Against Hesitation

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by Charles Rafferty



If you stare at it long enough
the mountain becomes unclimbable.
Tally it up. How much time have you spent
waiting for the soup to cool?
Icicles hang from January gutters
only as long as they can. Fingers pause
above piano keys for the chord
that will not form. Slam them down
I say. Make music of what you can.
Some people stop at the wrong corner
and waste a dozen years hoping
for directions. I can’t be them.



Tell every girl I’ve ever known
I’m coming to break her door down,
that my teeth will clench
the simple flower I only knew
not to give . . . Ah, how long did I stand
beneath the eaves believing the storm
would stop? It never did.
And there is lightning in me still.

Comments

  1. UnknownJune 7, 2010 at 4:35 AM

    Mmm that rings true. A good message to tell a timid child. "Be the first." "Have a go." Lovely, lovely imagery, as usual.

    ReplyDelete
  2. UnknownJune 7, 2010 at 6:23 AM

    WOW! powerful stuff for a Monday morn.....I like it....smiles.

    ReplyDelete
  3. English RiderJune 7, 2010 at 8:11 AM

    "What the Heck!" and ""Go for it!" are always the right decisions. None of this looking back in regret for me. Thanks for sharing this poem. It may be a new one for my "Keeper" file.

    ReplyDelete
  4. OwenJune 7, 2010 at 4:19 PM

    Ah, the breaking down of doors !

    Sounds like a good way to spend the night in jail...

    Just wanted to pass on to you that there is a photo of two magpies on this blog which you might enjoy taking a quick peek at :

    http://catherinefiveofus.blogspot.com/2010/06/tele-noir-et-blanc-black-and-white.html

    Enjoy...

    ReplyDelete
  5. GailJune 7, 2010 at 5:01 PM

    Wonderful poem and have sent your page to a friend. Great job.

    ReplyDelete

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Hey, thanks for your thoughts and your time:>)

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