Thirty-Seven Minutes to Close

Watching the legislature run wild,
each side scurrying to silence
 - with violent agility of tongue -
the other,
I wait and wonder

what will become of that unborn child
who sits unwanted
or dying
or threatening death to its host?

I wonder what will become of that woman
a victim of rape
a victim, who must carry the living memory
of her pain

And I - feeling monthly reminders
of my femininity

wonder what will become of my right
my freedom
to be the sovereign of my own body.

Here, where we question
the value of life not begun
we forget those historical chains
which patriarchy had thrown around
the uterus,
                had extracted from it
                dowries and heirs,
                had turned the living woman
                into a decorative safe
the uterus,
                a commodified asset.

we forget that
that which carries life,
lives -

what will become of my baby?
what will become of me?
what will become of me...

*****************************************

Here is the livestream for the filibuster going on in the Texas State Senate, to oppose a sweeping anti-abortion bill.  Watch here! ----> http://rhrealitycheck.org/video/2013/06/25/live-video-texas-state-sen-wendy-davis-filibusters-anti-abortion-bill/?upworthy

Where The Sun Rests

I wanted to go away
into the crevices of the
Bald Mountain,
and lay my skin bare against
the Sun's fingertips

and feel the light pierce through
my flesh
and explode my heart
into a thousand glittering stars
spread out across the wind.

I wanted to sit in little tufts of grass
and make myself small
between the pebbles on the cliff,
to look up - amazed -
at the ribbons of glowing white

that fell between the cracks
and wrapped themselves around my waist.

I wanted to open myself
and become the vessel of sunbeams;
earthen irises, stained glass
of this living cathedral.  Here,
this forbidden place,
where heathen gods and ancient wisdom
reside.

I wanted to go,
but some little devil told me no.


*****************
Below is a spoken word version of the poem (i.e. performed :3)!

Nowhere to Hide Dirty Laundry

I've nowhere to hide my dirty clothes
which sit in a pile to the right.

I swept them underneath my bed,
but somehow they fell back into view.

I pushed them behind my desk,
extinguished odor with scented candlelight.

Still, somehow, the unwashed pants and panties,
the self-disappointment and anguish
and slips

refuse to stay hidden.

I always find the pile, growing ever larger
in the center of my floor;
the sight becomes evermore difficult
to ignore.

"After Hours" Jazz Combo

Instead of posting my regular, weekly poem today, I want to showcase an awesome jazz ensemble named "After Hours", made up of four very talented Cal State San Bernardino students!

On Saturday, from about 6pm to 8pm, I had the pleasure of listening to them play wonderful jazz tunes like "Girl from Ipanema" and "Michelle" as I attended an Art Gallery showcase and silent auction at the City of Pomona's dA Center for the Arts.

With their trumpet player, bassist, guitarist, and drummer, this jazz quartet helped to perfect the already extraordinary atmosphere, setting the mood with a cool, Latin vibe that had the various art patrons snapping

their fingers as they sipped wine and bid on the showcased collection, a variety of sculptures and paintings made by amateur and professional alike.

It was a wonderful experience to be able to watch the "After Hours" jazz ensemble and to see the works of local artists; often, we are so bombarded by huge celebrities like Alicia Keys, Bruno Mars and -- *shudders* One Direction (I don't like them very much, myself :3), that we forget to take the time to celebrate our local talent.

If you live in the Inland Empire (Southern California), and are having an event in the future where you'd like some jazzy, artsy music to really set the mood for your evening, definitely consider the "After Hours" Combo!

I have some videos of their performance, but sadly, my phone has decided not to work for me today lol.  Check out my Facebook page, The Lackadaisical Firefly.  When the universe decides that it's time for my videos to upload lol, they will upload here!

Shadow Dragon

I have seen you
lurking around parks at night,
your tail twisting around lightpoles
like a hungry vine;
your breath, a heavy mist
trailing its dulled claws across the ground.

I have seen you, old friend.
     But tell me,
what battle have you fled?

What adversary inspired such terror
that even you of valiant darkness,
would resign yourself
to this grassy lot?

Ode to the Tiny Fly

A fly landed on my pen --
a gnat fell sideways onto
the words I wrote,
determined to map out
this unseemly terrain which
appeared without end, but
                                       which
at the briefest flutter of wind
might turn fully on its side
                                      which,
though wide, did not bear the weight
even to disfigure his wings.

I could see the distrust in his hundred eyes.

Even as he traced with each of six legs
a path on the wide frontier of my paper --
his disbelief, that such an infinite land
could end at such a thin, empty point.

On Being Underwater

I held my breath and listened,
knowing that one false move
and the music would cease.  My body

floated just under the surface
which was smooth like glass
or frozen oil slick.

Air escaped my lungs
and pushed me down; the silver spheres
broke the still sky, shattering

its image across the pool's perimeter.
Slowly, the sound of a heartbeat
began to wave through the silence,
filling my lungs and my fingertips.