4 December

alms


i  present you with a tiny shell
the house is littered with my curios
gifts from the universe
shining in the sunlight at the edge of the shore
i give it to you in our sunny kitchen
a boon

as if one could ration love
like flakes of affection

i do not offer premium grade here
i am well used and dirty
a hand-me-down
i favor you with fragments of the girl
that you once knew

but those i offer freely

and you take them

is it reward? this time we have been granted
or maybe just a write-off

a remembrance
a fraction
of the whole shebang

there are things we cannot package
under a tree in the living room

parts of ourselves
that we trace through eachother

and because I cannot bestow you with the universe
I offer you this tiny shell
a token of my love

a souvenir

you deliver particles of dust that fill the beam of light
that shines through the window
in our apartment

and i take them


poetry jam

Comments

  1. rallentanda04/12/2013, 00:30

    Now just before I say this

    I want you to know that
    I 'm a real live Aussie chick,tough as guts, and we don't cry.

    And I just did. Tissues,the lot. It has never happened before. I may never be back here again because your stuff is just too good:)

    ReplyDelete
  2. Michael04/12/2013, 01:09

    This is such a beautiful and heartfelt poem. There is a wonderful sense of commitment within the poem, a very real sense of giving.

    ReplyDelete
  3. alan170404/12/2013, 02:24

    flakes of affection are just wonderful, really full of beautiful images and heart felt love.

    ReplyDelete
  4. Gabriella04/12/2013, 05:07

    Things offered freely are priceless and those who love us will expect no perfection from us but authenticity. A tiny gift can thus mean more than an expensive present.

    ReplyDelete
  5. kalpana solsi04/12/2013, 05:35

    and because I cannot bestow you with the universe
    I offer you this tiny shell
    a token of my love

    loved and loved and loved these lines. so beautifully written and so raw and true.

    ReplyDelete
  6. Mary04/12/2013, 08:08

    The most important gifts cannot be packaged under the Christmas tree.....but the parts of oneself that are shared with another are the most meaningful and long lasting gifts of all. Your poem is beautiful.

    ReplyDelete
  7. kaykuala04/12/2013, 08:45

    flakes of affection

    That's cool! Flakes give connotations of little doses regularly given that make them memorable. Nicely asis!

    Hank

    ReplyDelete
  8. Helen04/12/2013, 11:39

    Your poem touched me deeply ... as the best kind of poetry surely does.

    ReplyDelete
  9. Laurie Kolp04/12/2013, 13:36

    So true that we cannot package what really counts.

    ReplyDelete
  10. Brian Miller04/12/2013, 20:16

    this is an incredible poem...i love the humility in being a hand me down...and passing on those pieces...yes, there are things we cant package...and those intengibles are beautiful things...smiles.

    ReplyDelete
  11. Unknown04/12/2013, 20:40

    It's the tiny things that offer more meaning. I think I'd rather have the shell than anything expensive or grand!

    ReplyDelete
  12. Vandana Sharma05/12/2013, 00:46

    All things big or small when given by a true heart are precious.

    ReplyDelete
  13. Sumana Roy05/12/2013, 08:56

    the tiny shell creates that universe of love....so nicely written with beautiful images....

    ReplyDelete
  14. Kathe W.05/12/2013, 14:03

    lovely and so tender

    ReplyDelete
  15. Peggy05/12/2013, 18:50

    Lovely images here--I like the idea of giving fragments of ourselves.

    ReplyDelete
  16. Amrit Sinha05/12/2013, 22:46

    I loved it, specially - "as if one could ration love
    like flakes of affection"

    ReplyDelete
  17. Sarav08/12/2013, 19:48

    Beautiful! Shells are magical and so is love, which cannot be packaged, but can be given, especially in the holidays. Really enjoyed this :-)

    ReplyDelete
  18. Intelliblog10/12/2013, 01:18

    Wonderfully delicate, just like the "flakes of affection"

    ReplyDelete
  19. Sharon10/12/2013, 22:19

    So sweet and deep. I love the line, "There are things we cannot package under the tree in the living room." Lots to think about there!

    ReplyDelete

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Deep peace of the running wave to you.
Deep peace of the flowing air to you.
Deep peace of the quiet earth to you.
Deep peace of the shining stars to you.
Deep peace of the gentle night to you.
Moon and stars pour their healing light on you

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