Month: June 2015

A Poem for Niles

Published on by Tosha Michelle13 Comments

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This post was written for a dear friend.  Happy Birthday, Niles. You are the calm to my storm. The voice of reason to my insanity. The jitter to my bug. The Niles to my girly Frasier

Without further ado, I give you my ode to you.

There’s once was a guy from Macon
who like to shake his bacon
his hips, yours for the taking

Kidding….

but seriously….

Still Waters

While other men measure success by titles and cash
He dreams of making text dance over the crevices
of uncharted pages, imaginary characters alive in his mind
He longs to breathe life into figures he has never met.
to fire his own artistic semantic round.
to pen The Great American Novel,
with sophisticated soulful prose that linger

While other men play golf and women
He’s happier with his nose in a book
Getting lost in CS Lewis and Hemingway
Sliding between his world and theirs
walking chapters to be read. Again and again
He lives in the land of mystical lions,
not fearing the tolling of the bell,
finding his lifeline in fanciful excursions

While other men long to dominant and control
He strives to be gentlemanly and bold
A silent nod to a picture page
Old world charm, lost in a photograph
Shaking the dust off his top hat
He welcomes chivalry anew.

While other men court surface friendships,
His quiet still waters run deep
As deep as the tea he seeps
He puts his shield away
Cast the armor aside
Content to share the secrets he holds inside
He caters only to a select few
Kind beyond fault to those he holds true

While other men drown in the noise of a fast paced life
He’s busy taking comfort in starlit skies
Content to linger by the stream with Whitman and Thoreau
Green fields blooming. His soul dances in the yellow light
He smiles at the passing herd, wondering if the sheep
will ever open their eyes and see?

While other men are slaves to convention
He marvels that his soul is as free as a feather
No guise needed, a peaceful mind is on his side
He travels on, marching to his own tune
with steadfast authentic steps and exquisite simplicity

-Tosha Michelle

Alternate ending

He travels on, marching to his own tune
with steadfast authentic steps
and visions of Norah Jones
alive in his bed (Note from poet, I couldn’t resist)

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MUSIC

Published on by Tosha Michelle3 Comments

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MUSIC by Charles Baudelaire

MUSIC doth uplift me like a sea
Towards my planet pale,
Then through dark fogs or heaven’s infinity
I lift my wandering sail.

With breast advanced, drinking the winds that flee,
And through the cordage wail,
I mount the hurrying waves night hides from me
Beneath her sombre veil.

I feel the tremblings of all passions known
To ships before the breeze;
Cradled by gentle winds, or tempest-blown

I pass the abysmal seas
That are, when calm, the mirror level and fair
Of my despair!

Climb Out of The Brown Paper Bag

Published on by Tosha Michelle6 Comments

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16.4 million children living in poverty.
14,500 to 17,500 people, primarily women and children, trafficked to the U.S. annually.
Unemployment rate of 9 percent
$16 trillion dollars in debt

However, all politicians seem to do is party in semantics over party semantics. Their philosophy- how do I keep myself in power and not how can we possibly ameliorate humanity. Instead of serving the people, they serve themselves and help themselves to a fist full of dollars. Instead of protecting the interests of the people; they protect the corporations, and in return the corporations protect them- in a turgid, tacit agreement that can be compared to blind patriotism. They are no less than mannequin pimps with pens, who have acquired a penchant for back stabbing the people who put them in power. It needs to stop. It’s time to take the money out of politics and put the humanity back in.

Staying in my soap box for a moment, in my opinion, politics and Facebook don’t mix. I’ve been suckered into a few debates on the state of our country. They always end with hurt feelings and bent out of shape noses. However, I respect people’s right to express their views (even the one I find appalling) Note, I’m not a big fan of the Fox News crowd.

What sickens me is the dissension and polarization I see. It’s one thing to feel passionately about one’s beliefs. It is another, when one tries to bash those beliefs down another’s throat. There is no civility in politics anymore. There is no civility among Americans anymore. Perhaps, there never was. I just hope we find a touch of empathy in ourselves.

Sometimes, it’s not just about flags, or guns (the left…the right) Sometimes, it’s about innocent lives lost. Sometimes, it’s about acknowledging that racism is alive and well. It’s about finding proactive ways to fight oppression. It’s about asking ourselves; how can we end the senseless noise of senseless bickering? How can we love more and hate less?

