Sunday, April 03, 2011

Diamonds--poem


This one's dedicated to anyone and all of my friends and family members who have ever doubted how truly awesome they are.

There’re diamonds in the sky
they say
for those who are willing to reach for
them with outstretched, driven, strengthy hands
and a crystal reflection in their eyes

“I can’t reach!”
I heard you say,
and you jumped as high as you could (at the time).

My eyes rolled away and my body
followed my train of thought—
“coming aboard?” I asked.

This time, yours rolled. You’re gone, ‘til I find you
rolled up from rolling so much through
the mire
that has dimmed your sight of the diamond sky.

“You can reach!” I raise my voice with
my pointer
to our dreams twinkling high above.
The air vibrates around the sole figure,
the only figure alone with her sky.

“You can reach.” I repeat, in vain,
my breath rippling through the night
caressing the dew of first dawn.
The Moon pulls away, her rays curling upward,
giving way to the Sun and all His enlightenment.

I see you outstretched, glowing from God’s praise
for the creature God made is delighting in
the Sun’s glory.
I should be happy—perhaps I am—but I know
that those diamonds feel farther to you than Mother Moon does
with Father Sun owning the sky.

You seem blind by Him, that brilliant Sun.
You seem blind to seeing how close They are,
those twinkling, inspiring dreams.
You seem blind when you dip your little toes
in Sister Tide, tickling your tootsies with each lap and pull.

I feel blind and dumb, staring at Sister Tide, beyond your feet,
your tools for striding.

Until She winks
using Father Sun’s gifts, and cheekily sends them back
two-fold.

Maybe I’m crazy, and dumber than I thought, but I hear
Mama Moon giggle
as the answer’s revealed.

With a shout and a dance, I disturb my Sisters,
the water and the child of God’s gracious breath.
You look at me with that familiar perplexity, that confusion
twisting your nose into a cute button.

“’Til tonight!” I yelp, like Brother Wolf at his Mother,
and I dance away, prance away, to my box of tricks.
Some call it Pandora’s, for the power it holds—
I call it Ambition, as it leads me to precious, faithful glass—
to glass so crafty, so carefully crafted,
with Sister Tide’s wisdom-filled notion,
of handing back truths to the unbeknownst sender.

My heart beats you to me, dragging your tools,
worn from a day in Father Sun’s rays.
I say no words, just gestures to tell you:
“you can.”

Before those blues roll away from my suggestion,
your lips forming “I can’t” with practised ease,
I grab the glass, covering my face with your own.

“You already have,” I exhale, relieved.

I know what faith is, without seeing what you saw,
as, in the glass,
your eyes twinkled with the diamonds
we’ve both admired
all along.

5 comments:

McScott said...

I enjoyed the imagery, and felt drawn into your celestial/terrestrial family as well. Well done. :)

Can I request a face-to-face walkthrough though? Poems that flow like this get lost in the nuts and bolts of my hard-wired mind, and this poem felt like a butterfly. :)

DoesItMatter said...

Very nice little Miss. There's a depth in everything you write. I think this may be one of my favourites.

Take care

Jamie

Ashley said...

Scotty, thanks baby :) <3.

Jamie, thanks so much! It's been a while--have you written anything recently :)?

DoesItMatter said...

Hey Ash

Nah, I haven't in quite some time.

The little voice went silent and I kind've just stopped.

How have you been?

Jamie

Ashley said...

Well, Jamie, I've been good. Graduated from my two degrees (both undergrads). I'll go for my masters in a couple years, methinks.

I'm sad to hear you haven't written in a while. I know what that's like, though. I went through quite a dry spell myself while in school. Then bam! I'd be writing poems non-stop. My prose hasn't been flowing for months and months now, though. ugh.

Well, thanks for stopping in :). I"ll be writing something again soon!