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Different Kind of Darkness by Sherri Bedingfield
Once you scooped me up, threw a blanket around us both,
took us down the stairs and out to see the moon.
You loved the moon. But we didn't slways gaze at the sky.
No one had wanted to share this with you, this love
of going out at night to visit the thick darkness in the back yard.
That time that is sharp and alive with shadows.
Even the grass has shadows.
That was a different kind of darkness than the bottomless
black that lives inside us. The adventure made me feel
important to you, but you would grow distracted, become
lost in your own memories, musings, mostly lost in your drink.
I felt in the grip of a story I didn't yet understand.
I wondered what mother was doing at these times.
I would first feel torn apart by your gradual lack of interest in me.
Then I became so sleepy, fell asleep against your shoulder,
alone with you, under the blanket, in your arms.
Alone.
--Submitted by Sherri on 2011-01-09.
Phyllis Beckman:
Reminds me of a Theodore Roethke (name may be misspelled) poem in which a child is spun around in a dizzy dance on his father's shoulder. Help me out with the title. Ambivilance...both/and...life lifing.
Your poem's last line is "Alone", but when a piece like this is shared on this site, know that we are all "Alone" together. Thank you for "Different Kind of Darkness". Posted 01/11/2011 08:07 AM
sillygirl:
Very Potent. Well done. Posted 01/11/2011 07:24 AM
lanet:
What a sweet sad memory. Thank you. Posted 01/10/2011 06:58 AM
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