NEVER-ENDING

No time, no energy

And a million things to do

Will it ever end?

Caren E. Salas

EVERYTHING

It doesn't always feel like

Everything will turn out well

But let me just assure you

That it will. Just look at us

Together we can make it

Everything will be okay.

Everything will be okay.

Caren E. Salas

FIZZZZZZZZZZZZ....

I know a little bit about making plans

And then seeing them dissolve

Like Alka Seltzer in a glass of water

Plop. plop.

Fizzzzzzzzz

Watching the mental masterpiece,

The glorious dream that you've spent your life creating,

Suddenly covered in graffiti, and tossed aside.

Overwhelming feelings of shock, anger, frustration, sadness

But mostly fear well up like an out of control tsunami.

Breathe.

You can try and clean up the mess

You can look at it as a challenge and turn the graffiti into flowers

Or

Fizzzzzzzzzz

You paint the whole damn thing with white, and start over.

Be careful not to dip your paintbrush in the Alka Seltzer.

You're going to need it.

Gulp.

There you go.

Remember, I've been there.

I'm here now.
(and not just me)

I'm kind of...the glass.

Hold on to me.

Caren E. Salas

Photo: www.everydayhealth.com

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

MY DANCIN' SHOES (#23 - a poem about shoes)

I never knew 

What the years would do

To my shoes

Hidden, stored away

Melancholy memories repressed

I had all but given in

To ever wearing them again

But then...

A second chance

A brand new song

To dance to

But time had been a bit unfair

To my old shoes

And now it's clear

I'm gonna' need a new pair.

Caren E. Salas

Photo: Poshmark

A Star for Her (#22 prompt: Star_____)

Fallen star

To hold in her hand

Midnight blue

Shining bright

A pendant of Star Sapphire

To hang on her neck.

Caren E. Salas

The prompt was a fill in the blank with "Star..." I didn't want to go with the first thought of Star Power or Star Light, but something a little different..:)

Photo: wanelo.com

FAMILY (#21 prompt: a poem that communicates with a previous poem)

I miss you

I hope you're happy

Yes, I'm mad

And I'm hurt

I can't believe you'd forget

We were family.

Caren E. Salas

MY FRIEND... (#20 Prompt: what goes unsaid)

What I should have said

Doesn't realy matter now

What I could have said

Nothing I can do about

Can only keep missing you.

Caren E. Salas

THE "COOL" KIDS (#19 Cool or Uncool)

The cool kids tease and call her names

Trip her walking down the hall

Knock over books, pull her hair

Laugh at her should she fall.

The cool kids talk behind her back

Spreading rumors around the school

I think these kids really need to learn

A better definition of  "cool".

Caren E. Salas

Photo: Huffington Post - Getty Images.

MY OFFICE (#18 an "office" poem)

I stare out at the ocean
Waves crashing, seagulls crying
Hot sand in between my toes
Cool breezes hitting my face
I turn back to my writing:
A tough day at the office.


Caren E. Salas

MAYBE (#17 write a hiaku)

The sun is shining

It's a spectacular day

The end of June Gloom

Caren E. Salas

KABUKI (#16 prompt: in or about a food establishment)

A cup of green tea
Pickled ginger, wasabi
Holding my chopsticks
Waiting for my miso soup
And one California Roll.



Caren E. Salas





Ah...heaven on a plate. My friend introduced me to Kabuki Restaurant, the funny thing is she doesn't like sushi! I only like a bit of the raw stuff, but I love me some California Rolls! So this is a love poem. A Tanka (syllabic form). And hey, try out Kabuki.
Photo and restaurant:
http://www.kabukirestaurants.com/food/

PARTY OF THE CENTURY (#15 Pick 4 or more)

It was a lavish affair

Only the brightest and best

Were invited, and there

Was no room for the rest

The blacklist was as long

As the earth is flat

And the size of the throng

Showed the truth in that.

But if you could wrestle,

If you could sing,

Had a big shiny vessel,

Or a small gaudy ring,

A flat piece of paper,

A nice golden tooth,

An ant-eating tapir,

Or an wild untold truth,

Then maybe they'd make

An exception for you

But of course they would take

A donation or two.

For this fancy event

Lasted only one night

Until your money was spent

And the morning was bright.

Caren E. Salas

Prompt: Use 4 or more of the following words: flat, ring, lavish, vessel, tooth, paper, blacklist gaudy.
These poems always come out a little funky, but I just had fun with it, and tried
to use all the words.

NO TAPPING OUT (#14 prompt:"Time Out")

They each like to argue about what it's about;

But I'm still confused, still filled with doubt.

