Chasing Dreams

Regret shoved me into dusty corners
a shadow trapped in sticky cobwebs
where I dwelt on what might have been
if only I'd followed my heart.

Past mistakes made me homesick
left me crying like a freshman in August
after being abandoned at the college dorm
feeling like a mismatched china plate

and although home wasn't the most stable place for me
I longed for it because it was better than where I was
alone in a golden castle writing letters I never sent
reading them over and over while listening to our song.

I had watched you drive away without a backward glance
after drawing a map leading south and cramming it down your throat.
Now I'm sitting in the corner chasing homemade apple pie dreams
hoping for a scoop of vanilla to melt away the pain.

@laurie kolp


Poem inspired by Michael Buble's song, Home. Click here to view the You Tube video.

Prompt inspiration: Poetry Jam

Breaking Free

I'm tired of this wall protecting my heart
A stockade guarding against friendship
Keeping you an arm's length away

From me

I'm sure there must be someone
Who won't leave
Or die

So here's some TNT
Go ahead... demolish the fences
Help my resolution give birth to brighter days
Bring those defenses down

But let the transformation be
As gentle as a butterfly
Breaking free from dormancy
And flying into your arms

@laurie kolp


Prompt inspiration: 3WW ( demolish, resolution, transformation)

Beauty Makes No Distinction

Bert Stern image

Diamonds and pearls
glitter and shine
putting on the Ritz,
a glitzy design.

Do blondes have more fun?
Look at Marilyn, Anna Nicole
caught by the bright lights
sucked into a static bowl

of drugs and promiscuity
big hair, bigger smiles abreast
slowly dying on the inside,
painful childhoods do attest

to the fact that beauty-
platinum hair and plastic knives-
makes no class distinction;
addiction kills lives.


@laurie kolp

Picture inspiration: Magpie Tales

Also, accidentally linked to dVerse Open Link Night. Click here to read the poem I meant to link.

A Sneak Peek

The kids had been awake since five o'clock
until six they gathered in the boys' room;
it was a chuckle that awakened me

or was that a squeak in the floor,
a little let's-get-a-sneak-peek-squeak?
I pop up and run out and whew... the coast is clear!

I decide to hurry up and turn the coffee pot on
since the deluge to begin needs caffeine squared
and the late night left me feeling like I need some.

That's when I see it, the bike standing there
(the last one I had he traded for a car and all I
really want is something to get around on)

I become a cheerleading mime, snap a picture
slap on the coffee then dive into bed with the kids
until he wakes up five minutes later
goes to see if Santa came.

@laurie kolp

Shared at Imaginary Garden with Real Toads Open Link Monday

Born, Within You

Be not afraid

for He will bring you peace
a heart filled with love and joy
within yourself an eternal manger

where He dwells

at times, appears as an angel
in the people you meet
a decree for life
pondered
tidings of goodness

haven’t you heard?

Be still, without haste
He whispers to you and me

rejoice.

Be not afraid-
where He dwells
haven't you heard?
Rejoice!

@laurie kolp

**Merry Christmas/ Happy Holidays to all of you!

Prompt inspiration: The Sunday Whirl (heart, decree, afraid, heard, manger, shepherds, tidings, pondered, joy, angel, peace, haste)

Hearts of Gold

My children (ages 2, 6 mos and 4) Christmas 2003

It's in the eyes of children everywhere
the ecstasy a rainbow to their soul
filled with awe and wonder on this eve
when miracles give birth to hearts of gold.

@laurie kolp

Thanks to all of you for the gift of joy you've given me this year. I hope you have a golden weekend full of miracles and ecstasy!

Prompt inspiration: A Word with Laurie at Imaginary Gardens (use ecstasy in 5 minutes or less)

National Haiku Day: December 22

cuddling by the fire
children wait in merriment
for Santa's entrance

*

red noses
shining through the night
cold season

@laurie kolp

Posted at Poets United Poetry Pantry and The Purple Treehouse

A "Rumple of Paper" Mess

His (non)festive imagination
left no room for cross-examination
a belief he held strong
(and he was never to be wrong)--
the holidays were but a symbol of greed
a "rumple of paper" mess for those (not) in need.

