REAL LIFE

Unconditional

That's what love's supposed to be

Even in real life.

Caren E. Salas

AIR

Night

Air

Quiet

Stars shining

Alone with my thoughts

And praying for a little peace.

Caren E. Salas

HONEY

When Whiskey came, he needed us
Because life had been unfair
He was timid, skittish, scared
He needed someone to care.

And he became my constant friend
My shadow day and night
My little grumpy old guy
Always ready for a fight.

Then Honey came, a tiny angel
Four short legs and great big eyes
She touched our hearts, and Whiskey's too
(Which came as a surprise!)


And so it seems she's here to stay
This tender ball of fur
We love Whiskey 'cause he needed us
And Honey...we need her.


Caren E. Salas

THE WORLD SPINS ON....

The world spins on
     People love and laugh
Oblivious to the pain we feel
I try and make it make some sense
But still, it doesn't seem quite real.

And the world spins on
     People rush around
Busy with their lives, and yet
Forgetting the things that really count
That someday they might just regret.

And the world spins on
     People trample dreams
Discouraged with the life they lead
Wanting more, but doing less
They break a heart to see it bleed.

And the world spins on...


Caren E. Salas



Photo by Bill Salas

HANG ON

His eyes cry out, but no words
Come from his lips. I refuse
To listen. It hurts, I know.
Don't give up, she wouldn't want
You to say good-bye just yet.
Hang on just a while longer.

I try to tell him without
Speaking. Things will get better
You have a new great grandson
On the way that you should meet
And all of us who love you.
Hang on just a while longer.


Caren E. Salas

COUNTING DOLLARS

My love and I walked along hand in hand

Collecting sea shells down by the shore

Counting dollars half buried in sand

Watching the seagulls and pelicans soar.

Collecting sea shells down by the shore

We talked about all the years we had shared

Watching the seagulls and pelicans soar

Oh, the places we'd been, the dreams we had dared.

We talked about all the years we had shared

We stopped just to listen to the sounds of the sea

Oh, the places we'd been, the dreams we had dared

It all stood still for a moment or three.

We stopped just to listen to the sounds of the sea

As my love and I walked along hand in hand

It all stood still for a moment or three

As we counted dollars half buried in sand.

Caren E. Salas

THE FLOWERS

The grounds keeper said we might as well take
The flowers; he'd be throwing them away.
So we did. Every bloom and bud we could
That wasn't crushed, spent, damaged or broken.
We gathered them gently into our arms
And took them home where we put them in jars,
Vases, bottles arranging them as well
As we could. The flowers brought color back
Into what had been a very gray week
And a bit of light into our dark times.

Now, as each day passes, more flowers fade;

Petals dropping silently, leaves drooping.

Maybe we can dry the roses, maybe

We can press some of them into a book. 

If we lay them in the garden, might seeds

Take root and in the Spring grow back again? 

Anything to keep these flowers alive,

To make them last a little bit longer. 

Because while I still have the flowers here,

I won't really have to tell her good-bye.

 

Caren E. Salas

.

IN THE NIGHT

Trying to stay strong for them

And holding it together

But in the night and quiet

When I'm tired and alone

I just can't hold back the tears

Or keep my heart from breaking.

Caren E. Salas

THE MEASURE

She was a small person
Not very tall, height-wise
But if you measured the size
Of her heart, well!
She was off the chart
And in number of embraces
And the faces of friends
She lifted up, gifts she gave
Unselfishly,
It was easy to see
That her being gone...
Just seems...so wrong.
But I'll remember her smile
And though for a while, I'm crying
I'm trying to love,
As she would,
Live like she could, Dream
Of the peace she now knows.
Because her light continues
To grow as long as we know
What to measure.


Caren E. Salas

THE ARMS OF GOD

For us, time stood still

The moment that the doctor

Said, I'm so sorry,

We did everything we could,

But she's in the arms of God.

It happened so fast;

No time to say our good-byes

Or that we loved her.

But she knew. I know she knew

Watching...from the arms of God.

Caren E. Salas

THE WORDS HAVE LEFT ME

The words have left me, so it seems

Packed their bags with broken dreams

They used to stay with me all night

Make sense of things, and hold me tight

But now they're gone, just not around

I'm open-mouthed, without a sound

I've seen the face of love in pain

And a light that's drowning, in ceaseless rain

I'm left with an empty and aching heart

Seeing those I love, now torn apart

The words have left me high and dry

I try to speak but only cry.

Caren E. Salas

ALL RIGHT (#24 Prompt: Lost and Regained)

True, we had lost touch
But when I heard that she was gone
Without a good-bye
And no forwarding address
Nothing about it felt right.

Years passed and often
I wondered what had happened
It wasn't like her
But sometimes we lose out minds
When we're following our hearts.

One day, she was back
She worried I'd be angry
But no, not a chance
I have my friend back again
And everything is all right.


Caren E. Salas