That's When I Need Beauty

When there is darkness all around me—

that’s when I need light.

When there is ugliness displayed—

that’s when I need beauty.

When the man-made world overwhelms—

that’s when I seek out Nature

to soothe and restore me,

to refresh my spirit,

to remind me that all is not lost,

that there will always be light, beauty, and hope.

~kathie adams brown (May 10, 2013)

The Monster Among Us

Living next door in the boarded up house

Dwelt a monster dressed as a man

Walking among us, smiling at you

He is your neighbor you never knew

Of the dark secret hiding inside

In the dark house

In those dark rooms

With no one to see,

No one to hear

Their silent cries.

Their life was a nightmare no one should live

Every day filled with horror— no way to escape,

And the MONSTER FED ON HIS PREY.

He devoured their souls,

Then, he walked among us

And we didn't know.

How did he hide all that evil inside?

Inside his shell,

Inside his house,

Inside his empty eyes?

Could no one see the monster inside?

Could no one hear those little girl’s cries?

~kathie adams brown (May 9, 2013)

With a Splash of Red Stayed my Fear Hiding

With a splash of red stayed my fear hiding

In a small black box

Before the dim dusk.

Four fat cats sat high and indifferent

And the cheerless self crawled behind.

Slower than the non-existent

The dawdling cruel thought

The gray common thought.

Still the self cowered at the black sky

While sweet harp music played behind.

Whisper through lips stayed my fear sliding

Sliding the spine up

Before the dim dusk.

Four fat cats sat high and indifferent

The towering trees cast shadows behind.

Thorny it’s not, like wide-eyed wakefulness

The fat ponderous thought

The slow sluggish thought.

There stood myself at a black mountain

The satisfied stone whispered again.

Rocks in heart stayed my fear hiding

The flat-lined heart kept me behind.

Brighter they’re not than comfortable life

The dull fat thoughts

The squat relaxed thoughts.

Still looming large over the red valley

The unfortunate self stifled again.

With a splash of red stayed my fear hiding

In a small black box

Before the dim dusk.

Four fat cats sat high and indifferent

Truth rose up and set me free!

~kathie adams brown (April 30, 2013)

NaPoWriMo 2013/30 Poems in 30 Days

Prompt 30:  Rewrite a poem using words that mean the opposite

This poem is my version of the opposite of All in Green Went my Love Riding by e.e. cummings.

Sunday Morning Litany in the Desert in Spring

Palo Verde Blossoms

Sunshine

Coffee on the patio

Mesquite trees in flower

Pollen everywhere

Goldfinches flittering

Roses in bloom,

Sunshine in the morning,

Shade in the afternoon.

Sunshine

Potted geranium by my chair

Lizards tumble in the yard

White-winged doves serenade

Hummingbirds hovering,

Palo Verde trees in bloom,
Insects a-buzzing,

Sunshine in the morning,

Shade in the afternoon.

Sunshine

Cactus wrens are calling,

Yellow blossoms on prickly pear,

A coronet of creamy blossom

Atop towering saguaros

Sky as blue as a lizard’s belly,

Ocatillos are in bloom,

Sunshine in the morning,

Shade in the afternoon,

It's springtime in the desert,

It's springtime in the desert,

It's Spring!

~Kathie Adams Brown (April 29, 2013)

NaPoWriMo 2013/30 Poems in 30 Days

Juxtoposition

Loneliness and Solitude—two

States of being, similar in one respect,

In both, one is alone, but

With solitude one is renewed

And refreshed;

The heart swells with life and is calmed;

But loneliness is a soul eating beast,

Leaving one empty and filled with sadness.

~kathie adams brown (April 27, 2013)

NaPoWriMo 2013/30Poems in 30 Days

Day 27

Nonsense at Night

And indeed, there will be time to wonder

Do I dare and do I dare count the birds

Again and again?

Are there birds where I will be?

Will the birds fly to me?

Will I know what I see?

Counting birds like counting crows                                  

It’s all in the way it goes

Should I learn to like this thing?

Will it take me over, make me sing?

I am counting all the time,

So often there’s not time to rhyme.

I missed my poem, I missed my song

and now the birds will sing along,

The bottom line, at least for me

when you’re tired, don’t write poetry!

~kathie adams brown (April 26, 2013)

NaPoWriMo 2013/30 Poems in 30 Days

I Remember the Girl

You look at me and what do you see?

White hair, thick middle, varicose veins?

I am getting old, it’s true.

We all do

But inside I am young, fierce, and passionate!

I can remember my long brown hair,

My slender waist,

My muscular legs.

I can remember leaping a brook,

jumping from stone to stone like a doe.

I can remember running through green pastures full of waist high grass

My long hair streaming behind me like a mane,

feeling as frisky as a young filly.

I can remember climbing trees like a monkey and

gazing down through the foliage at the ground

so far below.

I can remember swimming strong in the ocean,

Riding waves on my belly,

And rolling up on the sand to the sounds of seagulls calling.

Yes, I was young once—we all are;

Once.

And I can remember the girl.

~kathie adams brown (April 24, 2013)

NaPoWriMo 2013/30 Poems in 30 Days