We now return you to your regular schedule blog of poetry and randomness.

The Gift

Published on by Tosha Michelle4 Comments

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I received you cold shoulder
wrapped in disdain
tied with a bitter bow
a gift of retribution
meant to flog my soul
like a petty whip
Fifty shades of fu***ed up

I should just retreat back
into my self imposed isolation,
but I always was more sinner than saint,
with a stubborn heart, a chaotic brain
and a restless soul
devoid of peace and sanity

Come closer if you dare
I’m returning your gift
and giving you one of my own

Sound and fury
Fire to melt ice

Heat the will own you
burning you from the inside out
thawing your cold facade
Flames licking at your core

Hypnotized by my light
dancing through the trees
of your mind.
igniting every part

Try and extinguishes the flames if you must
until there’s nothing left
but the smoldering undergrowth
and the lingering heavy blanket of smoke

Choke on the fumes as they soak
intimately into your soul
as you fall into a siren’s trance
Look down- you’ll see my reflection
in your burnt scarred martyred hands

Joan of Arc- you have met your match

-Tosha Michelle

Watchmaker Analogy (Out of Sync)

Published on by Tosha Michelle8 Comments

fragmented

A toast to the last sip of sanity,
to a friendship, I thought would never end
Drink from the bitter flute of regret
as chaos and mistrust oxidize
the palate of life

Cheers to a relationship
swallowed whole by anarchy
The struggle of bosoms buddies
maderized on sea of lunacy
Kindred spirits no more

Raise your glass to a hint of
false truths, fair-weathered faith,
famished reason, futile declarations
Assumptions paired with judgment in excess-
verbal checkmate.

Here’s to “Judas’ daughter”
Dante’s stage prop, a sterile cross,
and a refermented simulacra Jesus.

-Tosha Michelle

 

 

Seductive Tea

Published on by Tosha Michelle6 Comments

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“A penny for your thoughts” he says,
piercing me with his knowing eyes.
sinful smirk,
and picture perfect perfection

I bite my lip and blush,
fearing my face will give
away my lascivious cerebration
I look down at my cup and lie

“I was just thinking-this tea is divine”

I can never tell him
the true thoughts stuck in my head,
clinging to me like static to a balloon
Playing tag with my mind

His lips brushing mine,
nibbling, teasing
sucking, tasting,
licking, biting

His fingers reading my body
like a passage from his favorite book,
tracing fiery trails,
leaving sparks in their wake,
Bookmarking his favorite part

I can never tell him
I picture him in my bed

My heart longs
to be a tourist of his flesh,
to learn his language,
in sighs, trembles and hips

Mapping a route with my hands,
Tasting his forbidden fruit
Drowning in his exotic essence,
as we melt into silky sheets and sweet release

He asked, but I can never tell.
instead, I get lost in
soundless seduction
Sipping my tea. I sigh.

Absent Song

Published on by Tosha Michelle6 Comments

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I imagine you in a coffee shop.
Somewhere along the West End.
Sipping your mocha
Eyes transfixed on a book
Lost in words and silent meditation
Gently tapping your foot
to some obscure tune in your head

I am but a distance speck
a muted memory

For me, you are always there
cannibalizing my thoughts
dancing in my dreams
your scent lingering
on nostalgia’s breeze

Impressions locked away
like the sweetest wine.

I recall when our days
were governed by
a smile and touch
where we ran through
the meadows of life
without a care

The grass green
devoid of tears

Summer days where we were
as wild as the flowers in bloom

I recall the pub we stopped in
to take shelter from the rain
me, with my diet coke
you with your scotch
We warmed to the sound
of hushed laughter
laced with serenity

We raised our glasses
to friendship and love
even the clouds
couldn’t shatter
the beauty of the moment

That was a lifetime ago
These days I go on with living
content with what was
Missing what can never be

I’ll always love you
and wish you were near

Perhaps, one day you’ll
look to the sky
and reflect on
a girl with golden hair,
and feel the silence
of her absent song.

-Tosha Michelle

Friendships, reality, perceptions and a guy named Bill.

