Books Under the Covers

 

If I could walk away and still breath, 

I would take nothing but a single memory.

The less I give the more I save of myself

and so reluctantly I contemplate rewriting my souls destiny.

 

I always sought out the charted maps of life,

the points of interest and pit stops,

the craze of voices living through me.

Amidst it all the struggle of loving myself,

wicked and a sinner hiding behind props.

 

Growing up, everything good was wrong,

the lecturing and sheltering my childhood song.

In between life lessons I read books under the covers,

flashlight shining on magic and mystery as night hovered.

 

My escape was princesses and castles,

priceless treasures and pirate ships,

forbidden love and inevitable tragedy, flushed bodies tangled in silk, the sighs and whispered words of thrilling lovers,

dragons and wizards with glowing staves,

intergalactic battles and futuristic trips.

They're the essences of who I am and the

reasons I have no sense of reality.

A beautiful disaster flitting by aimlessly,

delicate butterfly, grasping at fantasy and romantic catastrophe.

 

Settling down for normalcy

brings me tears of hopelessness and anxiety.

For I cannot understand how dreams are dashed

and magicked away for being too good to be true.

 

Once upon a time in a faraway kingdom

I held my head up high and nothing broke me down.

Loveliness and pure living with spirit free

was the delicious pursuit and the earth's gentle sound.

 

So if I could walk away from all this world

of materialism and conceit,

from the stiflings of desire and reckless beauty,

I would take away with me a single memory,

 

I'd hold close to my heart a photograph of empty space.

The containment of my shackled mind

when running everyone else's race.

And I'd walk into my realm of freedom

and claim that wondrous kingdom.

Reviews

[Antonio Valentino]

"The less I give the more I save of myself"

right away, this line stopped me cold, thats good

and then it was followed with this:

"and so reluctantly I contemplate rewriting my souls destiny."

wawwie, what a great way to grab the readers mind and squeeze it gently..

"I always sought out the charted maps of life,
the points of interest and pit stops,
the craze of voices living through me.
Amidst it all the struggle of loving myself,
wicked and a sinner hiding behind props."

i can always appreciate the honesty in words like these

"Growing up, everything good was wrong,
the lecturing and sheltering my childhood song.
In between life lessons I read books under the covers,
flashlight shining on magic and mystery as night hovered."

everything good was wrong, aint that the truth

i liked the rhyming at the end of this verse
i like adding a few rhyming lines in a piece even if the rest isnt structured so.. its like a little bird singing in a tree as your walking by a poetic landscape..

"My escape was princesses and castles,
priceless treasures and pirate ships,
forbidden love and inevitable tragedy,
dragons and wizards with glowing staves,
intergalactic battles and futuristic trips."

ahhh.. and what better escape can there be than within our own imagination as we allow words to draw picture, color and sound on the backlight of our minds

"They're the essences of who I am and the
reasons I have no sense of reality.
A beautiful disaster flitting by aimlessly,
delicate butterfly, grasping at fantasy and romantic catastrophe."

okay that made me take a deep breath and say bravo out loud, inside.. like a BIL or something, i dont know i havent worked out the acrnym yet.. seriously though, the best verse so far and just gorgeous, really

"Settling down for normalcy
brings me tears of hopelessness and anxiety.
For I cannot understand how dreams are dashed
and magicked away for being too good to be true."

okay im going to divulge a line from a poem i havent completed yet that goes something like this: 'If your dream can come true, you're calling it the wrong word'

dont use it though okay, i just copyrighted it by writing it here right now haha..

"Once upon a time in a faraway kingdom
I held my head up high and nothing broke me down.
Loveliness and pure living with spirit free
was the delicious pursuit and the earth's gentle sound."

another actual sigh...... and i mean that too, im not just saying that.. i love it when that happens!

"So if I could walk away from all this world
of materialism and conceit,
from the stiflings of desire and reckless beauty,
I would take away with me a single memory,"

oh gosh i havent looked ahead yet, but that verse just perfectly built up the last stanza for a biggg ending... okay now i get to go see it now..............

"I'd hold close to my heart a photograph of empty space.
The containment of my shackled mind
when running everyone else's race.
And I'd walk into my realm of freedom
and claim that wondrous kingdom."

i had to sit there a minute and take this all in..

going back over the whole thing again, i notice the similaritiy with the first verse and last two verses..

what a wonderful journey you take us on with this

this appreciation for writing and the grandeur of pure ideals

i hope you know that this admiration that you have has just translated into your own stories now that others will most certainly be inspired by to read more and to find and believe in who and what they can become

i know thats what it did for me.. and for that i sincerely thank you

[Melody Telleria]

What an amazing review, I SO appreciate the time you took to really take this apart and translate it in your heart. I was happy to read that yor favorite verse was
"They're the essences of who I am and the
reasons I have no sense of reality.
A beautiful disaster flitting by aimlessly,
delicate butterfly, grasping at fantasy and romantic catastrophe."
That's my favorite verse too (= It flowed to me so perfectly and made sense of who I am. Thank you.

