Saturday, April 11, 2015

"Deb--"

Deb
I want to be like you—
 believing in good
 from a suffering world
I want to be like you—
 crafting kindness
 with prayers and smiles
I want to be like you—
 listening to old hurts
 with an understanding heart
I want to be like you—
 fostering true generosity
 with that single perfect gift
I want to be like you—
 lessening sorrows
 with just the right words
I want to be like you—
 celebrating life’s milestones
 with thought and care
I want to be like you—
 dancing with rapture
 under the full moon
                     
Copyright 2011 Elizabeth Abrams Chapman

 

Friday, April 10, 2015

"Poison"

Inside
                        buried under smiles
                                                as innocent as childhood
                        hidden by energy
                                                that eats the inner core
                        enveloped with laughter
                                                tinged by hysteria
            where no one can see, or touch, or feel
                                                the infinite coldness
Waiting
                        surrounded by darkness
                                                like a corpse in the grave
                        clamped down by a vise
                                                whose claws rip and tear
                        forced into submission
                                                until no one’s looking
            deep down in the well of pitch, and stagnation, and fear
                                                the infinite coldness
Outside
                        revealed at last in the eyes
                                                through condemnation and
                                                                                    indignation
                        recognized by the putrid stench
                                                of pettiness and intolerance
                        exposed in each word and act
                                                through acid hatred
            an eruption of vomitus bile—black and caustic
                                                the infinite coldness


Copyright 1997 Elizabeth Abrams Chapman

 

Thursday, April 9, 2015

"An Ending Begins"

Standing on the edge looking back—
            So many decisions gone wrong
                        So many decisions proved right
                                    No way of tracing patterns
            The child longs for easier ways—
                        Rainbows, buttercups under the chin
                                    Seeking security
                                                Returning to the womb
Standing on the edge looking ahead—
            So many unknowns
                        So many possibilities
                                    No way of seeing patterns
            The youth longs for challenge—
                        First love, free falling from the sky
                                    Embracing life
                                                Escaping tight bondage
Standing on the edge looking inward—
            So many “what ifs”
                        So many “if onlys”
                                    No way of changing patterns
            The elder dreams on of new beginnings
                        Second chances, another step into sunshine
                                    Gathering warmth
                                                Longing to be young again

Copyright 1996 Elizabeth Abrams Chapman



Wednesday, April 8, 2015

“Ponytail Triumph”


 
Short and sassy layers stick out everywhere    
Angled bobs frame chin lines with nary a stray hair     
Curls spiral in crowns, bangs fringe a forehead fair    
Waves cascade in thick ribbons, twists rope ‘round with flair   
Yet it's the plain ponytail I most often wear    


Copyright 2015 Elizabeth Abrams Chapman 

 

Tuesday, April 7, 2015

“Philosophy in the Car”



Hours in a box on wheels   
Could play out soundlessly   
With each of us plugged     
Into our own online world   

Instead   
Music pushes our pulses   
Into unison   
And we philosophize   
About Life   
With a capital “L”    

Our Dreams and Doubts   
Dance on the dashboard   
As we   
Pick apart     
Cognitive dissonance     
With science instead of faith   
And create Peace on Earth     

Time distorts     
Into only the here-and-now   
Or tunnels down into our pasts   
Or spirals outward to What Will Be   

 

Copyright 2015 Elizabeth Abrams Chapman