REMEMBER THAT TIME WE WENT TO PARIS?
REMEMBER THAT TIME WE WENT TO ITALY?
REMEMBER THAT TIME WE COULD VISIT GRANDAD WHEN HE WAS ILL?
REMEMBER THAT TIME WE COULD FREELY ROAM THE STREETS?
REMEMBER THAT TIME WE COULD CROSS STATE BORDERS TO REACH A HOSPITAL?
REMEMBER THAT TIME WE COULD HAVE THE WEDDING WE ALWAYS DREAMED OF HAVING?
REMEMBER THAT TIME BEFORE PREMIERS BECAME DICTATORS?
MEMORIES, SUCH A GLORIOUS, LOVELY THING.
FIONA
Racing thoughts
Whirlwind of emotions
Searing pain
However not ashamed
Of her past mistakes
Heart breaks
Pierced with a sword
Steel blade
Serrated
Tears flow down
Upon her delicate face
Like a inferno
Scorching
Escaping there hell
Fire rages in her veins 🔥
To the villains
Who stole time from her
In there audacity
And insecurities
She unbeknownst to them
Indestructible
But scarred
Having to save herself
From there demise
Of evil demons
With no soul
Whom stole her innocence
Learning to live again
She dances in the rain
As it falls
Cleansing the sins
Of them from her
The sun peaking through
Replacing gloom
With illumination of light
Heart rejoices in the basking glow
Without a doubt she is not broken 💖
Last ride.
I arrived at the address and honked the horn. After waiting a few minutes I honked again. Since this was going to be my last ride of my shift I thought about just driving away, but instead I put the car in park and walked up to the door and knocked.. ‘Just a minute’, answered a frail, elderly voice. I could hear something being dragged across the floor. After a long pause, the door opened. A small woman in her 90’s stood before me. She was wearing a print dress and a pillbox hat with a veil pinned on it, like somebody out of a 1940’s movie. By her side was a small nylon suitcase. The apartment looked as if no one had lived in it for years. All the furniture was covered with sheets. There were no clocks on the walls, no knickknacks or utensils on the counters. In the corner was a cardboard box filled with photos and glassware. ‘Would you carry my bag out to the car?’ she said. I took the suitcase to the cab, then returned to assist the woman. She took my arm and we walked slowly toward the curb. She kept thanking me for my kindness. ‘It’s nothing’, I told her.. ‘I just try to treat my passengers the way I would want my mother to be treated.’ ‘Oh, you’re such a good boy, she said.
When we got in the cab, she gave me an address and then asked, ‘Could you drive through downtown?’ ‘It’s not the shortest way,’ I answered quickly.. ‘Oh, I don’t mind,’ she said. ‘I’m in no hurry. I’m on my way to a hospice. I looked in the rear-view mirror. Her eyes were glistening. ‘I don’t have any family left,’ she continued in a soft voice..’The doctor says I don’t have very long.’ I quietly reached over and shut off the meter. ‘What route would you like me to take?’ I asked. For the next two hours, we drove through the city. She showed me the building where she had once worked as an elevator operator. We drove through the neighborhood where she and her husband had lived when they were newlyweds She had me pull up in front of a furniture warehouse that had once been a ballroom where she had gone dancing as a girl. Sometimes she’d ask me to slow in front of a particular building or corner and would sit staring into the darkness, saying nothing. As the first hint of sun was creasing the horizon, she suddenly said, ‘I’m tired.Let’s go now’.
We drove in silence to the address she had given me. It was a low building, like a small convalescent home, with a driveway that passed under a portico. Two orderlies came out to the cab as soon as we pulled up. They were solicitous and intent, watching her every move. They must have been expecting her. I opened the trunk and took the small suitcase to the door. The woman was already seated in a wheelchair. ‘How much do I owe you?’ She asked, reaching into her purse. ‘Nothing,’ I said ‘You have to make a living,’ she answered. ‘There are other passengers,’ I responded. Almost without thinking, I bent and gave her a hug.She held onto me tightly. ‘You gave an old woman a little moment of joy,’ she said. ‘Thank you.’ I squeezed her hand, and then walked into the dim morning light.. Behind me, a door shut. It was the sound of the closing of a life..
I didn’t pick up any more passengers that shift. I drove aimlessly lost in thought. For the rest of that day,I could hardly talk.What if that woman had gotten an angry driver,or one who was impatient to end his shift? What if I had refused to take the run, or had honked once, then driven away? On a quick review, I don’t think that I have done anything more important in my life. We’re conditioned to think that our lives revolve around great moments. But great moments often catch us unaware-beautifully wrapped in what others may consider a small one. PEOPLE MAY NOT REMEMBER EXACTLY WHAT YOU DID, OR WHAT YOU SAID ~BUT~THEY WILL ALWAYS REMEMBER HOW YOU MADE THEM FEEL. At the bottom of this great story was a request to forward this – I deleted that request because if you have read to this point, you won’t have to be asked to pass it along you just will… Thank you, my friend… Life may not be the party we hoped for, but while we are here we might as well dance.
Please Share This With Followers And Those You Care About
Chuck
Mercy me
We are dancing slow and easy to the blues, her body moving and grooving to the sound. Her eyes are closed, her shoes are off and her hips are feeling every note.
I whispered to her wanting ear, you make me feel so good. Mercy me, you are so damn beautiful. Your kiss, so sweet, so tender, like the taste of the ambrosia wine.
You are my honey wine, my sweetest place I ever had known.
She laughed and she kissed my neck and lips. She whispered. Love be sweet, love be damned. You make me want to live and die in your arms. Let’s us fall into the songs and let’s us make believe. Love is forever and you and I.
Believe, you are my love alone and only, and I’m, all you need.
Johnnie/Coyote
Image and Poem Attribution © goffjamesart/photography/poetry
More haiku poems by Goff James
All rights reserved
tastings leave me feeling shiny and new
selecting the best, we all win
the atmosphere delightful, taking it all in
friendships cemented over wine, so happy are we
I was inspired to write this after Christine – Stine Writing posted about this interesting form. It’s called an “In One Word Poem” and it is an absolute delight to be challenged to create in this way! My husband supplied the first word and I hope you enjoy what it prompted me to write. 🙂
The rules are:
Have fun if you decide to participate! I hope you do and and look forward to reading what you come up with!
Silver threads woven through my hair
where once I defied my true age
an etching of lines on a weathered face
leaving a map of where I’ve been.
For a pandemic raging and a cancer in my breast
have done their damage and left me
-naked, for this disease changed, rearranged
a self-confessed charlatan who tried to age with grace
washed away all the masks, left no trace
-exposed stark beauty under skin.
And now my words, my thoughts, my feelings
all elements of my entire being
– coming from a different place
for pain peels away layers of self-preservation
leaving a yearning for a simple life again
to bask in the sun’s warmth caressing my face
and not think of battles raging within.
dVerse Poets Pub: PoeticsSelf Portrait– Come and Take a Selfie!
I live life now as my inner child She who lived in secret for so long Never allowed to come out and play Words tied to her tongue left unsaid
Source: Inner Child – Poetry For Healing
Cowboy’s Mirage
My horse died,
but I keep walking
When will it rain?
I ask the Arizona sky
I pass the bone dry rivers,
abandoned crops,
and dying cacti
that barely stand
I’m the only one left,
while others go in panic,
abandoning their homes,
ranches and cattle,
and probably their brides
As I keep walking,
the mirage is ahead of me,
the pool of glistening water
invites me to strip naked,
as I cleanse myself
of all the desert dust.
The Reluctant Poet 