JUST DUST

I have said before

that my brain

has a mind of its own...

and I have no reason

to lie.

But there you were

with all that mass

confusion pressed

into my chest

so I could hear for

myself the drum

of your walk. 

There you were

with a white tooth

smile and spotlight

eyes looking right

through me,

holding judgment

in your fist but

not saying a word.

I’ve waited a long time

for the dust to settle

into the gyre where

your memory lingers

these days with the

flowers that are the

ashes you left behind

to give me one more

thing to think about.

Reviews

[Chris Shaw]

Memories are so random, the way the brain can recall images and the voices of those we have lost. Bringing them back briefly I guess can be both a blessing and a curse. The blessings would be more welcome. You have a wonderful way with words that always leave an impression on your readers.

Chris

[Vol]

Chris,
Awww, gee! Thank you. I am particularly enthralled by those little disconnected ghost memories that seem to haunt for no apparent reason. For me they are vivid, like when I was three in rural Virgina and Wilma had a brick outhouse at the end of a concrete walk with flowers...
Vol

[FGFRANKLIN]

This is deep and aching with tender sentiment. Love lost, I've more than few of my own. I just try to hold onto the good times.

[Vol]

FGF,
Thanks, at seventy-four, I've learned that some loves are like hot cherry pie, some are like leftover meatloaf, some like drinking hot sauce straight from the bottle.
Vol

[Kelly Scheppers]

I love what you do with words, the expressions and impressions you instill in my imagination. It's some kind of wonderful!

[Vol]

Kelly,
Thank you. For as long as I can remember, words have been my favorite toys.
Vol

[Kelly Scheppers]

Mine, too!

[MomzillaNC]

Intriguing imagery. These lines stood out for me.

a white tooth
smile and spotlight
eyes looking right
through me
judgment
in your fist but
not saying a word.
I’ve waited a long time
for the dust to settle
into the gyri where
your memory lingers
ashes you left behind

[Lorry]

Brains indeed have a mind of their own Vol. I blame them for all the duh! moments in my life that you instantly regret and kick yourself for not seeing them coming, despite them coming with glaring lights, horns and klaxons.
And we never seem to learn our lesson, do we?
Well, judging by the various watery ends my cell phones have me, I certainly don't. Sinks, basins, baths, even a fish tank with no fish, that an ex of mine kept under her sink, ful, for whatever reason her brain decided to de-mind!
But yes, some echos from our pasts not only reverberate, but linger in those places that are so hard to spring clean and with little care or attention taken to the who, when, whys of its original demise.
I'm starting to seriously consider that life is nothing more than a simulation set on bizzare level, where you have to constantly put up with every level of pain, until we finally understand what life is for and about.
I'm seriously not looking forward to the shitting a hedgehog level, I can tell you that! 😊

[Vol]

Lorry,
My mind left the building some years ago... Looking for Elvis, I think. Last I heard, he was down in Marguritaville in the Keys. He don't write, he don't call, he don't send me no flowers on my birthday!
He's an a*s.
Vol

[emmajoygreen]

Seems this could be written way after the time when absence made the pain more fragile, memories became more complex to decipher: . perhaps one or other, not at all or all, I just cannot decide. But, maybe your words are meant to remain private, personal.. Perhaps you are still sorting them into a place of safety. sanity, sacred?

[Vol]

Emma, milady,
I have been in three LONG relationships, two of my lovers are dead, leaving a hole almost as big as my last one of 18 months. I was without hope when Patricia came to me, and she came with the entire Milky Way, her congestive heart failure rapidly progressed after she arrived, and now everything in my universe has returned to the mundane. Lisa is a stunning partner, and I love her, but the universe has dimmed... This one was written about three years after the death of Kimberly, my wife of twenty years...
Vol

[emmajoygreen]

However sad the past, how beautiful to have had what you have. And what you have now is the most precious because every dawn has that magic silver lining so many people hope and wish for every day of their lives. Take care, my friend.. please.

[Vol]

Emma,
My middle name should be "Resilient."

[jacob erin-cilberto]

This is interesting...my vision is of the speaker talking to a deceased father who was abusive.
More verbally...and the fist of words always pounded into his head.
It is confusing to have a parent like that.
Really like this one.
j.

[Vol]

Jacob,
That is why I love poetry, it makes kaleidoscope of everyday words...
Vol