My list is overflowing,
letters fall off the page,
some words jump
knowing they will get more attention elsewhere.
Many items tired of being ignored
have started a support group.
finish is used to making friends by now.
Each longs for special alone time with me
eagerly waiting for the big day
the black line drawn
through their middle.
The gold medal of achievement.
© Ali Grimshaw
Right now, sitting in this chair
the distance covered remains unseen.
Many treacherous miles between your first step
and where you have now arrived.
Climb the roof. Stand tall upon it.
Without hesitation see the trodden path
streams crossed, soggy socks, sunburnt ears
blistered, lost toenails, a little bruised.
Criss-cross scratches, hillside slides.
There is no shame for the road traveled.
You have traversed
this view is for you alone.
© Alicia Grimshaw
Say your words,
don’t let your voice whither inside.
Weariness can talk you into thinking that your voice doesn’t matter.
The past may try to convince you that your voice doesn’t count.
Resignation will yell,
“No one will listen any way, so save your breath.”
Say your words
clearly and just loud enough.
Say them for yourself and for the one
that isn’t willing to be the first to speak,
but can and will be the second.
© Ali Grimshaw
sometimes a regret comes back to life
emerging as a poem.
morphing as it translates into words
pain blossoming
on a single stem
each petal overlapping
some parts me
some parts you
forming an image fixed in time
an elixir of us
I drink in
to set us both free.
© Ali Grimshaw
Discovery Challenge – Shared Journeys
What does it mean, the number you are?
Pounds or password,
23rd in line before your turn,
zip code, blood pressure, days traveled,
the years you have managed to
stay alive or times you have kept your mouth shut.
Texting mishaps, trips to the store, loves lost.
You may think these numbers
have power to direct your life.
Upside down thinking at its best.
This code of numbers is yours alone.
Deciphering it requires desire
not a Hollywood mastermind.
You have always known the way out.
© Ali Grimshaw
When the questions hurt,
air thick with despair.
join together.
link your hearts.
© Ali Grimshaw
You may believe that I am with you
facing the sea side by side.
Yet I am hidden away
oceans from this place,
traveling without a suitcase.
My vessel left behind.
I don’t need a ship to carry me
to the places I am visiting.
© Ali Grimshaw
I will sing you comfort when your voice forgets the notes.
I will sing you a clearing in the forest,
a place to feel the warm sun on your back.
I will sing you courage for days when you
need to hear the music again.
© Ali Grimshaw
Days crammed full
each minute a block on the calendar
filled to overflowing. Blocks tumble.
The dam bursts
spilling forth an unimaginable surge
carrying you away to a place
beyond time. Float with it or
swim toward shore?
Surrendering
to the current,
this is new.
© Ali Grimshaw
flashlight batteries - Ali Grimshaw 