Published on by Tosha Michelle5 Comments

Are online friendships “real”? Is anything really real? It all comes down to perception. Don’t we invent our own reality? Does absolute reality exist? Isn’t matter completely invisible? Isn’t our reality defined by our sense perception? If reality is invisible, and we give it form; is it real? What does it all mean? I haven’t got a clue. I’m paging the great Dr. Mark Kingwell, philosopher on call.

Let’s take the word “real” out of the equation and focus on what friendship means. (Perception)

What constitutes a friend? It boils down to an individual’s needs. For myself, I am not a people person. I don’t need a constant physical presence to feel fulfilled. To me, a friend is someone who gives emotional support, who is there to listen and, with whom I can be myself. I choose quality over quantity. I have many associates but few friends. I’m very selective with whom I open up to. Some of my friends I have yet to meet in “real life”. However, I have spent countless hours on the phone with them. I’m always there to lend an ear. I support their projects. If they needed me, I would be there. We share our secrets, our woes, our highs and lows ((there second nature to me now) Friends are a source of growth and enrichment. Other friendships have started online and ended up offline. I’ve been really blessed. I’ve met some truly amazing people. There’s a closeness there that supersedes the physical.

In our contemporary society, making friends online is the new norm. Social media has changed the landscape of friendship. The ease now in which we can keep in touch is incredible. What I do online and offline are completely interwoven. Intimacy now develops in both the physical and online realms, often crossing freely between the two. The beauty of online friendships lies in their mutability in my purse, on my screen, in the comfort of my home. As time goes on, I think the distinction between on- and offline friendships will dissipate. That doesn’t mean that we are doom to a life, of tweets and emails. It simply means that the person we meet in the virtual realm is no longer a stranger, but someone we know and trust.

These Foolish Things

Published on by Tosha Michelle5 Comments

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Oder?/Nicht?

Narcissistic and solipsistic
Perfected persona
Brilliant promotion
The Egotist HIM
Reflecting- illuminating
The Parasitic WE

Uppercase Conscience
lowercase nothingness

Exotic occultation
Discarded drapes
Faded facade
Man behind the curtain
Revealed and released

Introverted and reclusive
Urbane and well versed
Boyish and charming
Sly wit- understated grit
Ridiculously insane

Weirdly sublime
Quick to opine
Abstemious but salacious
Burlesque without the bourbon
Cranberry juice- No wine

Awkward and nerdy
Suave and dirty
A foreign culture
One of a kind
an original high

Overtly domineering
Covertly controlling
Maddening manipulator
Lunatic generator
Mischief maker

A shadow rider
Crossing lines

Chess master
Playing minds

A comedy of errors
A tragedy of wills

Mistaken missteps
Decimated land mine

A predisposed assumption
A steadfast exclusion

Forward drag

Seductive reincarnation
Poetic crossbow
Taking aim
Semantics rounds
No error in form
Story crest
Bowed illusion
Target hit

Unfulfilled ghost
Evaporated time
Miscarriage of intent
lies between you and I
Psychological filler
Masochistic reiteration
Empty leads
Bridge-less divide.

Demarcation erased
Dwindling mirage
Mind fog-lifted
Visual adjustment
Heart muted
Watch out
Back to reality I climb

Until..
of course…
next time…

-Tosha Michelle

Brief thoughts on poetry.

Published on by Tosha Michelle15 Comments

Poetic-Justice

Poetry is the coupling of beauty and imagination. It can evoke the strongest of emotions and touch the soul. Of all kinds of literature, it is the most pleasing, stirring, and stimulating. Everyone should read poetry. Acquire the works of the greats: Shakespeare, Goethe, Tennyson, Heine. Read them thoughtfully; mark passages and revisit them many times. A poem is like an instrument—it must be played and practiced on many times before it reveals its tenderest nuances.

Quotes on Poetry

Poetry is when an emotion has found its thought and the thought has found words.
-Robert Frost

When power leads man toward arrogance, poetry reminds him of his limitations. When power narrows the area of man’s concern, poetry reminds him of the richness and diversity of existence. When power corrupts, poetry cleanses.
-John F. Kennedy

Poetry is the one place where people can speak their original human mind. It is the outlet for people to say in public what is known in private.
-Allen Ginsberg

Poetry is not only dream and vision; it is the skeleton architecture of our lives. It lays the foundations for a future of change, a bridge across our fears of what has never been before.
-Audre Lorde

Song of the day (watch me undermine my credibility)