The Podium

Stand up
And make a speech
That’s different
Every time.
Laugh at the
World,
The world
Laughs at you,
With you,
Comic relief
To make pains of Earth,
Pains of joy.
Speak for those
That have no voice,
Have yet to find their voice,
Grow
To help others
Grow.
Learn
To help others
Learn.
Take the reins,
And let the reins be taken.

The Films

Swept into a whirlwind
Of hoop skirts
And zoot suits.
Sinatra bursts into song,
Hepburn takes a drag
From her elongated cigarette.
Swept into a time
Where style was more
Than a pretty dress.
To a place
Over the rainbow,
In wooded hills,
Or foggy London.
A place where
Individual spark
Matters more than
Corporate conglomerates,
Gangsters become the heroes,
Cops become the villains.
Black and white
Stereotypes become
Shades of gray.
Words still have power.
A moment still lasts a lifetime.
A mimic of life’s
Most intense moments,
Its most intriguing dramas.

Ice Cream for Breakfast

Strawberries and smiles,
Chocolate and tears.
Sleepy dust wiped
Distractedly.
Feet pad quietly,
Slowly,
Up the stairs.
Cupboards open,
Spoons clank against the sides of the bowl.
The movie’s gentle grip frustrated as
Stomachs groan and
Speak plaintively.
Spoons lifted,
Whipped cream
Shoots erratically into the bowl.
Container dangerously low
We greet dinner
Hardly enough for one more bowl.

Hold the World

The quiet gives way to
Explosive energy.
Athletic support
Swings through a revolving door,
In and out and
Back again.
Creative insight,
Sees the world
Through fresh eyes.
Ability running through
Fingers and toes,
Mental leaps
Disclose true height.
Observe
To take away more meaning
From a gesture,
A word,
Than intended.
Shape the world,
And allow it to shape you.

The Trampoline

The trampoline squeaks,
The springs groan
Sighs of contentment
Settling in for a show.
Two girls
Chatter under purpling skies,
Deep secrets,
Shallow gossip.
Nothing in the spinning world
Except two friends,
A snapshot in a rapidly changing planet.
A moment of forever passing
Through the hourglass of time.
Falling quickly,
Without a word of apology,
No trace of regret.
The picture changes,
Fades,
Changes again.
The essence is captured,
Captive for eternity.

The Path

Run,
Run in circles,
Up and down,
Back and forth.
Stand still,
Breathe in,
Breathe out.
Gulp the air,
Fill the lungs with fresh energy,
Fresh excitement.
Allow it to wash over you.
Let the music
Flow through the veins as blood.
Calm,
Serene bliss,
Take hold and grip it,
Never let it go,
A tug of war of wills.
Run in a direction
Of your own choosing,
Run down a path
That brings you joy.

A Ticket

Push,
Pull,
Think more clearly,
Drink more deeply
From the fathomless
Cup of knowledge.
See the world
From behind a different lens.
The glass
Becoming less foggy,
The view less hazy,
And more distinct.
Give a ticket
To those with wide,
Wondering eyes,
And inquiring minds.
A ticket
To a lifelong journey,
An endless quest.

Spark

Filled to the brim.
Passions spark intensely,
Briefly,
Excelling at current interests,
Pushing old ones back
To be resurrected later.
Catch the eye,
Bright sparkles
Stick in the mind,
Stick in the soul.
Show the world
Something it never saw before,
It may never see again.
World a better place
Than where it started.
Glimmer with new knowledge,
New awareness,
New spark.

Strike

Crackling lightning
Strikes the ground,
Placing squarely
Its abundant energy.
Moments later,
Resounding booms
Fill the air.
Action before speech,
Brag about the deed
Only when the deed
Has been completed.
The vision is fleeting,
But affects one thing completely,
Resounding deeply,
Cutting through to the
Very core.
United for a moment,
United for eternity.

New Beginning

Always listening,
Always caring,
Always there.
An ear tuned to my music,
A shoulder whittled for my head,
A friend for all ages.
Trusting confidante,
Close advisor,
Refuge
In a sea of misunderstandings and discontent.
Gallop swiftly
Through unforgiving lands,
Reach quickly enlightenment.
Teach,
Learn,
Grow.
Every day a continuation,
Every day a new beginning.

