Places in between

Places In Between

by

Susan Schoeffield

Table of Contents

The Destination

Hiding Courage

Return To Black Rock Springs

Flying High And Falling Fast

The Place In Between

A Mid-Autumn Night’s Dream

Always Is Forever

Two Of A Kind

Should I Be In This Place?

Elemental Exposure

Recycled

THE DESTINATION

Drifting

on a snowflake

gracefully spinning downward

unprepared for the finale

melting into nothing

Sailing

on a seashell

tossed in self-absorbing waves

clinging to notions preconceived

swallowing misplaced pride

Resting

in your comfort

the purpose of my journey

to territories unexplored

revealed in perfect love

© Susan Schoeffield

HIDING COURAGE

Hiding

in the safety

of limited boundaries

enables fear of the unknown

to leave roads unexplored.

Courage

cannot be found

behind closed doors or drawn blinds.

To disable apprehension,

it must first be engaged.


RETURN TO BLACK ROCK SPRINGS

A trail

I’ve walked before

seems different in this light.

The passage of time dismantles

dubious memories.

A wall,

behind which stood

a hotel spa for town folk,

has no reminders save decay

of ruined majesty.

Blinded

eyes discover

all which nature has reclaimed

is given back a hundred-fold

in images unseen.

Footsteps

recall laughter,

silence supplies the music.

Contemplation heals the ailments

of all who venture here.


FLYING HIGH AND FALLING FAST

For me,

camping is the

best way I know to unwind,

to prepare for what comes next

and be ready for it.

This trip

would not fail me.

A night of a thousand stars.

A campfire’s flames brushed heaven

and heaven touched my heart.

Back home,

a ringing phone

greeted me on my return.

Daddy suffered a massive stroke

and would not recover.

Two weeks

later, I thought

there were no more tears to cry.

When I felt the worst was over,

my mother passed away.


THE PLACE IN BETWEEN

Half-way

‘tween there and here,

one heart’s muffled orchestra

echoed in an empty chamber

a song no one could hear.

Half-way

‘tween then and now,

one heart sang a capella

to melodies not yet written,

a song it would not share.

Half-way

‘tween you and me,

two hearts created music,

a chorus blending together,

a song only love sings.


A MID-AUTUMN NIGHT’S DREAM

Travel

destinations

to warm, tropical places.

Palm trees and white, sandy beaches

in seductive locales.

Bathing

suits and flip-flops,

umbrella drinks, fresh seafood.

Temptations too strong to resist

on cold November days.

Exchange

snow plows and scarves

for jet skis and scuba gear,

woolen gloves for suntan lotion.

The islands are calling.


ALWAYS IS FOREVER

Always

is a long time

to hold on to resentment

for real or imagined anguish

brought about by others.

Always

is all you have

when you can’t take back the words

you have spoken from the anger

controlling who you are.

Always

is forever

when a wrong can’t be righted

because death chose to intervene

and anger becomes guilt.


TWO OF A KIND

This house,

once filled with love,

crumbles on a foundation

of crippling indifference,

empty and forgotten.

This heart,

once filled with hope,

bleeds from the wounds inflicted

through too many years of neglect,

abandoned and unloved.

Both this

house and this heart

remember days of promise

before they were left to decay

alone and forsaken.


SHOULD I BE IN THIS PLACE?

Should I

quietly hide

in the clouds to gaze upon

the stars dancing in moonlit skies

to songs only they know?

Should I

try to capture

the soft and graceful steps of

this waltz in evening’s ballroom,

my words will sound hollow.

I should,

instead, enjoy

the scene in silent awe as

those involved in this astral dance

ignore my intrusion.


ELEMENTAL EXPOSURE

Raindrops

lightly cascade

in soft, shimmering splashes

off the shoulders of a mountain

to shallow pools below.

As clouds

obscure the sun,

temperatures quickly drop,

the wet shoulders of a mountain

wearing an icy shawl.


RECYCLED

Time is

disappearing.

Pages on the calendar

fly into the recycle bin

faster than I can blink.

Sixty

is closer now.

I’m not certain I’m prepared

to meet it with a smiling face

when it knocks on my door.

And yet,

in it will come.

What’s a few more pains and aches?

I’ve known plenty in my fifties

and I’m friends with Aleve.

Time is

disappearing.

While grateful for yesterdays,

I look forward to tomorrows

before I’m recycled.


Entertainment & Humor

Places in between