right where I left it

some wounds fester

the rage
it's there
right where I left it
inside of you.

try this poison
if you please
a drop of him
a drop of me
and a mouthful
of everything
we used to be.

Plant a seedling in a pot
of hazardous waste
somehow it manages
to eek out a place.
remove it,
and expect it to grow
without the only
toxic environment
it came to know

born of my greatest pain
she is my greatest joy
and the guilt I feel
is only outpaced
by my love.

Author's Note

Reviews

[Lydia Shutter]

KL, this could be a set of song lyrics....seriously! I liked the scattered stanzas....but you always do that so well. The child was created out of that relationship and she is the reason it was worthwhile no matter what. Powerfully emotional. I liked it a lot. Lydi**

[Lyn Anderson]

Thank you very much. The reasons are many why this one is important to me

[Corset]

very powerful, and coupled with the video, makes it a very clear statement, wonderful delivery, how it is split up into several scattered stanzas to emphasize the divide and the one true course for any parent and often saving grace, many times we won't save ourselves but if our child is endangered we will endure so much more than one can ever imagine.

[Lyn Anderson]

I am very happy you stopped by this piece. You understand it perfectly. So glad the universe led me to your page yesterday.

[Corset]

so glad you stopped by

[Papaya]

And you hold on to your joy grateful for having endured for her, for if it was any other way she would not be with you.

[Lyn Anderson]

Thank you for your kind review. hugs. :)

[Papaya]

Thank you, and back at ya. ((hugs))

[jacob erin-cilberto]

you are so good at these shots, KL...

yes, leave the rage inside of him...and everything we used to be...

so many of those "used to be's" for us as poets...we seem to find expression to define almost every relationship, don't we?

nice work
j.

[Lyn Anderson]

Thank you for visiting and reviewing. :)

[redzone]

the offspring shoots of toxic waste are often toxic to one side or the other in these plants... and I think that last verse nails it if the plant is to survive toxicity and finally is warmed by the loving sun... your wonderful metaphors are sharp tongued reality and the festering wound stark to see KL... talk about reality bites it (and us too often).... yikes!!

redzone

[Lyn Anderson]

thank you, for your ever wonderful and thoughtful reviews. I am on a bit of a mission this morning to promote Corset. Outstanding writing, I am moved.

[V]

The plant metaphors are striking in this one melded with toxines. I can very well relate to the first stanza and the one on the right is nicely written, the last one provokes deep feelings (unfortunately I can only imagine). I think all of your writings are somehow thought provoking or deeply emotional pieces, something to delve into.

[Lyn Anderson]

Thank you. There is, of course, always a bit of my own life in everything I write, which I think is what makes a poem feel real or not. Parents can try their best and always feel like they have screwed up, or screw up and try to make it better, and still feel like they screwed up. With few exceptions, it is hard not to make mistakes in raising kids. If parents don't feel that way, they are just breeders and not parents, I think.

[V]

You're welcome. I think most of the writers include bits of their lives.
I think I share your opinion even though I am not a parent (yet).