Telling Stories» cherishing

I get Attached

Shari Smothers — Thu, 19 Nov 2009 23:21:28 +0000

Family, friends, favorite ink pens
wide ruled composition books
all sizes, bindings, page styles
and the new colors of Moleskines.

“The Mirror has Two Faces”
is my all-time favorite movie
of the many I adore from Barbara Streisand.
Thank God I’m a girl otherwise
according to “In & Out”
that affinity might betray
my natural attraction to men.

My computer in good working order.
External hard drive and DVD burner
at the ready to facilitate
me doing my things.
The internet and my own blogs
the fast tracks to sharing
my life with welcome visitors.

So much more I’m grateful for
‘til I probably could continue
for long pages.
Suffice it to say, some kind of way
these things have become part of me.

Even ex-boyfriends strange as
that may be by TV standards.
The reality is it’s harder to erase them
when our main component was friendship.

Can we talk?
Film cameras: My first and last Minoltas
SRT-201 and Maxxum STsi
and a low budget retro-looking
medium format Seagull to get my feet wet.
Favorite web tools WordPress and HTML-Kit.

No way would I part easily
with any of these and other things
tethered to my life.
If cherishing were an exercise or burden
I’d be totally, daily spent.

Prompt: Write an attachment poem. Day 19 of the 2009 November PAD Chapbook Challenge, from Poetic Asides by Robert Lee Brewer.

Notes: The two movies mentioned have great casts, but I only list a few. You can click on each title to visit their IMDB listing for more information.

The Mirror has Two Faces, 1996, Stellar cast includes stars Barbara Streisand, Lauren Bacall, Jeff Bridges, Brenda Vaccaro
In & Out, 1997, Stellar cast includes stars Kevin Kline, Joan Kusack, Tom Selleck, Wilford Brimley
Moleskines are available online and in many stores. Check out this online site for fun stuff like Moleskine sightings on TV and in movies.

The Little Things

Shari Smothers — Mon, 16 Nov 2009 04:36:33 +0000

His snappy two-toned glasses
people knew him by
that sat on one end-table
and his brown briefcase that stood table-side,
can only channel his countenance as
my dad’s no longer here to use them.

Mom has moved them now
but these and other little things
that spark so many memories,
I hang onto
and quietly cherish them.

Prompt: Write a hanging poem. This is my poem for Day 15 of the November PAD Chapbook Challenge 2009, from Poetic Asides

Day 7

Shari Smothers — Tue, 21 Apr 2009 16:11:30 +0000

The joy seeps in
through the cracks
of laughs during dinner,
and at the movies,
on the way to any
destination.

Quiet delight
sways smoothly
in my head
while I’m working
at my computer

because I’m not at home
but in the home
of old friends and family.

The casino is fun
because I’m with friends
laughing at the sinister looks
drawn into the characters
on the machines.
Ratting around
shopping for speakers
falling asleep on a sofa not mine
seeing my friends’ moms
are still in good health
more food, gumbo, greens and cake too.

All make me grin inside
as I cherish and file them
in the made memories
for later days
I’ll spend apart from
my family and friends.