Dreams and Diamonds

Though you may not have noticed, I have the slightest tendency toward egocentrism, and a disproportionate number of my blogs are devoted to the vast galaxy of me. But underlying this egocentrism is the awareness that each of us is no less our own galaxy swirling around in the infinitely more vast universe of life. It’s the type of concept few people, busy just living life, consider, and I somehow feel driven to encourage them to do so.

Written thoughts are most often expressed in prose, as are these blogs. But poetry, probably the most subjective of all writing—you either get it or you don’t—is a form of compressed or distilled thought which has its own unique power. I don’t write much poetry, but when I do I am sometimes surprised to find myself expressing ideas I wasn’t aware I had. And while, even in poetry, my egocentrism often shines through, I find I’m occasionally capable of addressing things other than myself.

I’ve written probably fewer than 50 poems, most of them featuring the only letter in the English language with a dot above it (and even then, capitalized). But there are a couple of poems of which I’m really rather proud, for saying in relatively few words what I normally need many paragraphs or pages to express. I found myself thinking of two of them at some point during the night, and felt compelled to present them here, by way of demonstrating yet again our commonality as individuals, and as we view the world.

So, as they say, without further adieu:

Dreams of a Calico Mouse

In a quaint little cottage, a calico cat
naps by the hearth on a calico mat.
Contented and warm in the heart of the house,
it purrs in sweet dreams of a calico mouse.

In a garbage-strewn alley, where scrap-paper ghosts
dance in the wind ‘round graffiti-scrawled posts;
in a box by a trash bin, a calico cat
trembles in dreams of a calico rat.

Each of Us

Each of us a spider
spinning our own web,
each to our own purpose,
each in our own design.

Most spin to catch prey
some to catch dreams.
Many spin in the dark places
where they are safe from harm.

The takers of risks
spin on garden paths,
where creatures may walk
and, unnoticed, destroy them.

But it is there
that the sun shines.
and turns dew
to diamonds.

Dreams and diamonds, my friend…dreams and diamonds.

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