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Monday, October 10, 2011

Desert Living

As I sink deeper into the arid years
  of menopause,
I feel my dry, cracked skin
  and cheeks red rough 
    from working in the wind.
I am a walking Sedona;
a scorched
rocky, brown
bleached bone
desert.
A hard packed hot flash.
I am an agave
 growing in an arroyo
    collecting dust and grit
    in the spines of my thick flesh.

--but--

I remember my moist youth
  soft, yielding flesh
  damp from swimming.
Sitting in the back seat of your car;
  the sweaty heat rising 
   off my chlorine drenched skin.
Burying my face in your neck
  and inhaling the musky aroma.
The windows foggy from
  our breath.

Oh yes!
I remember the moisture
  of my youth.


I wrote this poem using a prompt from Margo's Tuesday Tryout on Poetic Counterpoint.  I have to say that I had no idea the poem would end up going the direction it did -- not my usual style, that's for sure!

16 comments:

Anonymous said...

I am in a similar place...but seasonal is the weather. I enjoyed your poem. I do enjoy Margo's prompts - wish I had more time to write on each one!

Anonymous said...

I love, love, love the metaphor and the imagery, especially in the first stanza, is amazing. Boy does it work. I am so glad the poem hijacked you!

margo

Anonymous said...

Nevertheless a very worthy effort!

Marbles in My Pocket said...

I love it when the poem or story goes its own way. I feel this is how the best ones are born. This is a beautiful example of that! I love it!

http://charleslmashburn.wordpress.com/2011/10/09/three-in-dreams/

Maxwell Mead Williams Robinson Barry said...

moist youth with imagery of dry, cracked skin, awesome piece of reflections!

Anonymous said...

Excellent piece of poetry I enjoyed it very much :)

Ann LeFlore said...

this is excellent and the end really ties this all together glad that you remember your youth
http://gatelesspassage.com/2011/10/10/the-bird-of-love/

Anonymous said...

I love how the two sections juxtapose against each other, and the hinge in the middle on which the poem seems to turn.

-Nicole

barbara said...

Nice. I had glanced at that prompt, but it didn't "speak" to me. Looks like I need to give it a second look,

mareymercy said...

This is just lovely.

nan said...

What a sweet, moist memory! It is a salve to the dryness.

tinkwelborn said...

this is a great poem. I like the way you give us the present then move back into memory ...delightful memory. as one of your reader's, I can feel the love-scene in the backseat of the car. nice.
the ''foggy windows'' are great particulars...as are so many other visuals: an agave growing in an arroyo. all this provides 'Detail' which is 'Life' to a poem.
very good job.
thank you for sharing.

Terry said...

Too true!

gautami tripathy said...

You hit the nail on the head!

stolen moments

Anonymous said...

that definitely paints the picture [blushing]...

teri said...

Nicely done- thoroughly enjoyed the journey this poem traveled.

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