Down
Between the birds and the trees
Is sky
I can’t reach it
Or span its dimensions with my arms
Or probe its corners with my fingers
I can’t know it
Or feel its texture on the bottoms of my feet
Or scrape it with my clumsy knees
It’s not for me
I’m stranded in shoes
Stuck in asphalt
I’m fastened to furniture
Cluttered with gravity
I want to jump up and grab
Fistfuls of sky
To stuff in my pockets
I want to bite off more of it
Than I can chew
I want to rake it with my fingers
And leave red marks
Just to prove I was there
Just to prove I was there
"I want to jump up and grab/Fistfuls of sky..." I love that image. Lovely poem. Great job this month! Your writing is amazing. I look forward to seeing more!
ReplyDeleteWhat she (Jessica) said. Bravo!
ReplyDeleteYour poem is so grabbing. How you can write about the patch of sky between the birds and the trees, how I've always looked at that and wanted to say something powerful like you did..
ReplyDeleteBrilliant! I agree with others on "fistfuls of sky..." I also like "I want to rake it with my fingers and leave red marks." I find that kind of edge (a bit of tooth and claw) alongside natural beauty very compelling. I also think the repetition at the end works particularly well. I have enjoyed reading your poems this month and appreciate how supportive you have been of mine.
ReplyDeleteYou just keep getting better with each poem. You are so talented! I love the line"cluttered with gavity" :-).
ReplyDeleteoh do i love the skies...most important "thing" in my paintings....thanks for sharing erin
ReplyDeleteI don't think I can I can ever be
ReplyDeleteso fine a poet as I see
when Erin takes a line or two
and makes me look at things anew
Great work! I loved every line. Thank you for this!
ReplyDeleteOh, I love this one! Except, I want my pockets full of sky not to prove I was there, I want them to lift me out of here. :)
ReplyDeleteLovely poem, Fabulous Erin! Thank you.
Thank you so much for the supportive comments everyone. They are especially meaningful to me because I so admire all of your blogs.
ReplyDelete~Jessica GC-I am so glad I found your poetry through readwritepoem! You are so talented.
~ds-loved the recommendation for Fugitive Pieces on your blog. I will definitely check it out.
~Irene-you have one of my favorite lines from napowrimo: "still I breed poems like rabbits"
~Annie-I wish I had your talent for making beautiful works of art with my hands.
~Liz-your blog is fascinating to me, and I love your poems.
~Wayne-I'm amazed by your paintings. Envious of your talent!
~Kathleen-Aw, you wrote a poem for me. I love it!
~Bsquared86-thank you for stopping by my blog. I have enjoyed getting to know your poetry, and I love the picture of you on your blog-beautiful!
~Melissa-If I find out how to actually get my pockets full of sky, I will let you know. :0)
Really awesome poem, Erin. April was a magical month just because your poems lived there. Please share more!
ReplyDelete