Hummingbird

The hummingbird
Flits past,
Hovers,
Drinks,
Disappears.
She’s always here,
Watching,
Briefly tangible,
Then gone,
As completely
As if she’d never been there.
She looks at you,
Looks through you.
What you think,
What you feel
Absorbed.
Relieved and revealed.
Colored and clear.

The Pine

The pine
Is ageless,
Locked in an eternal dance
With the wind.
Its knowledge
Is as old
As it is powerful.
It sees,
It knows,
It guides,
Taking seedlings
Under its wing,
Providing a tour
Through the orchards of
Learning,
Love,
Life.
When the tree falters,
Its students
Will carry on,
Grow,
Change,
Alter the path of history,
And the course of time.

Mr. Wonderful

Mr. Wonderful
Thinks he’s wonderful,
Portrays wonderful qualities.
Teasing words strip
Down the hypocrisy,
Down to the factual,
Actual man.
A teacher,
Always eager to
Help and guide.
An activist,
Shaping the
Growing community with care.
A comedian,
Hypnotizing an audience,
As a snake charmer
Would a serpent.
A student,
Changing,
Learning,
Watching.

Guitar Strings

The guitar’s strings
Strum to the tune of
The Rolling Stones,
Play with family,
Play with friends.
Play to let
Emotional pain and joy
Flow through
The notes and out of the amp.
Play for sheer
Bliss,
For the coming of tomorrow,
And for the new light each day brings.
Play to share,
Love and laughter
Echo through the halls of the heart.
Play to give passion
To those who have lost it,
And those yet
To find it.

Diamonds and Pearls

Happy to meet a kindred spirit
In the middle of obligation.
Diamonds
And pearls,
True gems,
Strung together
In remarkable shapes
Where the diamond’s rainbows
Hit the wall.
Laugh,
Gossip,
Laugh again.
Caught under stern glances,
Light shining in
From the windows,
Branding our misbehavior.
Whisper in a hushed tone,
Point,
Giggle,
Look away,
Begin again.

Wedding March

Addition
To the family,
As familiar as any
Single member
Born to it.
Fitting in seamlessly,
Not a crack
Fracturing the
Marble of our
Joined lives.
Sweet,
Kind,
Funny.
Anyone would welcome
With open arms,
Lucky to have,
Lucky to keep.
Gladly wading
Through the
Twang-y throes of
Country standards,
To see you walk
Down an aisle
Paved in flowers.

Stretch

The giraffe
Stretches his neck
To reach the
Highest branch.
Around him
The Savannah is in
Structured disarray.
Glittering lights
Blinding cacophony
Overwhelming,
A blender
Mixing flavors
And aromas
From across the plains
Meeting in the middle
To create a medley
Of flourishes
And festivity.

Hiding

Run!
Run faster,
Duck your head,
Turn away,
Walk away,
Not fast enough,
Ears tormented,
Nails on a chalkboard,
Singing off key.
Plug your ears,
As effective as waving a flag
In front of a bull,
When you want it to go away.
Cover your face,
Can’t see me,
If I can’t see you.
The old childhood strategy
That never quite worked out.
Hopes heightened,
Then dashed.
Run faster,
Hide behind a tree,
Maybe he won’t see you,
Maybe he won’t see me.

Flitter

Butterflies
Flitter through
The cluttered hallways
Of the past,
Probing for the
Hidden treasure deep within.
Pile the
Hidden truths in everyday objects:
Paperweights,
Scraps of paper,
Hard bound books that line crowded shelves.
Good will flows
Through the gateways,
Cutting off,
And letting in.
Discover something old,
Discover something new.
Lose things
To find more meaning
In the things surrounding you.
Pick things up,
Put things down.
Find,
Found,
Fly away.

Jump

Let go.
Fears and inhibitions
Stop you in your tracks.
Little time left to say
Good-bye.
Little time to learn more
About ourselves,
And each other.
One bird
Leaves the nest,
The other
Stays behind to take flight later,
On its own.
Together in heart,
Together in spirit.
Here for you,
Here for us.
Look towards the future,
Don’t forget the past,
Live now.
Appreciate,
Experience,
And jump
Into the vigor of youth,
And of life.

The Blacksmith

Strike,
Burn the music of the hammer
Indelibly
Into the fabric of the soul.
Transform
Anxiety to inspiration.
Give form to the meaning
Of life,
Shape to the meaning
Of love.
Gather metal
As you would
Gather family,
Close,
Tight,
Never letting go.
Swinging hammer
An extension
Of the molten arm,
The pounding heart,
The fluid soul.

