Poetry

The Reflection of Grace

~ Ali Grimshaw ~ 28 Comments

What you will not forgive in others

a mirror for what you cannot forgive

in yourself.

Hold the mirror before your face

cracked, distorted by times

of perceived failure, harsh voices.

Look

and look some more,

until you see the darkness of yourself.

Then step through,

step through the reflection to the other,

the other side where

you are him

you are her

you are they

you are no different.

In the mirror two eyes plead

for grace.

© Alicia Grimshaw 2017

This poem is inspired by the amazingly loving Debbie. Her blog Forgiving Connects offers opportunities to reflect on forgiveness and learn from the experiences of others. Thank you Debbie. Forgiving Fridays on Forgiving Connects

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My light is shining. Thanks VerseWrights.

~ Ali Grimshaw ~ 14 Comments

I am grateful to VerseWrights for sharing two more of my poems today. Follow the link to find them.  VerseWrights is a wonderful online poetry journal.  I especially enjoy listening to the PoetryAloud section. There are so many poems to listen to and it gives me a sense of comfort to connect with another’s words.

We all have gifts to share. Please keep shining your unique and essential light in the world.

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Refusal

~ Ali Grimshaw ~ 18 Comments

Hold in place. Unwavering as the hurricane blows. Stand still when faced with a slap. Unbreakably bolted down. Absolute. Never cringe away. Stay. Forward one small step, your time. Crawl if you must. Claim your life. Take the hand that is offered then rise again. Unwilling to be swallowed, drug into the past. Drowned. Face toward what your heart holds true. Like a mountain through the seasons, remain.

Living refusal

thoughts chosen to unify

imprisoned by none

© Alicia Grimshaw 2017

My first attempt to write a Haibun (俳文, literally, haikai writings) a prosimetric literary form originating in Japan, combining prose and haiku. For those of you who are know this craft well, please understand this is a humble beginning.

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On the Edge

~ Ali Grimshaw ~ 21 Comments

According to her internal judge

she was never quite up to par,

even when she crossed the finish line first

she couldn’t own the accomplishment. Always

on the outside of the window, looking in.

Perplexed by separation. She wanted to belong,

and never wanted to fit in,

knew it would change her.

A part broken off to forever float away.

No one else stayed after class to console the bullied teacher.

It never occurred to her not to.

She saw those faces on the fringe,

secretly knowing she was an outlier as well.

© Alicia Grimshaw 2017

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In response to The Daily Post – Outlier

Each Morning

~ Ali Grimshaw ~ 9 Comments

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“The best poetry has a magical quality—a sense of being more than the sum of its parts—and even when it’s impossible to articulate this sense, this something more, the power of the poem is left undiminished.” – How to Read a Poem from Poets.org

Happy National Poetry Month 2017

© Alicia Grimshaw 2017

Your First Home

~ Ali Grimshaw ~ 6 Comments

Have you ever sat by the sea

listened to the voice in the waves

accompanied by the underwater drummers

pulling you back to a time

before words were spoken

a time of simultaneous floating

while anchored

a return to your first home

before your feet ever walked the earth?

 © Alicia Grimshaw 2017

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national poetry month

Want Ad

~ Ali Grimshaw ~ 9 Comments

Wanted:

A listener.

Intent on feeling instead of hearing my words.

Eager to sift out the ones I have outgrown 

return those that call my name, carry me forward,

speak them like a trail to follow when I am lost.

Will utter truth even when it cracks my surface.

Incapable of withholding even a syllable of himself

with the knowing it will suffocate our tomorrows.

Who will remember my voice,

long after I’ve gone.

Curiosity a must.

© Alicia Grimshaw 2017