My newest adventure is underway. It has lead me to take up residency in a new blog,
Like the Feathers of an Arrow (affectionately known as LFA).

...don't open...don't throw away... is not disappearing completely (not yet),
but postings here will be limited.

Friday, December 21, 2012

2 CIHTD?: Sound of Healing

Title:  Stand Up
Artist:  Sugarland
Album:  The Incredible Machine
Genre:  Country

Notes:  The first time I heard this song was in concert.  It was just as powerful and beautiful then as it is every time I hear it.  As I listened to this song that very first time, I thought about how perfectly it would fit as a background to a montage of students expressing their thoughts and experiences with bullying.  Today I watched a group of eighth graders present a series of skits to each grade in their school (6-8).  Working in conjunction with the guidance counselor they identified different scenarios they found to be prevalent in their school as it relates to HIB (harassment, intimidation, and bullying).  And so it is no surprise this song found its way back into my head.

Sound of Healing
Allow your words to break the silence--
a fire shedding light to banish the darkness.
Allow your voice to rise above the noise--
a beacon of light to guide the lost home.
Allow your love to steel the pain and sorrow--
an aura of light to surround, comfort and heal
the hearts that beat in each of us.

Wednesday, December 19, 2012

4 Last Call: OTN





OTN (outside the norm)

So long I have been
a dodecahedron
trying to shave off
my edges to fit
into a spherical world.

I'm worn down and
tired of trying to fit
when really all I long
for is to stand out.

But I'm bound by
some idea of what's
normal and the fear
of stepping out of
the shadows cast
by my own insecurities.

Expectations push in
on me from all directions
and disappointment in
me keeps me from
pushing back.

I so long to be
me, whomever that is.

I so long to walk
outside the norm.



An Aside:  It really is amazing how the mind can travel from one idea to another.  I rather not ramble on too much today so let's just say:  Dream => Batman => Crazy Criminals => Prison => Asylum => "outside the norm" => this poem.  (and no I do not relate in anyway shape or form to the individuals--fictional or not--from Batman.)



This is my offerings for this week's dVerse Poets Pub OpenLinkNight. If you get a chance, check out all of the talented poets who have stepped up into the spotlight.

Sunday, December 16, 2012

3 Time Capsule: Chain Reactions

Title:  Chain Reactions (As the saga unfolds...)
Date:  between 09/1999 and 06/2001
Setting:  Life after college--during first post-college job
Form:  Undefined

Notes:  There were several things that led to me to sharing this.  It is neither poem nor prose, but this morning as I was driving this popped into my head.  I took it as a sign.

Each month, someone was assigned a bulletin board to design.  When the time came around for me I had a little fun.  The board started off with a title, "Chain Reaction," and a card that read "You" and on the inside "Yes, You!!"  Approximately every other day over the several weeks I added a new link.  The idea was to show how one thing (good or bad) can ripple and effect someone you never met.  The display included two chains, one starting out with a positive action the other with a negative action.

Artifact I:  A picture of the bulletin board.



Chain Reaction
(As the saga unfolds…)

YOU
(Yes You!!)
You tease Jacob about his answer in class.

 You hold the door open for another student and mention you like her outfit.
Jacob, feeling upset after being teased, leaves the room in a huff and walks into Max without saying excuse me.

Jessy, feeling unusually good about herself because of the compliment paid to her, congratulates Henry on his presentation.
Max annoyed at Jacob’s rudeness slams Brianne’s locker on her hand because she was in his way. 

Henry, bewildered that Jessy even noticed him, thanks one of his teachers for all of the help he had given him.
Brianne aggravated by her locker being slammed and in pain yells at her little brother Jimmy for following her.

The teacher, shocked by Henry’s gratitude, e-mails a teacher from another school to thank her for the advice she had shared, which allowed him to help Henry.
Jimmy upset by his sister, shoves Trevor into the middle of the street when Trevor accidentally bumps into him.

The e-mail made the other teacher’s awful day a little better, so that when she sees Paul she tells him how impressive his paper was and that it shows much improvement.
Trevor terrified by being pushed into the middle of the road freezes as a woman swerves to miss hitting him.

Paul overwhelmed with pride and joy, helps another student who was loaded down with books and then invites him to hang out with him.
The woman in the car smashes into a telephone pole as she swerves.

The boy, Gerald, was so amazed that someone as cool as Paul wanted to hang out with him, that he changes his mind about a very important decision he had made.
A woman, you never met, lies in a hospital bed surrounded by her husband and two kids, who are praying that she will just open her eyes or squeeze her hand. 

Gerald, a boy you never met, realizes he has a lot to look forward to in life and decides to remain a part of this world.
Your actions make a difference.

Your actions make a difference.
Because of YOU
(Yes You!!)