On The Clouds Eating His Shadow.

Published on by Tosha Michelle

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The clouds drank in ravens

making the pines lucid.

His shadow fell beneath

the sky. If she listened

closely, she could hear

his melodic cadence

delivering soliloquies

adrift on the wind.

He as he was

She as she became

Awake. Aware.

Taking color and form.

Both somewhere between

what was there. What’s

not there. Someone you

remember and can’t

quite forget.

Lost mail on someone

else’s kitchen table.

The parenthesis enclosed.

Time takes away. Gone

in an instant particles

of the past.

She stays.
(She can’t stay)

Tired from this slow

burning off of yesterday.

That which was lost

will not become again.

She always thinks she

see gleams of him,

glimpsed and then gone.

The stem decimated but

drowning in rose petals.

No longer powerless

to the undertow.

His presence merely less,

but no longer wholly more.

His shadow falling,

falling into dust.

The only sound she

hears now is her

voice turning into

an early frost.

To every poem there is

a time and season.

Seasons that coagulate

into lost years.

In this one, she scourges

the past with lyrical ease

The wind no longer

contradicting itself.

Her pen drops ink

of flames, no longer

pointing to the sky.

Dr. Syntax gives her a

lollipop and a clean

bill of conscious.

-Tosha Michelle

28 thoughts on “On The Clouds Eating His Shadow.”

  3. Absolutely mesmerising. You pull off the great conjuring trick of great poetry – it means nothing and everything at the same time. It creates feeling in the gut that cannot be explained in any way beyond the offending words themselves. Mallarmé would be find of this, I’m sure!

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  4. To every poem a time and a season – so true. Each one to be read again and for us to be reminded of the place and time we occupied as it was written.

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  6. “seasons that coagulate into lost years”…..how often I have felt what you have so eloquently put into words….I would love to know where you derive your inspiration from?

    have a very lovely and peaceful weekend!

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    1. Thanks. My inspiration always seems to come during periods of angst. Despite what my poetry might suggest, I can be quite guarded. I have many acquaintances, but only a handful of friends. I don’t connect deeply often, but when I do, it tends to stick.This poen is about the loss of someone I cared about. not to death, but to a falling out. I was over the whole situation, but recent events brought it back to the forefront of my mind. I am on my way to being good and well over it again. In the grand scheme of things it’s pretty irrelevant. However, it takes on more merit when one is going through a series of transitions.

      Aren’t you glad you asked me what my inspiration was? Haha Note, a lot of my poems deal with loss and sadness. Most have nothing to do with my former friend..I can assure you even though I am a melancholy being. I am also a happy being. I’ve been extremely blessed. Wishing you a wonderful weekend too. Please forgive my long reply.

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  7. Yes, I am glad that I asked you what inspired you to write the poem! I think we all live with the dichotomy of melancholy and euphoria. I always say that as humans we are flawed…and I don’t mean that in a completely negative sense…I respect the fact that I am not perfect and possess a certain amount of fragility…and I think the periods of angst, fear and anxiety can inspire not only beautiful writing (such as your poems 🙂 !!) but a desire to find peace and ease and acceptance of our flaws and imperfections without the underlying shame.
    Ha! Now it was my turn for the long reply (or rather more of a ramble!)
    thank you for always bringing my mind to a place of contemplation! It is the introspective nature of your poems that always draws me to this blog!

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    1. And as far as transitions go…even the not so pleasant ones I try to look upon with a grander view or larger picture…in the end things really DO happen for a reason and if I had changed certain events or situations as I had initial thought they SHOULD be many of the gifts and blessings I received later on would not have occurred…

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      1. You’re quite eloquent yourself. I feel the same way you do. Everything that I’ve gone through has made me a better person. I like who I am now. I embrace my flaws and take lessons away from every misstep. The past always lingers, I don’t think, we are meant to forget it. I don’t think we’re meant to dwell on it either. That was a note to myself. Haha

        Thanks so much for your comments. They truly are uplifting.

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  8. First off, I LOVE the title of your poem — absolutely wonderful! I’d steal in a heartbeat (but don’t worry, I won’t, lol). Secondly, this is a grand poem, full of passionate lines and images that all fuse together to create a fully-realized picture of longing and loss. And I love the way you use weather and seasons here to evoke your meaning. Really, sinus infection aside, your temperature is burning clearly and cleanly and artfully in this poem. 🙂

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      1. I sometimes think titles and everything else (poems, stories, etc.) that seem to “write themselves,” or effortlessly, are the best, 🙂

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  9. Lovely comments, everyone. They were a joy to read, and get a better sense of you, Tosha. Thank you for being YOU!:) I couldn’t agree more that everything happens for a reason, that past experiences (not necessarily mistakes) help mold us into the beautiful individuals we are meant to be. But we can’t dwell on said mistakes, either (great point, my friend!)

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    1. The past can be a catalyst for change. It’s always bittersweet looking back. I think we always wonder, “What if” forgetting at times what was.

      Thanks so much for reading and commenting. You’re a lovely soul. I hope you have a wonderful weekend.

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      1. It surely can, and has been for me on several occasions. Yes, the perpetual “What if” questions can kill us at times, or we can overcome them and strive for greatness.:)

        You’re welcome. It is truly a pleasure.:) Ahhh, thank YOU! May your weekend be wonderful, as well!

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