Here we are officially in the Holiday Season. Less than 17 days til Christmas. And what is going on in this crazy world? Someone at Virginia Tech is terrorizing students and staff, two people have been shot (today). Nato tankers blown up in Pakistan (today). All of the Middle East still in turmoil. Women still at risk in Democratic Republic of Congo. Women's rights are being threatened in the State of Virginia by zealot politicians. People were hurt in "Black Friday" sales. Kids are getting suspended from school for complimenting a teacher but not for bullying their fellow students. And still the commercial world tries to sell us: A Merry Christmas, "buy presents for everyone! teachers, bus drivers, mail men, people you admire, people you don't, just buy, buy, buy!"
Don't get me wrong, I have witnessed some people with hearts of good intentions, buying gifts for those less fortunate, doing food drives, and trying to help out their fellow man. But we see this every season, and as soon as that crystal ball falls in Times Square marking the New Year, most people go back to their selfish ways. It hurts my big heart. What happened to classy Christmas? Why don't people help each other all year? Why are there so many people suffering? Why can't people just be kind to one another? I don't have that much, but I give whatever I can, and I hope that if I needed something, someone would be there for me. Somehow, I doubt it. I'm sorry to sound bitter. I am very, very grateful for all I have, for all the people who are in my life, for the love that I have to give and the love I receive. I hope that this little commentary doesn't make anyone too sad. I just had to get it out of my head. Peace and love to all.

Stranger Love

you walked by as a stranger
I nodded my head politely
it was in response to your muffled greeting
what did you say?
you seemed familiar and then not at all
the next day it happened again

I didn't remember seeing you before
but somehow I knew I'd see you again

and then day after day
for weeks you were there
passing by me as I waited for the bus
the mumbled greeted was joined by a smile
some eye contact
and then a hearty hello!

and then one day you stopped to talk
and we were strangers no more
I knew your name and you knew mine
and for awhile everything was nice

and then one day you weren't there
you didn't pass by
there was no morning chat
I checked my watch
this was the time
where were you?
I got on the bus, regretfully, how had I missed you?

but the next day you didn't show either
and then the days turned into weeks
and my stranger love was gone
faded to memory



(all rights reserved, ST)

more to this than that

sundresses in winter
pale skin reflects the Florida sun
tourists looking for escape
realizing that their lives are still the same
no matter what the weather





(all rights reserved ST)

the moment

we met a long time ago
and then we met again
and we liked the way it felt to be around each other
and so we went on some dates
and we went to parties
and there was this one
a sweet summer day, with swimming, and music
and we got dirty playing in the yard
it was time for lunch and we went inside to wash our hands
and you stood behind me at the sink and you washed my hands for me
and it was the sweetest, most romantic moment
feeling your body against mine
with your arms around me
and your hands washing mine
and I fell in love
that was the moment that I knew


all rights reserved
(Readers: What are your favorite romantic moments?)

pictures

every picture on the wall meant something to the person who hung them
they were all crooked, with a layer of dust, and frayed string holding them tentatively from rusting nails
faces of long gone relatives and houses now mounds of ash
pets and farms and celebrations from the past
and in the midst of these cherished but distance memories
a painting of stark contrast
colors that swirled
and made emotions surface
an angry painting in a sea of nostalgia
why had this modern feeling been placed among the pictures on the wall?
it was like the warning signs of a coup d'etat
a takeover of visual proportions
a bleeding gash in the skin of the hall
what war was about to be waged
between nostalgia and terror
why does moving on have to be so damn bloody

unrelated napkin

Why do I have to keep on letting go?
Don't I deserve you?
After years of unwilling waiting..
will you ever see me for who I am..
yours

Everywhere

You were everywhere and no where
in the corner of my eye I saw your signature cap
but when I turned it wasn't you
and then I heard you call my name
but from where?
I could not see you
Somone nearby told a story
I swore you'd told it to me before
but it wasn't you
and they didn't know of you
someone called your name
as though you'd just arrived
but he wasn't you
not a common name but my ears are trained to hear it
and then your cologne
yes I smell you but you again my eyes can't find you
my eyes, my ears, my nose
all wanting the familiarity that is you
my skin aches for your touch
my mouth waters
thinking of you and your salty sweet taste
my body aches for you
and imagines you everywhere and nowhere
all at once


(from actual bar napkins.. and totally my personal property, all rights reserved)