Something Mysterious

A feeling you get
that something’s not right,
an instinct, a hunch
when out of sight

but not out of mind
like things from the past
swept under the rugs
stuffed in closets, last

year she discovered
a cousin three times removed
had wrestled a fox
at the zoo, ain’t that rude?

And hillbilly grandma,
what a scandalous thing,
running off with thief
when he gave her a ring.

Shh! Please don’t tell
the last one’s a bitch
no, a bastard, I think-
which one is witch?

Yes, this feeling you get
about family history
an instinct, a hunch
this secretive mystery.

~~

©laurie kolp

Prompt inspirations:
PA- Something ____
Poetry Jam- Mystery
Day 12- NaPoWriMo

The Pendulum

The tree, a vessel-
a way to escape
through the forest
of life, and you
rode it with fervor
like a valiant knight
on horseback, whipping
through the blurry leaves
as branches scratched
your face, but you
never looked back.

©laurie kolp

Prompt inspiration: Poetic Asides, Day 10 Tree/ Forest

NaPoWriMo, Day 10

Permanent Tears

I’m sitting against the wall
half-way listening
to someone drone on and on
like Charlie Brown’s teacher
wah-WAH-wah-WAH

and it’s colder than Antarctica
in this hellish room of gray
so much it seems
my brain is frozen.
I cover my ears with my hair
scan the room so my eyes won’t stick
like moist lips to ice cubes

and in the corner sits a teen
so miserable and lost
it’s written all over
his dazed-out face
two teardrops
inked beneath his left eye
his sadness, disillusionment permanent
lost in a world where he knows not his place
his eyes meet mine

and I offer him a warm smile of hope. I hope.


©laurie kolp


Prompt inspiration:
Poetic Asides (PA) Day 7- "write a poem describing a scene in which two or more people interact without speaking"

NaPoWriMo, Day 7- Color

Dulce de Leche

Hidden
in a corner
of the freezer
w-a-y back
behind
the green beans
and chicken breasts
covered
in a thin layer
of frost
the kind you scratch
with your fingernail
draw hearts
or XOXO
...because it’s mine!
...and I can’t wait!
until Sunday
to eat ice cream again.

©laurie kolp


Prompt inspiration: PA- Hiding

~NaPoWriMo, Day 6~

Before Technology

Can you imagine life without round-the-clock TV?

No-
March Madness
Golden Globes
RE-AL-i-ty (crap)
Or lIve probes

No-
MTV
CNN
HBO
ESPN

Now visualize sports sans the net, fans lacking RPIs.

No-
instant replays
beer ads
baseball trade-offs
betting Dads

No-
missed games
FANtasy
couch potatoes
obesity

Have we progressed or digressed with this technology?

©laurie kolp

Prompt inspirations:
PA- Something before your time
NaPoWriMo- Opening Day (sports)

The 100% Boy Blues

Watching Dolphin Tale while he's home from school sick

My son’s best lookin’ eight-year-old in town
Lord, my son’s best lookin’ eight-year-old in town
And he still looks good when he’s feelin’ down

Oh, he’s a sheep; my son’s a sheep like me
Oh, he’s a sheep; my son’s a sheep like me
We were born the same, creative and dreamy

A drive of passion steers him through the day
Yes, a drive of passion steers him through the day
And when his mind’s made up ain’t nothin’ make him sway

My son, he’s every bit a boy
Oh, my son, he’s every bit a boy
A HUN-derd-per-cent-boy, my son’s a joy

©laurie kolp

Prompt inspirations:
NaPoWriMo- Blues song
PA- 100% ____



Are You Sorry?

Please forgive me if I sound a bit
brash, but I do believe your choice is quite
rash. I mean, who but you would marry a witch
a pernicious stickler for cursing, a b-
Itch, did you say? An iTCH? You just want to
marry? Then pick me, I’m the one you should
carry over the threshold into your life
but instead you chose a crone as your wife;
are you sorry?

©laurie kolp

Prompt inspiration: NAPOWRIMO- A wedding poem
PA- Apologetic &/or Unapologetic

~~

I'm so pleased to be featured on Cara Holman's Prose Posies: Poet Showcase

Backwards Story

A path of golden bricks did not appear
nor did their love survive each passing year

like irksome weeds grave complications grew
outside the rain an omen with “I do.”

One Friday night a t-shirt contest wet
when through the crowds their eyes imploring met

her aspirations as a wife to be
while a wild cougar on the prowl was he.

Two clashing hearts can’t force a jointed climb
not once upon a lonely wayward time.

@laurie kolp

Poetic inspirations: Poetic Asides PAD Challenge- _____ Story, With Real Toads Open Link Monday

He's the Best (Strophe form)

From the Ukraine or Korea to Cajun Country
he takes on their accents unconsciously;
my husband globally communicates.
His coworkers and friends delight in the fun
to hear him speak in native tongue
like a movie star, he punctuates.
Once on a Polish ship, speaking like they do
a Coon-Ass called on the phone, too.
He ping-ponged back and forth in hot debate
from one slang to the other with such ease
others begged for tips from their knees
while he said, “Hurry up we can’t be late,
my family needs me now, let’s go.
They’re number one on priority’s row.”
Yes, one of many reasons why my husband is just great.

@laurie kolp

Prompt inspiration: With Real Toads (Strophe form) & PAD

Danger on the Other Side

Beyond the hedge danger lurks
Burdens hide as leaves take fall
Mayhem in the murky ditch
Aroused by swirls of black mold
Algae morphing into asps
Ready to strike its victims--
Stay on this side of the fence

@laurie kolp

Prompt inspiration: With Real Toads (Orion poetry form), Poetic Asides PAD (Deadly/dangerous)

Time Won’t Wait

Time doesn’t sit by the back
door like a hungry dog, it
can’t be retrieved from the
marshes or chased up a tree

rather time runs as fast as
a greyhound, packs a trail
of conditioned modalities
until you let go, break free.

@laurie kolp

Prompt inspiration: PAD Challenge
Also shared at With Real Toad's Open Link Monday