Day: January 2, 2012

padded walls

poetry

cradling man-sized ladybugs
and climbing lived-in trees
this is the education we give our children
then we wonder at why they leaveith not the house at 18
“in childhood things were softer,” they say innocently enough, “foam enforced, carpeted, with padded walls.”
the real world they fought over patterned flowers on their mall floors and argued over who could jump to the next butterfly
they cradled themselves in tunnels of plastic, sterile, blue, climbing stairs and exiting slides
we taught life would be easy ups and slippery downs
we taught life lessons when we thought we were encouraging play time
taught padded walls as we cemented the forest
introduced easy-together legos in our rusting, over-heating, perishable, use-by-thursday world
and yet we wonder
we ponder
scratching our heads
eating smooth peanut butter on wonderbread and drinking pulp-free juice from disposable cups

I’m too Old for Nightmares…

poetry

dreams are not real life

dreams are in my mind

dreams are not the future

dreams get left behind

 

when I close my eyes at night

and I see you falling slowly

when I slip into the darkness

and you turn your anger towards me

 

I can’t save you there

I can’t make you smile

I can’t bring you back

I can’t close the miles

 

but the darkness does not last

and when the sun breaks through

those nightmare chains are broken

and your ghostly hold is too

John Everyone

poetry

I have been dead for seven days.

I have stolen away to greener pastures.

My family has eulogized me.

My friends have all disowned me.

There’s a box in a barn up on 10th street.

There’s a book of numbers inside.

I never made those calls.

I could have been a better man.

I should have said the right things.

Now I’m buried and gone.

Now I’m as good as I’ll ever be.