Cruise Ship

Destined to be left unfinished
And forgotten.
Wind whipping hair across the deck.
Round and round in dark circles,
And light glances.
Ship sailing,
Moving imperceptibly,
Cutting through the sea,
Sharp scissors cutting
Through satin ribbon.
Smiling,
Laughing,
Connected by
An easily broken,
Precious,
Thread.
Dancing,
Steps soon forgotten,
Moments long remembered.
Severed by distance,
Loosened by time.
The world’s stage
Produces a treasured,
Dimly recollected play,
And the show must go on.

Chocolate Chip Cookies

The ties of friendship are weak,
Frail,
Fragile,
Forgotten.
Wishing for more,
Unable to turn dream to reality,
Legend to truth,
Fiction to fact.
Chocolate chip cookies
Become bonds of friendship,
Humor shown through gooey strands of taffy,
Dangling from open, giggling mouths.
Mutual understanding.
Add to the luxury
Of the waistline,
And the friend list.

Patient Bird

Reality changes,
In a puff of smoke.
Something’s missing.
The hand
Perpetually touching the page,
The hand
Constantly covered in clay,
The hand
Never still,
Is still,
Never to lift again.
The room shifts,
The walls quake.
The art
Falls from the walls,
To the floor,
And further still,
Down,
Down,
Down.
The bird hops
Down to the sill,
And chirps,
And hopes,
And waits.

Bee Hive

The buzzing bees
Surround the hive,
Productive,
Efficient,
Helpful.
Bumblebees waddle
Through stagnant air currents,
Searching for something sweet.
Part of a larger team,
Working towards something
Greater than the individual,
Greater than the familiar,
The safe.
Look for adventure,
Cautiously,
Carefully.
Humming the melody.
The world knows
What it knows not.
It blinks,
It’s gone,
It reappears.
A pattern
Of continual exploration and denial.
Love and loss.

Ideas

Speak now,
Listen later.
Speak the words that
Make people listen.
Say it sweetly, with a smile.
Allow others to consume your ideas,
As they would consume apple pie.
Hypnotize
With the power of your words.
Infuse modern wisdom
And archaic common sense.
Raise the buds from the ground prematurely,
With the nutrients to take hold in the soil.

The Hourglass

Time is running out,
Chances are slipping
Through frantically grasping fingers.
What happens when the sand is gone?
Told to take more,
Do more,
You run in the opposite direction.
Near the end,
Near a time when
The well-worn path
Disappears into the mists.
Feeling helpless,
Unappreciated.
Floating precariously,
Kicking through the current,
Against the current.
Giving up,
Giving in.
Working harder,
Working faster,
Do more,
Do the most.

Midnight Hour

Loud voices usher in
Smeared lipstick,
Hair lifted to stand on end,
Clothing choices
Questionable at best.
Waiting,
Waiting,
Waiting.
Midnight approaches,
Bringing her children
Into her arms,
And releases them to the Night.
More loud voices match The Night’s,
And laughter
Permeates any trace of chill.
A world of vulgar brotherly love
Is opened,
Exploited,
And explored.

Decision

The deer looks up,
Caught in the headlights of
Life’s path.
Which way should it go?
Quiet,
Calm,
Dignified.
The doe approaches her path
Efficiently,
A logical progression
From A to B.
Then she leaps,
An inadvertent product
Of her kind.
No hesitation,
No broken promises.
She is nothing but herself.
A whisper of awe from onlookers
Hides a kernel of self-doubt,
Turning to a rush of
Condescension on the
Deer itself.

Without You

Years flow fluidly,
Swiftly,
Without notice,
Without provocation.
Suddenly all is still,
And life has passed by.
The flower dances in the sun,
The dandelion spore floats
On the breath of the wind.
Months turn to years
Turn to more years.
The heart grows fonder,
But the mind wanders.
Reality becomes a dream,
Romanticized and vague.
Trudge the marshes of the future,
Walk lightly in the fields of the past,
Bask in the valley of the present.
Wander far,
Wander well.
Be guided to love,
And happiness,
And hope.

Mirror

A shield of humor
Masks a gentle soul,
An indomitable will,
An irrepressible spirit.
Mirror to the world
What you want it to see,
Never let it look through the glass.
A marshmallow center
Covered in a candy coating,
Sweet to the core.
Vulnerable,
Strong,
Courageous,
Shy.
Nothing to see,
Everything to know.
See yourself reflected.
Expect to see
More than bargained for.
Expect truth,
Don’t be fooled
By the make believe.

