I Cannot Tell a Lie

Sandy Point Sunset, Plum Island, MA

I could tell you that an elephant walked

right through my Arizona yard today

stomping my cactus into a mess,

leaving my garden all a wreck!

I could tell you that I took a ride on a feathery cloud

over the mountains through an azure sky,

when I was bored at lunch time.

I could tell you I turn into a silver mare at night

with wings on my feet and a silken mane,

and that I follow a moonbeam path into the starry sky

Galloping all the way!

I could tell you I was lost at sea

tossed and tumbled in cold blue waves,

and just as I was about to drown

a humpback whale brought me home,

and sang to me along the way!

I could tell you I once met Madame Curie

And she let me help her in her laboratory,

And that I was really the one who discovered

The magic and mystery of radium.

I could tell you I crossed the wide prairie

with grasses long and flaxen in autumn

with long skirts flowing in a prairie wind,

and buffalo thundering by!

I could tell all of these things and more,

But…

as He of the Cherry Tree said,

I cannot tell a lie, so I’ll tell a story instead!

~Kathie Adams Brown (April 2, 2013)

NaPoWriMo 2013 Day 2