~paroxysms
i.
perhaps rain was
the reason
for an almost biblical
bloodwet flood
unclotting the swiftstream
from thrown stones
& their unholy damning
ii.
notice the thin bird
collapsing breathless
restless
caged behind barreled
ribs with wings unhinged
& folded prayerlike
anticipating the tilt
of a lifting wind
iii.
I have not forgotten
how september's storm
arrived & sky thundered
open
a hole where summer
used to shine
its darkening pulse pelted
the pane
thrashed the wheat
a home, shaken from its
foundation
only one red umbrella left
leaning against a ventricular wall
iv.
apparently, poetry is inked
on prescription bottles
& served in uneven lines
on a crooked spine
perched like poe's
raven
tap tap tapping bare nerves
exposing light to a slight
curve of hip
v.
autumn summers here
settles in & folds itself
to stillness
as if a morning fog
that refuses to rise
for yellowing skies
another day pauses
pronounces its grey
vi.
with winter comes
the color of cold water
& numb fingers
this blinding sun pretends
not to see
the way it pierces the skull
with pine needles
hurdles a voice
miles ago
flattens shadows & all things
unwritten
to the white paperfields
buries half a body in the thickness
of snow
lah 4.21.16 ©®
V1 - rain = blood ~ i have clotting issues & use thinners to prevent transient ischemic attacks
V2 - bird = lungs ~ i have stage four copd & eleven spontaneous lung collapses, use oxygen, nebulizers & inhalers to breathe
V3 - storm = heart ~ i had a pfo (hole between the walls of the heart) i have an implant shaped like an umbrella
V4 - raven = spine ~ i have scoliosis, among several other spinal conditions, including herniated discs, stenosis, facet syndrome, that require pain meds
V5 - fog = fibromyalgia ~ i have fibro/cfs and often spend days in a fog of confusion
V6 - winter = brain ~ i have TIA (mentioned above) and hemiplegic migraines that cause many neurological problems including temporary one-sided paralysis, blindness & aphasia
me...metaphorically speaking.