@laurie kolp

Prompt inspiration: 3WW (belief, festive, rumple)

One Too Many

One solitary moment is all it takes
one too many drinks at one more bar
just this one time behind the wheel
because home is one mile away.

Today I saw a bumper sticker, said
"A drunk driver killed
my daughter and I'm MADD!"
Well I would be, wouldn't you?

Last week one drove around a school bus
hit two sisters and their grandfather
life will be forever changed
from that one mistake.

And a bond hearing yesterday
to lower bail for that "poor man"
a dozen people spoke on his good character;
after all, he only messed up once.

So here's to all the ones
whose lives have been lost
either in the ground or behind bars
to one too many drinks.

@laurie kolp


Prompt inspiration: Poetry Jam (Solitary)

Hot off the press...

More holiday gift ideas!

Literary enthusiasts, take note!

The wisdom and wit of Jane Austen and Charles Dickens is offered in two separate titles as a part of Thomas Nelson's new Devotional Classics series: A Charles Dickens Devotional and A Jane Austen Devotional, both in a beautiful cloth hardcover.

A Charles Dickens Devotional features some of Dickens' brightest gems: Great Expectations, A Tale of Two Cities, Oliver Twist, and A Christmas Carol, all of which are richly woven stories brimming with the fruits of the Spirit: love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness andself-control. Add in the topical devotional thoughts and you have an abundance of insight and guidance for faithful readers.

Short excerpts from Austen's classics are featured in A Jane Austen Devotional: Northanger Abbey, Pride & Prejudice, Sense & Sensibility, Persuasion, Mansfield Park, and Emma. Austen's devotional also includes a daily thought and Scripture that meaningfully translates to women's everyday lives. Time and time again, Austen shows us through her words what love truly is; built on action, character, and honor.

While these authors may have lived hundreds of years ago, their stories still translate meaningfully to modern life.

A Charles Dickens and A Jane Austen Devotional are available in stores in January 2012.

Want to check out more? Sample a few days of each book, view the video, and see where you can buy the books: http://tngiftbooks.com/devoclassics

--

Surprises of the Season

Imagine this:

All are gathered for the Christmas program. It's a packed cafeteria. Parents, grandparents, siblings, aunts, uncles, cousins, friends; the whole shebang is there. Curtain rises and a garden of feisty red and green peppers appear with mouths opened wide filling the air with Christmas music. On the stage sits your child ready to say his part (he is one of the chosen ones). It's a mock classroom of antsy kids, with risers of carolers on either side. The time finally comes and he steps up to the microphone.

"For nearly every teacher thinks these last days should be tough," he says with perfect diction and expression, thank you very much.

The next two kids say their part, and then all of a sudden there is a distinct noise coming from the top riser followed by screams and a deluge of kids darting out to the center of the floor like a mob of fans at a teeny bopper concert. sigh. At first I think it's part of the program, but then I hear the recognizable sound again. Someone is throwing up, poor thing!

Everyone watches in silence as they remove the sick child and cover up/clear away the... you know. My child and all the others stay on stage. The carolers all congregate on the other side, jam into the risers like Christmas sardines. Ten minutes later, the show picks up where it left off, and you get to hear your son say his part again.

Can you believe it? This time of year is SO full of surprises.

Undelivered Letter to Santa (Burns Stanza, or Standard Habbie)

Dear Santa,

This time of year threads worry so
I cringe upon the season's glow
Fear of presents lost in spacial flow
High expectation's plight
With dreams of pricey "Apple" -oh!
Flying doubt through the night

That money will appear in time
To fill the tree with gifts sublime
And satisfy the kids' dreamtime
Won't you help me, Santa?
Or I might find myself in grime
To fill your shoes, Santa.

With love,
laurie kolp

*

Prompt inspiration: Kerry's Mini-Challenge for Sunday at Imaginary Gardens with Real Toads