Ode (Owed) to Poe

Darkness falls, a banshee calls

the headless horseman rides tonight;

a veiled moon shines through Eastern pines

there’s not a single star in sight,

and in the dark the chill wind brings

the scurrying of furry things—

the whisper of  nocturnal  wings.

The spell is cast, our heart pumps faster

the fears inside begin to fester;

the moonlight casts an eerie pall

while spiders spin their silken webs

to catch the nightmares in our heads

above the sleeping masses crawl;

and I wonder…

  Is all this that we see or seem

      but a dream inside a dream?

A monster lives within us all

a fractured beast that never sleeps

disguised inside discordant minds.

Self-doubts arise, no turning back

like speeding train down one-way track—

if you look close, what will you find?

The cauldron boils, the potion reeks

of newts and toads and buzzard beaks;

   enchantments thrown into the fire…

Zombies rise with sunken eyes—

ghostly wraiths with sallow skin

tattered clothing, gruesome grin

   on the hunt with one desire.

The outer fringes of our sight

have raised the curtain to unveil

the hideous creatures of the night—

preoccupied inside our fear

of losing everything that’s dear

we’re  held immobile by the fright!

Our minds play games, “There’s nothing wrong”

yet  from our throat escapes a scream…

... So is it real, this fear we feel?

     Or but a dream inside a dream

© Ginny Brannan October 2019

I borrowed…okay, blatantly stole…the key phrase from Poe’s poem A Dream Within a Dream I honor and a bow to the “master” of  the macabre!

What We Didn’t Know…

I think back to those early days—

we never talked about our lives

so many things we couldn’t say
–wrapped inside our own cocoons

   adulthood still so far away.

Perhaps we were too close to see

that others shared our misery.

Time balances our differences:

we thought that we were all alone

just ‘getting by and getting through;’

yet even those with perfect lives

were only trying to do the same.

You were just like me, who knew?

We carry hurts long past their prime,

   each struggling with self-esteem—

   no one really was to blame.

In all the years that came between

from early youth until today;

we’re more alike than different,

the past no longer holding sway.

And all that anger, all the shame,

the grief we tried to circumvent—

amazing that we made it through.

We’re stronger for those trials faced,

   full-circle now, we understand

   that nothing come before was planned.

And now we get to start again—

    so glad to finally call you “friend”

© Ginny Brannan 2019

Image: Google Images "Students in the '70's" 

Not my classmates, but could've been. We looked no different!

Golden Threads

October is full of contrasts:

one morning dawns bright and warm,

the next, damp and gray

as Nature saves her most resplendent dress

for these ever-fleeting days.

We watch cloud-shadows chase each other

over richly-painted hillsides and slow-moving rivers

as sun inches westward, illuminating the valley floor.

Late afternoon light catches the treetops

and swaddles them inside her amber glow.

Light and shadows, chill and warmth,

these sparkling days too soon succumb 

to winter’s gloom and darkness...

but today, we smile—

reveling in the mastery

of a perfect golden sunset.

© Ginny Brannan 2019

Reflections in the Looking Glass

We’re not the kids we used to be…

the heat we carried in our youth

has mellowed now to steady warmth

ignited by a deeper truth…

If I were to speak of love,

to define it’s subtleties–

there are no words that would describe

this depth of feeling that I have.

From the moment we first met

I knew exactly who you were.

Together we have overcome

each obstacle dropped in our path.

I think that you are my reward

for all the things that I’ve done right.

I steep inside the memories 

of the laughter that we’ve shared

the friendships formed, the folks we’ve lost

the paths that you and I have crossed.

Life’s a map of many roads

and we have dreams left to fulfill

so in this moment I'll confide—

You bring out the best in me.

I can face ‘most anything

—the ups, the downs, the in-betweens—

  as long as you are here with me

  and I have you by my side..

© Ginny Brannan 2019

Dedicated to my better half. Looking forward to the roads still ahead!