Alone is a place
I know so well
It’s the place I dream
The place I dwell
It gets dreary in here
And I get scared of the dark
But my flame isn’t extinguished
You should see my spark
People pass by
But they cannot see
All the color of life
Right inside of me
Come take a look
You’ll see that it’s true
I have a heart
Just like you
© 2023 Michelle Cook
Photo credit: @Lanazi00
I remain in slumbered thought
And yet my mind aches to go
To be what I should be
To know what I should know
And yet here I sit as always
My body fighting with my mind
The balance between them both
So off-kilter so unkind
The brain at war with the bones
The bones set in stubborn recluse
I fear not even an earthquake
Could shake my body loose
Stuck in that realm of isolation
Peering down on a grand parade
Wishing to be part of everything
Will no one come to my aid?
I’ve become like a stone statue
Watching the crowds pass by
Already in my coffin
Stuck in my mind’s eye
The world hums around me
I’m a lone spectator to the buzz
I remain in sequestered solitude
Free from what the world does
© 2023 Michelle Cook
Photo credit: https://pixabay.com/photos/sunset-woman-field-terrace-sun-5842173/
My mind draws a blank
as the new year looms;
what will happen,
I can only assume.
I’ve a mixed bag of emotions
sitting on my lap;
if some of them spill out,
I might just snap.
I know there is so much good
about to unfold,
so I keep looking at the ground
and do as I’m told.
Don’t question the process,
is what my thoughts say;
eventually, this wary feeling
will start to go away.
But with nobody to talk to,
my mind is in a haze;
still, I try to prepare
for this new life phase.
I’ve got nothing to lose
but everything to gain,
and saying goodbye to the past
will help me stay sane.
So, goodbye, I say
to another mixed year.
Freedom awaits;
the odds are very clear.
I’m adjusting my sails,
waiting for the wind
to prepare my course,
and then descend.
I pray for transformation
even though I don’t pray
and, hopefully, a shift
will come my way.
Clearing the dust,
looking for new views,
now’s the perfect time
for me to choose.
© 2022 Michelle Cook
*The drawing is my own attempt at creating a mixed bag of emotions. Fingers crossed that none of my emotions spill out over the coming year. 🙂 ~M xo
Strings of white lights
Strung all around
Soft petaled snowflakes
Falling to the ground
Joyous carolers
Spreading musical cheer
Everyone reminiscing
About another great year
Wide-eyed children
Gathered round each tree
Meeting with Santa
And sitting on his knee
Secret mistletoe kisses
In candlelit rooms
Red poinsettias
Never failing to bloom
Warm eggnog cocktails
And bobble-filled wreaths
Celebrating a season
Full of many beliefs
Garland draped windows
With snowy white scenes
These are the memories
From our childhood dreams
© 2022 Michelle Cook
*I’ve decided to start doing more drawings to go with my poems. I don’t draw nearly enough and I feel like my skills need improving. So… I am going to do a weekly drawing and write a poem to go with each one. I guess by deciding this, I’m sort of starting my New Years resolutions early, What do y’all think? Any other ideas for how I can improve my drawing skills while still keeping up with my poetry? ~M
There’s a doorway to destruction;
it seems to find me every day;
I take different paths to avoid it
and look for the merrier way.
There’s also a doorway to delight;
it finds me less than other doors;
oh, but when it does find me,
I’m sent up a hundred floors!
There’s a doorway to regret
and another that opens to grief;
thankfully, neither stays open long,
so that’s quite a relief.
There’s also a doorway to peace
and another that leads to fun;
both are best enjoyed
walking through with a bit of sun.
My favorite door of all
is the one that leads to love,
but I have to be open to finding it,
sometimes needing a little shove.
There’s a doorway to adventure,
one that I look for every day,
and when I eventually find it,
It’s like being on holiday.
Some doors are pretty,
and others I’m afraid to touch,
but those that are welcoming
always mean so much.
I’m excited yet cautious
to see where most of them go;
I know if I’m too afraid to open one,
I’ll never really know.
The right door for me
might be the wrong door for you;
I guess none of us will ever know
until we’ve opened quite a few.
I’m grateful for so many choices
and the opportunities to succeed;
I hope you find your door today,
the one you really need.
© 2022 Michelle Cook
Photo credit: https://pixabay.com/photos/doorway-beach-opening-entrance-981803/
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