The forlorn child looks up with a smile
Each time the maple leaves sway with the breeze,
Dancing like maidens of scarlet and gold
For the girl at the window who watches the trees,
Seeking escape from a sorrowful world.
Watching the brilliant frocks each leaf wears
Tremble with laughter in the rustling wind,
The sad little girl has forgotten her cares.

Oh, the world is dark
The storm within is raging, rushing
Lighting strikes, but lends no light
And night is bleaker with its hit
Fog and mist rise ‘round the tree-trunks
Binding still the black to night
And with its ever-reaching fingers
Steals the hope of daybreak’s joy
But from the mountains creeps a promise
Light has flown across the sky
And reaching here you see it’s figure
A winged being, petite and fair
She stands there quietly, ethereal
And in her eyes there shines the Hope

Invisibility is a choice, but it’s not an easy one.

It is a heavy cloak; warm and comforting, though dark and worn. Once it’s been pulled on and clasped about the shoulders it’s difficult to slip it off and let it sink down into the floor, clouding your ankles and disappearing forever. For, once it’s taken off, it can never be put back on again. One admission; one second of bravery imprisons you in a permanent lack of protection from the judgement being cast by the outside world, and very few are comfortable with that alternative.

He spoke about
volatility
at the meeting last week
lights overbright
piercing my eyes
squinting, tried to snag some
meaning
a patchwork of playdough thoughts
molded and
molding
stale coffee, split ends
musty when I raised my hand to
ruffle the strands
spoke about a daughter
spoke about Sundays
spoke about the way the wind can lift
and shake
the hair
at the nape
of a neck
or was that me?
I’m a daughter
blinking dumbly
into blaring
glaring

woozy, woo me, wooing, wooed
it’s peppercorns and stains,
this mood

precarious and passionate
all half-lived
attitudes
affix to me and drape
a cape
to stew in spineless brood

wishywashy wishing wells
and fervent
wishful spools
that unravel
and unwind
while vice and virtue
rule

I’ve had three glasses
ice cubes clink
Cracked between back teeth
sharp wince

It’s all too much
though not the drink
to speak
would be remiss

Needlework
apron strings
acetone flush
She lives in flesh memory
cheeks flared by a blush

Thoughts corrosive
eroded
derisive and wild
She spits hands and shakes
palms small like a child's

To write her with sense is to
betray my mind
To sketch her in recompense to
bestay her guise

Still, sought to put my hand to her
and sought to make her real
Fought and wrought, thus seeking and
burdened by her appeal

She didn't have to say a word:
a burrowed chin, trim knots

Music speaks to the soul
In a way nothing else can
It gifts the heart with dreams
And somehow it seems
To meet each person
Right where they’re at.

It carries our mind, soul, and being
To places we never travel
It connect hearts
Even when they’re far away
It cuts to our innermost parts
Without having to speak the words…

I carry a slipper of glass,
A memory cold from my past,
A wonder of sparkling delight
That suddenly fled from my sight.

The hands of the shattering clock
Break all spells and all memories mock,
But one thing is yet left to me,
And I carry that glass-fragile key.

I built myself castles,
But I made them in the dark
With a plan in my head
And nothing in my heart.

There were turrets and flags
And illustrious fanfare.
They protected my future,
But there was nothing there.

So the fiction inside collapsed
And I watched with helpless hands.
It’s only then you realize
Your castles are made of sand.

Into Your hands, Lord,
I commend my soul.
I commend my future.
I commend my all.

Well, it's been a few months since I threw down a gauntlet on here challenging the validity of rhyme -- questioning whether we should use it at all.

The fact that in the interval I did post two nicely rhymed poems might have given away my conclusion on the matter but, on the other hand, it could be that I employ rhyme with no rational defense for its use.

As an aside, I do think that it is very necessary sometimes for people to do things for which they cannot explain the logical rationale. What do you think?