The Lights Below
From the safety of my perch
Among the trees and stars, I watch
The lights below twinkle seductively
The blinking lights
Terrify and seduce
In the same instant
They illuminate possibilities,
Coaxing long suppressed dreams
Out of the shadows
They tease with their twinkle,
You will find love. Fortune!
You will find your muse
Come here among my lights
They scream more loudly each night
With greater urgency!
I have long been a satisfied voyeur
Up here, among the trees and the moonlight,
Laughing at the lights from afar
Yet tonight I tremble; afraid of the ghost of regret…
And as my solitary perch among the stars begins to crumble
I willingly catapult myself into the fire below, before it is too late!
–
Respite
Life, I am exhausted!
Attempting hour after hour
Day after day, to become beautiful
In your sight; to emerge a
Loving and generous soul
Even after the long and arduous task
Of emerging from the chrysalis,
The majestic grey and white moth
Pauses briefly on a red-orange petal
Before catching the next breeze
Life! As I struggle and stretch
Attempting to form myself anew,
Lovingly provide a beautiful
Red-orange blossom for me to rest upon
Before the next grueling phase of my metamorphosis!
–
photo by Priscilla Hancock
Grand Jeté
Time Flies!
I jump
Spreading my arms and legwings
Wider than they can go
Then l push them further!
Time stops!
Suspended above my life
My heart leaps along with my limbs!
In this moment
I know the liberation of possibilities
Stop, Time!
You must not return me to earth, legs!
Standing up-right in the mess of my reality
Feels like dying in a dark prison
From which there is no escape
–
Luanne Pumo Jaconia, CSSW, began her career in child protective services, and currently facilitates parenting workshops. Luanne and her husband are parents of two; hands-on grandparents of three. Her poems often reflect the difficult and exhilarating experiences that happen within families as they grow. Luanne began submitting poetry at 70.
