It Would Have Been Easy
If I could have only seen
exactly what this year would bring
this would have been easy.
I could have locked myself behind a door
and written every poem beforehand.
It would have been easy.
But this hasn’t been easy.
Have you seen how fast time passes?
And so now we have these glasses
but we still don’t see twenty-twenty.
No, this hasn’t been easy,
A year ago today
I sat just twenty paces away.
So I might not have gone far, but I have plenty.
If I could have known
what I would feel inside each poem
it would have been easy.
It would have felt more like a ride
and less like a black diamond
and it would have been easy.
If I had written every poem this past year
to publish them in the coming one,
I could have spaced them all out perfectly
but they never would have gotten done.
It would be just another idea I had
that never went either well or bad,
but only stale like a passing fad.
But it would have been easy.
And what if I had said “Enough!
Does anyone even read this stuff?”
It would have been easy.
But I had things to write about
just to breathe and get them out
because it wasn’t easy.
No, this hasn’t been easy.
Have you seen how fast time passes?
And so now we have these glasses
but we still don’t see twenty-twenty.
No, this hasn’t been easy,
A year ago today
I sat just twenty paces away.
So I might not have gone far, but I’ve done plenty.
Each
I will pick the pears, for you’re too small too reach.
And you shall test the pears. Just take a bite of each.
Thoughts on a Popular Poem
She heard “Dance as if no one is watching you,”
but then she didn’t know why she would.
He heard “Love like you’ve never been hurt,”
so he loved only for his own good.
She heard “Sing as though no one can hear you,”
so she didn’t sing at all.
And they never saw heaven on earth.
They just kept replaying the fall.
(note: I would give credit to the original author of the part in quotations, but according to the internet it has at least five original authors.)
Repeat
Until that lunch when we broke out some MREs
you had never told me all those memories.
There are years you’d probably never even think about
if they weren’t arranged in layers in the closets of this house.
And I never really realized just how far my poems go back,
but there were quite a few scattered through that schoolwork stack.
The smell of drying leaves and dryer sheets
brings me back to university.
And then there’s all the warmth and chill I can remember
when I hear the song I played on repeat last November.
Creative
I tell my husband my ideas; some are smart, some just wild.
He says “Don’t quit your day job!” as he smiles at our child,
and “Go for it! You’re home, so what are you afraid of?”
I get to be a mom and I get to be a creative.
To Do Right
He had dreams, and not just at night,
and he also knew what he had to do.
And he knew he’d have to sacrifice,
either way that he would choose.
And in the end he chose to do right
and lay his dreams aside.
But it wasn’t the end;
it was only for a time.
Now he’s dreaming again
but he still has to decide
how to do right.
Caught Up
If you never know what it’s like
The Truth
I don’t want to hear what I want to hear.
I’m not okay with “everything’s fine.”
I want to know the truth.
When you say “don’t worry” I’m worried.
I know we can’t all have our way all the time.
I want to know the truth.
I’m strong enough to hear the truth,
and if I’m not than I’ll lean on you,
because I’ll know you’re brave
if you’re strong enough to say it.
Your Day
Your grandparents are in town
Your hoping gravity will pull down
all the wrinkles from your graduation gown
in time for your speech tonight.
And regardless of how long you’ve known this day was on its way,
you still cannot believe that its today.
Your heart is beating harder than it has in a long time
and you know today is your day to shine.
All your friends are here
and your mom can’t hold her tears.
The ceremony is drawing near
and you wonder what your love is thinking now.
And regardless of how long you’ve known this day was on its way,
you still cannot believe that its today.
Your heart is beating harder than it has in a long time
and you know today is your day to shine.
Some might call this pressure, but it’s pain.
You rock back and forth like you’re insane
and your husband says the doctor’s on his way
and that you’re doing great.
And regardless of how long you’ve known this day was on its way,
you still cannot believe that its today.
Your heart is beating harder than it has in a long time
and you know today is your day to shine.
Months of pain up to your chest.
You know you’ve given it your best.
And you’re sure it’s time to rest,
but what will it feel like?
And regardless of how long you’ve known this day was on its way,
you still cannot believe that its today.
Your heart is beating harder than it has in a long time
and you know today is your day to shine.
