Black & Kinky Amongst Brown Waves

what i know about father’s day
(C) 2013 by margaux delotte-bennett

for a large part of my life
my father
was a woman

not by preference
but by circumstance
and possibly
by design

she took the time
to learn the script
not meant for her lips

the one reserved for lads
who intended to one day be dads
as well as those
with the least intention
but the power

this major role
discarded yet essential
she would
and will play

and to this day
i honor her
for the dual roles
she seamlessly shifted through

she too had a choice
and the mastery of her performance
created endless possibilities
for this poetic voice

let us, as we…
(C) 2013 by margaux delotte-bennett

let us sink
less in the tar
more in the rink

let us set
just shine like a star
and know we are met

let us nest
bring our homes from afar
allow our souls to rest

let us win
always raising the bar
allowing new to begin

as we think
always hedging our bets
sealing deals with a wink

as we stare
casting words as our nets
wildly into the air

as we soar
gaining air as we climb
always aiming for more

as we write
building hope with our ink
our thoughts full of might

in memorium
(C) 2013 by margaux delotte-bennett

most families contain at least one veteran
an active participant by draft or by choice
militarism claiming a limb or two
of so many family trees

I did not ask to be fought for
but I’ve benefited from the freedoms hard won
I’ve also suffered
because a piece of my father
was lost in Vietnam
the part that might have allowed him to be present
as a husband
as a father
as a friend

there is a pile of these parts
rotting in the sun of foreign lands far and wide
seeping into the ground water
that young men bathe and suckle from
as they toy with
plastic army guys
and their lives

let us cease raising our sons and daughters to be soldiers
let’s build a world where these jobs are obsolete
and their talents are not needed to defend
but to rend our tools of war
into plowshares and paintbrushes
promoting a more perfect peace

some thoughts on hope
© 2013 by margaux delotte-bennett

hope should have big, broad shoulders
arms that can carry our broken bodies
and tired souls

it should be strong enough to hold
to even be shaken
but resistant to tears
and tears

hope should not be surprised by the fears
and the sorrow that sometimes seep
into and through the cracks in our resolve

hope should always have something to resolve
as we fight to retain our grip
and to know

hope can take years to grow
but the harvest of this sweet and tender crop

will never stop

the climb
© 2013 by margaux delotte-bennett

he says I climb
up and into words
and I do

I find a foothold and
step into the meaning
I grind my heels into the syntax
trying to heave the weight
of education and mis-education
into how I want to know
how I wish to sound
in this tongue
all my own

and once I am up
I use language to get down
deep into the belly of the words
dismantling stories
that tried to erase my voice
made louder now
because I have no other choice
but to keep climbing

this pen is my trusty pick ax
and this paper is my rope
as I make my way through
this rugged terrain

i realized why this year’s challenge was more painful than the first time around… at some point, the poetry writing started to feel like a chore.  it was not practice, it was not skill building, it was not fun.  i think it’s because i have been a bit tired these days and my batteries need to be reset and recharged.  but i made it though.  and i hope that some of my creations pleased you as much as they pleased me…

rainy days
© 2013 by margaux delotte-bennett

rainy days remind
that all is not always
fair weathered

clouds
must gather
water
must be released

sometimes
like mist
sometimes
in torrents
with light shows
and rumbles.

i started this piece, thought of this banksy image, and then completed the piece…

sticks & stones
© 2013 by margaux delotte-bennett

sticks and stones
can break a lot more than
bones
they can break down regimes
unilaterally focused on oppression

they are seen
hurtling through space
marking time
a physical reminder that there is unrest
dissatisfaction
and angst
here

bullet and bombs are expensive
and run out

sticks and stones
regenerate
are sustainable
are harmful enough to cause a stir
commanding that notice be taken
locally
nationally
internationally

throw your sticks
fling your stones
fight your fight
to break down barriers
not just bones

once again i took a day off and then wrote 2 poems today…

each spring
© 2013 by margaux delotte-bennett

in front of my house
there is a bush
that explodes with blossoms
each spring.

though pale and pastel pinks
have never pleased me
the sight of this bush
is like a balm
and a trumpet call
for hues more fair and enchanting
to come forth
and greet
the lengthening day.
_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_

this second poem was created using an online, random word generator. the bold words are the ones i was given to create my poem…

through that doorway
© 2013 by margaux delotte-bennett

his dim and dusty roadside café
is an oasis
a power place where souls recharge

the scattered tables are always populated
with wayward cowboys
and sobering soldiers
trying to find their center
shooting to get themselves together enough
to make it home
or simply out
of the door and on to the next fine establishment
worthy of their coins

there was once a young man
who wandered in
it is still unclear if he
was running from or to
he was a pilot
but when he talked about “up there”
his disgust was palpable
it seemed to singe his very tongue

he offered the pilot a cot
but had no idea that it would be
occupied for a full year
and like he wondered in
one day the pilot wandered out
leaving only his pewter wing pin
found in the basket
on the top of his shelf.

in the interest of full disclosure: i didn’t write on the 21st, but i did penance by writing 2 poems on the 22…

a sonnet for the living woman
© 2013 by margaux delotte-bennett

the woman who knows for sure that she’s alive
is dangerous to all, but never herself
her eyes ablaze, her mouth a veritable hive
teeth bared, her laughter upsets a near by shelf

she’s about the business of rejecting all notions
that timidity is the bosom from which she sucked
no spoon fed lies or bottled inferiority potions
before her eyes, images of ‘proper ladies’ she plucked

this woman’s survival is intimately tied to her knowing
from whence she came and where she has to go
it’s not merely about self esteem or confidence growing
she is the girl child that survived when the world said no

it should not now or ever come as a surprise
that whole worlds begin and end between her thighs

_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-

fortune cookie lies (after the style of Frank O’Hara)
© 2013 by margaux delotte-bennett

bok choy in the teeth is better than on the table.

you will be lucky today, but not tomorrow.

letting go of fear will make someone fall down.

there are no lucky numbers, just lucky cats.

today is full, but tomorrow will be fuller.

remind people that you love international customs.

always be willing to try new things…

in bed

in bed

in bed.

untitled #41913
© 2013 by margaux delotte-bennett

day slipped by
without focused pen on paper
poetry’s priority
paused
committed to the process
puzzled by the results
yet willing to go
where led

_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_

covered
© 2013 by margaux delotte-bennett

there is a woman
who loves me like
her mama’s handmade quilts
ordered
colorful
providing full coverage
from head to toe