[Antonio Valentino]

hahaha omg it was a longg review wasnt it Melody..

oh yeah i can get kina wurdy

you are so very welcome.. how the way it flowed so perfectly for you, it would have been impossible for me to not want to express how wonderful and meaningful this work was..

heck im just glad i got to experience it

yes.. that particular verse was a gorgeous part of an elegant whole

wonderful you..

keep it up okay.. looking forward to reading more........

[Writer *78*]

I read this last night after actually getting under my own covers. For some reason when I got to the last three stanzas I cried. Its true as children we believe that there is magic within this world. As we grow older and go through life, tough out the ups and downs we as humans lose our 'magic'. I myself am a kid at heart I will say that proudly. As a child I enjoyed escaping from my own world and going into pretend. I would often watch disney movies [as any child does] or read one of my favorite books [if i remember right it was treasure island, or robin hood, when I was about the age of 9]. The other night I decided to watch a disney movie called 'The Rescuers'. One, because it was an animated film [which we really dont see anymore]. Two, I wanted to see if the film(s) still have an effect on me today as they did when I was a child. I realized about halfway through the film that it still does. In the same night, I watched a SciFi show called 'Neverland' and I was entranced by it. Seeing Peter Pan and Hook in a different way, I think that Peter Pans story is alot like myself because I try to be a 'kid' and act differently everyday. Though at times I wish I could escape to Neverland, and not grow up.

I think this piece is one of your best [along with what i call your 'greek' pieces] it takes you back to a time where everything was innocent and care free. To a time where pretending almost felt real because as a child we live for playtime therefore children live in the moment more than anyone. I have said this to my closest friends, I think 'if you lose your childhood or the memory of it then you in turn lose part of yourself' Never be ashamed of being a child at heart embrace it.

Overall written very well and as always impressive work. Once again your pieces have changed my life.

-Tips hat off to her-

-Writer *78*

[Melody Telleria]

I LOVE watching old disney movies and I LOVE The Rescuers. My favorite disney movie is Beauty and the Beast, I always felt I related to Belle in so many ways, her simplicity, love of books and reading, her open heart to the magic all around. Anytime we can find a way to escape into the beauty of that childhood long gone, we definitely should.
Thank you so much for always reading my pieces so carefully and with so much heart.

[abraxus89]

I absolutely loved this, I could be wrong but from my interpretation its about the magic that surrounds us as children and as we grow up, we lose that magic. How settling for what is considered to be 'the norm' of things simply wont do. I really love this, I can see so much of the desires and pains of things i wish I could not so much have but live in, if you get my meaning!

Awesome poem, well done!

[Melody Telleria]

Yes, the halo of magic that glows on us as children sadly disappears as we discover the true forms of life ahead of us.
I am horrified at the prospect of having a "normal" life. And I don't truly understand why, but I guess I want to make more of a bang with my life. To be fair, I don't think that a "normal" life is bad. Its just so stale and routine and predictable. That's why I am trying to do more things in my life that proclaim who I really am. That I crave excitement and thrills and a flash of beauty at every turn. That I still believe in the magic I had as a child even though a curtain has been drawn over it.

[abraxus89]

The great thing about a curtain, is that it can be easily pull off and set aside, if you dont do it already Medlody, id recommend you try writing a novel, your great with your words and they flow and knit together, and I can already feel it in my gut you have that something that'll make a book interersting.

again if you are a novelist, id loveto read something.

Back to he poem, it is sad that we lose that magic, I miss being a child in that regard but im happy to be an adult also.

Hmm, my life is mundane but hardly normal, imquite random and capable of anything so I always manage to keep it interesting. My recent escapades include, getting hammered drunk off a litre of vodka, running around 5 miles in the heavy rain, with only a shirt on, 2 red horizontal lines drawn in facepaint on each cheek and growling because it was so cold.

Now im paying for it, damn flu! haha

[Writer *78*]

I would agree you should write a book. To think if one of your poems was turned into a book, Id stay up all night reading it.

[Melody Telleria]

I've tried my hand at writing short stories, I do enjoy it and you guys, writing a novel is probably my greatest goal. I would love to. I'm so appreciative and humbled that both of you have that kind of faith in me, that I could write something like a novel. These are serious things to think about.

[abraxus89]

Indeed, it is.

You do have a wonderful way with words or for a better word, yours words are compelling in your poetry.

My advice with regards to novel writing, dont think of it as this long book, once you have a rough storyline thought out plan the book, chapter by chapter, that way it wouldnt feel so over encumbering.

Anyway do give it a think. ;)

[MandaBear]

beautiful as always!

[Erinne S.]

"Their the essences of who I am" 'their' should be 'they're' My only fix for you in this piece.
I enjoyed it! It had a beautiful flow and brought back childhood memories of my own when I used to curl up, under the covers and dive into a story. Thank you for sharing this enchanting piece!