I loved your darkness, Blackbird, Beauty, singing in the dead of night*, soaring / captive, caught somewhere between the earth and sky. I saw your beauty plain. And I am remembering, remembering, again. I wanted to love you into the sun, release your pain. How your dark eyes smiled the morning you pulled a string that opened the curtains across the room into the sunny morning, and I caught my breath with delight! Your eyes, smiling at me, as a bird flew across the greenhouse and landed on your hand. You gifted me with doves, whose soft coo gentled our awakenings that short year of our loving. One dove was captured and killed by the cat. A portent. I knew I would love you forever. But you could not commit to only one, when there were so many beautiful birds in the sky. Your eyes, if not your heart, had wings. When I told you I was leaving, you reached over, opened the door of the lonely dove's cage, and off she flew. (Forever circling, ever circling back to you, if you but knew.) I was to remain a solitary dove, still tethered to your name.
Blackbird, captive heart,
who so wanted to fly free,
do you think of me?
a haibun for Toni's prompt at dVerse : A Little Romance *quote from the famous song that always takes me back to those days. We had five teenagers between us, none of them on board with our being together, another significant factor in my leaving.
"You were only waiting for this moment to be free" Such peace! such passion! Such longing, still!
ReplyDeleteThe darkness, the angst and longing, without being mushy are very evident in your story. The metaphor is striking, more so for the captive heart in your haiku. Thanks for this unique response Sherry.
ReplyDeleteOh, my goodness. Just too beautiful.
ReplyDeletethis is a lovely poem, Sherry, and a very enjoyable read.
ReplyDeleteBeautiful, Sherry!
ReplyDeleteBeautiful, but, Oh my...
ReplyDeleteZQ
Tremendous metaphoric write, Sherry--taken at face value or at a deeper level, this is stunning.
ReplyDeleteAh. Poignant story. Thanks. k.
ReplyDeleteBeautiful metaphoric read Sherry! So intriguing that one is left wondering and mystified. What and who is the blackbird?
ReplyDeleteHank
Blackbird is how I think of my dark-hearted old love.......who longed to love freely, but couldn't, who longed to soar, but was tethered to the ground, who could not give his heart to only one, with so many birds in the sky. But he was beautiful.
DeleteBeautiful indeed, Sherry!
ReplyDeleteYou tie in that metaphor of the boys so well. Nicely done!
ReplyDeleteLove your metapor. Thank you for this
ReplyDeleteSMiLes.. my friEnd.. as a person
ReplyDeletediagnosed on the Autism Spectrum
with Asperger's Syndrome in 2008
at age 47.. with my sister arriving
at the same diagnosis.. a few years later..
near 50.. it is obvious that
we received this challenge
from my father and his
father where my
father thrived
in the routine
of law enforcement
for 46 years.. and my Grandfather
as would eventually be an
X-Catholic and historically
noted Catholic Priest/Author
my Love Now for Freest Verse
Poetry and Dance is great as the
free verse art away from mechanical
super logic.. super standard IQ cognition
of three college degrees.. etc.. rEleased
my heARt.. my SpiRit mY soUL
noW.. so to sPeak.. my father never
spoKe his heARt.. my Friend..
and sure tHeRe are
many men like
this raised
in areas wHeRE
i live.. as Boys to Men..
are taught that emotions
and smiles and even love
are less than real for men...
ThaT's changing..
but poetry..
oh.. poetry
and
Free
Verse
DancE
made
me human..
REaLLY HUMAN..
more than most now...
Adapt and change and thrive
in challenge or
elsE.. noW..
the story
of Nature's
R O M A N C E
of all of we who
survive and even one day
thrive as never ever before..
as Fearless LovE that SinGs
and DancEs Super EpiC
like never ever bEforE2..
iT's neVer
2late..
to Rise..:)
Ah such a beautiful halibun.
ReplyDeleteAnother perfect little gem of a poem, Sherry, full of sweetness and pain...
ReplyDeleteBeautifully written, Sherry.
ReplyDelete