I just want to cover my ears up and shout,

"I need a time out! I need a time out!"

Who knows what the truth is, it all seems absurd.

I've tuned it all out. I can't hear a word.

I stare out the window and see a small bird,

As it lets out a turd, It let out a turd!

It seems not to matter who's wrong or who's right.

It's who's still alive at the end of the fight.

There's no tapping out in this race tonight;

We can only sit tight, we can only sit tight.

Caren E. Salas

LAST ONE (#13 Prompt: "Last ____")

I stand, agonizing.

Staring at the almost empty

Pink cardboard box

Of crumbs and sugary shrapnel

And one,

One last doughnut.

I look around the room.

Is it being saved for someone?

Did everybody get one?

Maybe I should just take half.

I mean, really, I don't really need it.

On the other hand,

It's not something I have everyday...

Oh, what the heck!

I should just grab it before--

Hi! 

Oh no, go ahead!

I mean, really, I don't really need it.

It's just a doughnut...

The last one. 

(I smile)

Go ahead.

(I try not to cry)

Caren E. Salas

Photo: mine
Donut: Varsity Donuts of Manhattan, Kansas  https://www.facebook.com/varsitydonuts/

SILLY PHOTOS (#12 a serious or a silly poem)

Silly photos found

In my cell phone, make me smile

Surprises from her 

Caren E. Salas

SOMETHING WRONG (#11 a "defensive poem")

There's something very wrong here
Something not quite right

When a bullied child in self defense
Is rebuked for "joining" the fight;

When a victim's life is opened wide
And instead of comforted, shamed,
Insulted atop the injury
Belittled, mocked and blamed.

How do we alter hundreds of years
Of Survival of the Cruel?
It's time to change some attitudes.
It's time to break some rules.

Apparently it's easy to say
"Toughen up, you'll be fine"
Rather than taking action,
To eliminate the crime.

There's something very wrong here;
Something so absurd.
But being a girl myself, it seems
I likely won't be heard.


Caren E. Salas




Photo: http://bullyingpreventionnow.com/bullying-assemblies/high-school-bullying-assemblies/
Also, check this out! http://www.pennlive.com/news/2016/06/high_school_valedictorian_skip.html

ANTICIPATION (#10 - Pick an emotion)

Waiting and wondering
Nervous excitement
A happy panic
Mixed with somber confusion
Neurotic obsession
And willing delusion
A constant addiction
To imminent perceptions
Of future occasions
Filled with great trepidations
Yet euphoric optimism
Knowing and certain
Believing,,,hoping....

Waiting and wondering.


Caren E. Salas

THE PLAYHOUSE (#9 - "Hideout)

It was the coolest place in heaven or earth

We were seven or eight

Just a couple of girls

Our faces smudged with jelly and dirt

And the playhouse

Was our own little world

On the ceiling was a map and a chart of Morse code

There was a potter's wheel

For making clay bowls

Just enough space for imaginations to roam

Sleeping bags and blankets

For when it got cold

It was the coolest place in heaven or earth

And for a couple of girls

Our own little world.

Caren E. Salas

Okay, we are a little more than 7 or 8 here....but this is my partner in crime, 

and yes, we are still friends.

SQUIGGLES (#8 be inspired by a doodle)

A line

A wiggle

Just thoughtless squiggles

Like inside of my mind

A jumble

unrefined

In different directions

It's all

For my own protection.

If no one can figure me out, then

I don't have to show

Who I really am.

Caren E. Salas

URBAN AIR (#7 "Urban ---")

You really don't know

Until you go someplace else

And you realize

You can breathe, I mean really 

Inhale deeply, exhale...breathe.

Caren E. Salas

Photo: http://www.umich.edu/~elements/5e/web_mod/la_basin/index.htm

ROOTS (#6 an Ekphrastic poem)

Grounded

Stable, stong

Doing, feeling, striving

Roots, home, prison, restraint

Reaching, fearing, disparing

Imprisoned, tortured

Bound.

Caren E. Salas

Painting:  "Roots" by Frida Kahlo

THE INTERVIEW (#5 Experience/Inexperience)

Inexperience
Written all over his face
Passed over, again.


Caren E. Salas

Eyes Closed

The petals drop one by one
My opening night bouquet
Fading into every day
Mere hours remain of this dream
And I don't want to wake up
Eyes closed, let me sleep some more.


Caren E. Salas

IN BETWEEN (#4 Distance)

Distance can be measured

Not in miles, 

But by smiles and tears;

Not on a street map, 

But through years: the days and nights

And the difference

In between.

