Tuesday, August 9, 2016

Blackbird



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.


17 comments:

  1. "You were only waiting for this moment to be free" Such peace! such passion! Such longing, still!

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  2. The 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.

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  3. Oh, my goodness. Just too beautiful.

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  4. this is a lovely poem, Sherry, and a very enjoyable read.

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  5. Beautiful, but, Oh my...
    ZQ

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  6. Tremendous metaphoric write, Sherry--taken at face value or at a deeper level, this is stunning.

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  7. Beautiful metaphoric read Sherry! So intriguing that one is left wondering and mystified. What and who is the blackbird?

    Hank

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    Replies
    1. 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.

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  8. You tie in that metaphor of the boys so well. Nicely done!

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  9. Love your metapor. Thank you for this

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  10. SMiLes.. my friEnd.. as a person
    diagnosed 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..:)

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  11. Another perfect little gem of a poem, Sherry, full of sweetness and pain...

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  12. Beautifully written, Sherry.

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