WHERE WE LIVE

She stops her car

rubs her slender fingers 

across the leather

to the shopping bags

clicks the door open

pauses to listen for the solid

chunk! when it closes

bright red smile

the smell of her hair

overwhelms us both.

Welcome home.

This is where we live

this is how we live

Brush the cobwebs

wipe the dust

dig down about two yards

and you will find us

hunting a place to hide

from teeth and claws

looking for shelter from enemies

above and on both sides

their hungry yellow eyes

haunt our quick steps

through tangled creepers and roots

fiery desire consumes their skin

while we huddle cold in the dark

rend some hapless rodent

limb from limb and

drink its blood

whimper against the outrageous

circumstance of our being

fear wrings us dry

twists our bones

pushes down on us so we cannot cry out

only whimper and clutch at shreds

of what we might have been

seen in dreams projected

on a shattered mirror.

Shivering while we wait.

Reviews

[Julie McCarthy (juliesp..]

Amazing extraordinary deep
My words say no more
I will excellent

[Vol]

Julie!
Wow!!! Thank you! Now I'm just gonna lean back and bask... (Blush)
Vol

[D. Mansfield]

the daily grind and how we can make it everything. Our fears can take over and become our reality. I knew a lady that used to tell me dont think that way you will make it a reality. Great poem Vol

[Vol]

D.
Thank you. I think my generation of boomers who grew up with grandparents who lived on farms we still visited understand how thin the veneer of civil society. As Tiger Edmonds once told me, "Vol, when the lights go out for good these youngsters will all starve to death trying to read the directions on a book of matches." I tend to agree...
Vol

[W. Barrett Munn]

Channeling Lorca. Well done, Vol.

Winston

[Vol]

Winston,
I love Lorca!
Vol

[John the Baptist]

Sounds like a description of the American middle class in the age of Trump.

[Vol]

John,
Sir, it has been the middle class since someone got pushed out of the cave to chase off the saber toothed cats...
Vol

[emmajoygreen]

A desolate place and it seems, a bleak outlook. Yet written finely because this place - yours, needs to be known. Hope things are improving. Best wishes to you both.

[Vol]

EmmaJoy,
We all worry about the strife and turmoil we face daily... Trying to save a job, being responsible for a family, attermptiong yo live clean and healthy... nothing has changed since someone got pushed out of the cave to chase off the saber toothed cats...
Vol

[emmajoygreen]

How very true, Mankind still has to face its challenges
Perhaps one day, life will be kinder; meantime we have to smile more often and accept the good with the bad. Like it or lump it! :)

[Vol]

Ah, m'love,
It is easier for those of us who have you in our lives...
Vol

[emmajoygreen]

:) Soon to sleep - perchance to dream.

[Vol]

Ah... deep breaths... slow and relaxing...