calmkate 2:54 am on January 31, 2019 Permalink |
❤ 😎
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masercot 8:11 am on January 31, 2019 Permalink |
Well done!
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Ricardo 2:16 pm on January 31, 2019 Permalink |
Fuck! Is that what happened to my lottery ticket?
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mistermuse 4:41 pm on January 31, 2019 Permalink |
Ricardo, at least you have only yourself to blame for your loss. Pity this guy:
https://wsvn.com/news/us-world/mother-accidentally-donates-sons-mug-with-6500-stored-inside-to-goodwill/
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Yeah, Another Blogger 5:50 pm on January 31, 2019 Permalink |
Good poem. I hope you’re surviving the extreme cold okay.
Neil Scheinin
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D. Wallace Peach 6:02 pm on January 31, 2019 Permalink |
Great poem. One that makes ya think. 🙂
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mistermuse 6:19 pm on January 31, 2019 Permalink |
Thanks, Diana. That poem was one of my rare departures from light verse and the light — er, the like. 🙂
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D. Wallace Peach 6:20 pm on January 31, 2019 Permalink
I noticed that. 🙂
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thelonelyauthorblog 7:37 pm on January 31, 2019 Permalink |
A powerful thought provoking piece. Bravo. Love this.
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mistermuse 7:11 pm on February 14, 2019 Permalink |
Thank you. Sorry for this delayed acknowledgement of your comment, but for some reason it went into my spam folder and I just found it..
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Garfield Hug 4:01 am on February 1, 2019 Permalink |
Good one!
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Silver Screenings 10:09 pm on February 3, 2019 Permalink |
This is beautiful.
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barkinginthedark 4:37 pm on February 13, 2019 Permalink |
so vivid…bravo. continue…
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moorezart 7:53 pm on February 19, 2019 Permalink |
Reblogged this on From 1 Blogger 2 Another.
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mistermuse 10:32 pm on February 19, 2019 Permalink |
Thank you, moorezart. What luck that you chose a serious post to reblog, thereby saving me the trouble of coming up with my usual bad pun when you reblog one of my humorous posts. 🙂
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moorezart 1:40 am on February 20, 2019 Permalink
I love how incorrigible you are. 🙂
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America On Coffee 4:02 am on March 3, 2019 Permalink |
So lovelingly insightful!
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Alison 10:07 pm on March 13, 2019 Permalink |
I like to see your more serious side. That was lovely.
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mistermuse 9:09 am on March 14, 2019 Permalink |
I appreciate that, Alison (though I think most humorists would join me in saying they’re serious about their humor as well). 🙂
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