Category Archives: free verse

the unraveling

the unraveling

the tapestry is unraveling
earthy tones of brown and
tan, yellow and red fading,
white patches soiled from
blood and tears, offering no
warmth, no consolation,
threads splintering, breaking
unable to hold together the
dreams of the innocents
wrapped in it like a shroud…
where are the seamstresses
with steady hands and nimble
fingers, trembling with needles,
eyes too narrow to thread, to
mend the tatters, to scrub
the fabric clean, to restore
the tapestry, or better yet,
to weave a new cloth, one
that is brilliant, softened
with batting, large enough
to cover all who slumber,
to shield us from nightmares,
from the darkest of nights,
to bring us safely to the dawn
we’re hanging by a thread
tossed by tempests, trembling,
chilled to our bones
while the world burns

~kat


Crawling out from under my rock. Sorry for my recent silence. I confess that I have been overwhelmed of late by what’s happening to our brothers and sisters of color, to those sick and dying from the pandemic, from the lies of our leaders, from the hate ravaging our streets, disturbing the ardent pleas of peaceful protesters, from sheltering in (sheltering…what a benign word…sheltering). I have struggled to find words, forgetting that it is words that save me from the abyss; that help me get out of my head. I hope everyone is staying safe and well. I hope…at least I am trying to even as the dawn seems so very far away. Peace ✌️


sheltered

sheltered

there is no drama here
no coffee-breath, he said,
she said, I heard, did you know’s,
no traffic, no rude drivers
riding my ass in a hurry to
get nowhere, no whispers,
no prying eyes, no judgment.
here, there is my desk, my
computer, tasks for the day,
routine, sun shining outside
my window, and rain, I don’t
mind it, here there is bird song,
an occasional butterfly flitting by,
it is quiet, I can breathe, I am
breathing at long last, my heart
has settled from my throat to
my chest…I could get used to
this, I have gotten used to
doing what I do without leaving
my house, relishing the freedom
of forced sheltering in place,
these walls no longer feel
confining, as they embrace me
here, safe, well, solitary bliss…
they are planning for us to
return to our cubicles, but
a part of me is hoping
I’ll not be missed

~kat


Asleep

Photo above by Mike Warner, KATU TV

Asleep

I have been asleep, Rip
Van Winkling through life
pretty in pink, golden pin-curl
locks and porcelain skin, muted,
pale, pastel privilege, oblivious
to the jewel tones that lower their
eyes when I pass by, yes, ma’am,
no, ma’am…please don’t call me
ma’am,
I say, but they just smile
and whisper, yes ma’am, as
they shuffle away.

I have been asleep, yearning for
love’s kiss to wake me, warm
breath against my cheek, life is
a fairy tale, simple, sweet, but it is
a hot shallow breath that rouses
me to the nightmare, I can’t
breathe
, he can’t breathe!
blood runs cold, crimson,
amidst a sea of jewels rising
from the asphalt, beautiful,
terrible, how can anyone sleep
in the shadow of this injustice,
we should do something, what
can I do? how can I help? this
has to stop, how do we make it
stop…do you see what’s happening?

yes ma’am
please don’t call me ma’am…
I have been asleep.

~kat

#Black Lives Matter


matin

matin

i rise
to sun dappled treetops
to emerald eyes
to soft rhythmic purrs
to coffee-infused air
to cool sheets
to softness
to light
to love
what a miracle it is
to be granted another sunrise
to feel my lungs swell, to sigh
to know that i am clothed
in this moment, grounded
in its sweetness, charged
to greet this messy world
in the afterglow of glory…
     may i be a blessing then
     as i have been so richly blessed
i rise
to a new day
like every day before
and every day yet to come
if the fates are willing
to sun dappled treetops
to emerald eyes
to soft rhythmic purrs
to coffee-infused air
to cool sheets
to softness
to light
to love

~kat


one

one

leaves bare their pale
undersides kissed by warm
breaths of heaven beneath
cerulean skies dusted creamy
white, the trees lean, softly
swaying, while lusty cicadas’
swelling swoons ache for
a tryst, a one-day stand before
depositing their progeny in the
clay to sleep for a decade or more,
nestlings on the wing twittering
squirrels chirping, life’s symphony,
butter yellow tomato blooms on the
vine, rose petals blanketing the ground
in fragrant crimson, sublime summer
days like this happen once in a blue
moon, sometimes after a storm,
earth damp, murmuring through
the soles of your feet…breathe,
breathe it in dear heart, for
you are born of all this and
more, eden pulsing through
your veins, divinity bursting
from the deep well of your soul

~kat