A warm embrace remembered,

Makes separation abate,

But the cold chill of a friendship lost

Reaches right into the heart:

A reminder 

Of a much greater divide

.

You haven't moved, or traveled 

To parts unknown and yet 

The distance

In between us

...has grown.

Caren E. Salas

Not That I'm Counting #3 - "Three ___ ____"

Three long months I have to wait

Until my next vacation

All right, about one hundred

Days more or less, give or take,

Thirteen hours, and six minutes.

But it's not like I'm counting....

Caren E. Salas

Fade to Black - #2 He said/she said

Good night

Is all she said

Turned off the light

And went to bed.

I love you

He whispered back

Closed his eyes

Fade to black.

Caren E Salas

A Day Late and a Poem Short

Somehow, I completely lost track of April. Yes, pretty much the entire month has disappeared from memory. I did go on a cruise the first week of the month, but after that...it's all a blur. I sort of remember unpacking, and trying to catch up on the bills and housework, but other than that....things get fuzzy..And now, here it is: the end of May.

So unfortunately I missed Robert Lee Brewer's Poem a Day Challenge for National Poetry Month which was almost two months ago. At first I thought "Awe, man! I blew it!" But then I realized, that I can still look up Mr. Brewer's prompts and I can still write a poem every day for a month. Well, I can try anyway. So here I go. Hopefully you will join me for the ride. I'll try and keep up.

The first prompt was to write a "Foolish Poem". There's something about that word that sort of bothers me. I don't mind the occasional surprise that makes you jump, or a silly rubber spider in your cereal, but for a person to purposely set another person up to make them feel stupid, seems hurtful, and alienating.  So...here's my post for a "Foolish" poem:

THE FOOL

No one wants to play the fool

The butt of jokes, the target

In a dart game, the bullseye

Talked and laughed about by all

Who need to put down others

In order to raise themselves.

Caren E. Salas

All Too Familiar

Appointments

Procedures

It all seems

Familiar

But this time

It's not me

I wish though

It could be

I don't want 

To see her

...in pain.

More blood work

The needles

The waiting

For hours

The meds and

The diets

Won't know 'til

We try it

I don't want 

Her going

...insane.

It's all

Inconclusive

Frustrating

Confusing

More doctors

Re-testing

It's hard just

Digesting

The answers

Seem so hard

...to find.

So we go

On waiting

What seems like

Forever

I hope that

She makes it

I hope I 

Can take it

I feel like 

I'm losing

....my mind.

Caren E. Salas

Runaway Train

                               My eyes are wide open, my hair is a mess,                                 

My blankets are tangled; can't escape from my bed.  

But the worst part is knowing despite my distress,

And I can't stop the runaway train in my head.

I'm feeling hung over, but had nothing to drink.

I expect to find shrapnel of my brains all around,

Left behind when due to unexpected ignition

My head just exploded, without making a sound.

Still the train keeps on coming, increasing in speed.

Filled with freight cars heavy with worries and fears;

And I'm tied to the tracks like the Perils of Me

Damn Pauline didn't show up, yet the audience cheers.

Was it something I said, or forgot to include?

Did I remember to lock the front door late last night?

There's the long list of things I still have to do.

Did I mess something up? Can I still make it right?

My thoughts are as tangled as the blankets and sheets

That are holding me hostage, twisted up in my bed.

The whistle is blowing; with no rescue in sight

And I can't stop the runaway train in my head.

Caren E. Salas

Photo: "Little Phil and the Nightshadows" Perils of Pauline  youtube.com

Erased

I'm still here

But you can't see me

Closed your eyes

So I'll go away.

I'm still here

But you won't hear me

Turned your back

To what I say.

I'm still here

Though I'm deleted

Marked and cut

Without a paste.

I'm still here

But I don't exist

Because to you

I've been erased.

Caren E. Salas

Just a Dream

Sometimes I think

It was just a dream

Another life

Me, imagining.

My dancing shoes

Have gathered dust

My singing voice 

Is a little rusty.

My body is tired.

My song is sad;

A quiet echo

Of what once I had.

But still I try

No giving in,

Discouraged by

What could have been.

It may not end 

The way I planned,

But I'm on my feet

And I can make a stand.

And if I can stand,

Then I can dance.

Another show.

Another chance.

I refuse to quit.

No surrendering,

And never stop

Remembering...

That once I thought

It was just a dream

Another life

Me, imagining.

Caren E. Salas

Photo: CSUDH  "A Chorus Line" 1988