Cups

Cups, like lovers, you’ll have a few,

And they alone may hold your hand

And touch your lips at the same time.

We live in crucible cities, and

Lay to rest in empty cups

Stacked up on palettes

Waiting to be picked, taken home,

Waiting to be unwrapped like a gift.

A cup may not hold sweet wine

If it was made only for bitterness.

Some overflow with plain water

And save souls in the desert of life.

Some are chipped, stained

But you wouldn’t part with them

For they feel like home.

Some tickle your fancy, but

Soon you’ll tire of them

For they remain empty

Though you pour your

Heart into them daily.

Some you win as a prize

And put on a shelf in a well-lit

Place in the house, while

Others remain forever hidden

In the back of a dark cupboard.

Some you hold for a night

At pretentious parties,

In fancy restaurants, but

They feel cold, remote, alien.

The ones in pubs with their beer-breath

Are patient, heavy, slow moving.

They listen, don’t judge,

Sit with you all night,

And won’t mind if you

Leave without saying goodbye.

Jesus’ blood was caught in a cup

Shaped like a flower, I’d like to think,

Though they insist it was a golden chalice.

How I long to drink you, from you, darling

When my heart cup is up to the rim with

Bitter tears and sea jellies.

Reviews

[Coyote Poetry]

Amazing words shared my friend. I liked the flow of thoughts leading to the honest ending.
"Though they insist it was a golden chalice.
How I long to drink you, from you, darling
When my heart cup is up to the rim with
Bitter tears and sea jellies."
I did like the above lines. Thank you for sharing the amazing poetry.
Coyote

[Laz K.]

Thank you for reading and commenting.

[Coyote Poetry]

You are welcome my friend.

[Betty Hermelee]

I like the way used “cups” as. Metaphor for so many situations in life itself, love, emptiness, a prize , a dark corner of your soul, a feeling of remoteness,
Pretentiousness, a hidden corner of life, and so many other sensations, feelings, dark or light. Great write. Best, Betty

[Laz K.]

Thank you for reading and commenting; it's much appreciated.

[Betty Hermelee]

You’re very welcome; I really loved your poem!

[Dave Brown]

This sounds like one of my subject matters but you have done a much more adult version than that I would have offered
Quite an interesting topic with a bit of religious history involved to give it a sense of serious substance

[Laz K.]

Two people can look at the same thing and come to different conclusions. The reason I like your writing is that your poems see the light where mine tend to focus on the dark.

[jacob erin-cilberto]

some cups hold caffeine which wakes us up....some relationships do the same...they wake up our heart, help us see life with more focus.
We see and hold and drink in what we want to be...that best person we can be.
j.

[Laz K.]

True. But, there are also cups that must be emptied, though we'd prefer not to. ("…if it be possible, let this cup pass from me …" (Matthew 26:39)
Thanks, j., for reading and commenting. It's always appreciated.

[barleygirl]

Brilliant idea to compare cups to people/situations/relationships and also a grand job detailing this metaphor with a ton of relatable flashpoints. I have not maintained relationships with humans very well in my life, but I drink my coffee from a heavy cistern fashioned with frolicking whales & this has been my cup for the past 30 or 40 years *wink! wink!* Fondly, Margie

[Laz K.]

Thank you, Margie.