Force of Nature

Larger than life,
A mountain of energy,
Rumbling ominously,
About to erupt at the
Slightest provocation.
Tsunami wave of good humor,
Hurricane of good intentions.
A force of nature,
Strong,
Powerful,
Gentle,
Kind.
Stop at nothing,
Never take no for an answer,
Take no prisoners.
Leave nothing behind in your wake,
Challenge the wind,
The water,
The sky.
Nature itself will quake,
And the strongholds of convention
Will tumble before you.

Web Spinner

Words have power,
Not a military coup,
But the subtle web spinner
Behind the throne.
Must be spoken,
Must be understood.
The mumbling inconsistencies
Of the larger world
Welded together in
A complicated pattern of meaning,
And intent,
And interpretation.
Deny the power,
Deny the spirit,
Deny the soul.
Take the leap off the cliff,
Aim towards the wisdom,
At the bottom of the canyon.

Wanderer

A kaleidoscope of flavor
Descending on the palate
Of the unaware.
A tie-dye ensemble
Of peace,
Love,
Rock ‘n’ roll
Mixed with a sense
Of humor,
Passion,
And humor.
Sandal clad feet
Trek the most majestic of areas.
The first to take off,
The first to kick back.
Look at the stars,
Feel the Earth’s wonder.
The wolf,
The bear,
The fish,
The promise of tomorrow,
And the glory of today.

The Ranch

Daisy chains
Set together in fragile union.
Sitting down among
The grass,
And the wildflowers,
Swaying in the
Gentle breeze,
A whisper in the wind
Of youth
And its fleeting hold.
Prairie skirts swish
As the horse tosses its mane,
And the birds fly
Swiftly,
In throaty song
And soprano trills.
Hiking on the dusty road,
Cars unable to make a
Thorough impact on the
Natural rebellion in the
Middle of the trail.
The river winds its way through,
Catching the valley in its mystical grasp,
Courting the land
In the most gentlemanly manner,
Taking it by the hand
And leading it through the hills.

The Blackboard

Little learners
Growing,
Changing,
Laughing,
Playing.
Students look up,
To learn English and math,
But learn more about
Themselves,
And their passions,
And their uniqueness.
The blackboard
Sings of opportunity,
A guide
To the interpretations
Of themselves,
Ourselves,
Myself.

The Voice

Community of 6 million
Souls lost in prejudice
And needless hate,
Together share
A common past,
And a brighter future.
Traditions
Weeded out and
Grown anew:
A prayer,
A candle,
A Voice silenced
With a word and a weapon.
Slowly it comes back,
With resounding passion to
Shake the world from complacency.
One Voice
For one people.
One Voice
For 6 million spirits.

Unrequited

Walk lightly,
March swiftly,
Fill the air with the
Loudest silence,
Penetrate the cracks.
March forward,
Tiptoe back.
Gaze softly,
Glance sweetly,
A gesture,
A word,
A look,
No more.
Quickly gone,
Swiftly flown.
Tomorrow ends
In the middle
Of today.

Grinning Cat

Persistent,
A gamble of love
Staked on cards.
Every day closer,
Every day beginning.
Distraction leading mother
To bet with
Her daughter’s man.
She’s not his,
Not yet.
He trenches himself
Deep within the familial psyche,
She tries to rip the talons out,
But the cat only grips
Tighter and tighter.
She fails,
She falls,
The cat grins.

Chocolate

An intense debate over chocolate
Dark?
Milk?
Milk is creamy smooth,
Nauseating.
Dark a pool
Of molten tears, laughter
Cooled into bricks.
Healthy?
A bonus.
I care not,
I want not,
Give her dark,
And let her be.
She takes the confection,
Symbol of release
And relief
After a long day,
A long lifetime
Of doing and
Running and
Working.
A morsel, bobbing
Up and down in
A sea of contentment.

Dedication and Acknowledgement

Dedicated to Madeline Purkerson
Who pulled a single thought from the turmoil of my mind,
And concentrated my efforts.



Acknowledging all those who inspired the poems,
And those who encouraged their creation.

Under Construction

Congratulations-

You are reading the first ever blog post devoted to my poetry. Unfortunately, the site you're reading is not ready... I promise poetry will be coming very soon.

-Allison