touching roadsides

touching roadsides

 

 

you skirted youth on an Oldsmobile's plush seat

i found flannel shirt forgiveness

unbuttoned confessions

and strange tones from a car radio

accompanying the loss of naivety

 

bra straps snapped open

virginity snapped shut

Catholic hands stopped short 

of that illusive goal,

Paradise was only something Adam and Eve 

wept for when they were evicted

we just imagined that garden

and wished for less stringent guilt

 

Our Fathers on Saturday afternoons

as the engine idled outside

little church

praying for another possible detour

away from God's eyes

 

                      so we could find that short cut

                                    to adolescent destiny.

 

 

 

 

                                                                         

 

 

 

erin-cilberto

8/25/17

Reviews

[Ayushi Jha]

BEAUTIFUL! The intricacy of the thoughts that this poem is trying to convey is so beautifully knitted that I am struck. Loved it!

[jacob erin-cilberto]

thank you for your kind words, Ayushi

j.

[W.k.kortas]

So many little touches here--the notion of the late and somewhat lamented Oldsmobile nameplate, the not to car radios and dashboard lights, the mention of Adam and Eve to connect it to all our experiences--these are the things that do not happen by accident, and it's what separates the wheat from the chaff.

[jacob erin-cilberto]

thank you for your kind review, W.k..
j.

[Zugzwang]

Lots of great imagery in this poem, j.
Those fumbling teenage days were some of the most vivid in my life, whether good or bad. Everything seemed supercharged with life back then.
Thanks for the insight into Catholic guilt...I dodged that bullet but managed to catch others, I guess.
z.

[jacob erin-cilberto]

thank you for sharing your thoughts, Z.

j.

[Annette Pisano-Higley]

Brought back tons of memories! My dad drove a few Oldsmobile Cutlasses, the last one given to my younger brother who promptly totalled it...Catholic Church, Catholic School, "Catholic hands", Catholic guilt- Big Brother in our heads..Superb walk down time's hall of infamy! Kudos

[jacob erin-cilberto]

thank you for your kind review, Annette.
j.

[Einstein Noodle]

you put me in a time shell .. my dad only drove oldsmobiles .. and so i until i bought my first car ..$50 for a 1954 Hillman ;) nothing plush nor roomy about those seats .. but we got to the beach a time or two ...enjoy your Adam and Eve references and your
"praying for another possible detour
away from God's eyes"
i believe the first thing those two gardeners did was try to hide ;} alas ..according to His Book it simply can not be done .. your memories so many times parallel mine sir ..but i get to see mine in new lights and angles through yours :)
E.

[jacob erin-cilberto]

i really appreciate your insightful take on this write---thank you, E.

j.

[Glen's not so clean sla..]

Yes... This speaks to me on a deep deep DEEP level, Jacob!!! Yessss! YES!!!! Ohhh yes!! Absolutely stunning bit of writing there Jacob!!! Feel free to take a squiz at some of my poetry too.

[jacob erin-cilberto]

thank you, Glen...

appreciate your kind words...
j.

[Tony Jordan]

This recalled for me that brilliant movie Heaven Help Us. We were in such a rush...*sigh*

[jacob erin-cilberto]

i loved that film....hated that one priest though..reminded me of my sophomore English teacher at Catholic High---although that guy was really crazy---
but yes...thank you, Tony.
j.

[Tony Jordan]

Lol - that priest was truly scary. Our history teacher was like that - always laying into boys with fists and kicks - and if we told our parents they would have said "Well you must have deserved it..." lol
Welcome Jacob.

[Bacchus]

creepy... it sounds creepy.

[jacob erin-cilberto]

i guess in a way...youth and learning about that subject could be...
thanks for the read.

[Bacchus]

you know, in a Billy Joel only the Good Die Young way/

[Tracey~]

As I read this I found myself smiling. The moments of such innocence and want and need to sin :) Desire for even one moment more... I love the fact that you're so descriptive I felt I was there...watching it all play out. Beautiful work..

[jacob erin-cilberto]

thank you for your kind review, Tracey.
j.