Tag Archives: just pasley…

Hardened Heart

Photo courtesy of Crispina Kemp

in much the same way as steel when passed thru a flame will temper- passions flames, once quenched- have hardened my heart.. 

like the frog, playing comfortably in the pot of cool water unaware of the flame below- oblivious- as the temperature rises, i languished as the all consuming tongues of your passion branded me with a desire- no, an obsession- to fill every gap and crevice of your being, with pieces of my own soul- 

never noticing- as i infused your delicate gaps, your tender crevices, with pieces of me- that they became gaping holes- sucking me in- swallowing my very essence- leaving only the parched remains of my now hardened heart.

This is my response to the photo prompt provided this week by Crimson’s Creative Challenge #032

“act normal”

Photo by Maksym Mazur on Unsplash

the voices in my head
have quit speaking
in complete sentences

it’s like
one of those dreams,
where you are naked
at work or
school or
on the bus
and no one seems to notice
but you
anxiety
mixed with nothingness
the kind of feeling
you can’t pinpoint
but cannot deny either
like a knot
in the pit of your stomach
that no one can see

“act normal”
you say to yourself
but then you realize
you have no idea
what normal is..

This is my response to the photo prompt offered this week on Sadje’s WDYS #286

Unzipped

© Ayr/Gray

her eyes a rare burnt umber
accentuated with flecks
of gold and green
her skin palest alabaster
taut and smooth
like polished porcelain
her hair a mane of roasted chestnuts
an up swept crown
upon her head
the envy of every woman
she encountered
the woman every man wished
he had met- instead..

yet each night when she retired
to her penthouse all alone
she unzipped that envied woman
and hung her- behind
the hand carved mahogany door
stripped bare
in stark white recessed light
she’d stand-
manicured feet
on cold italian marble floor-
and watch as the stains
of her past bled thru-
behind the closed, locked
bathroom door…

This is my response to this week’s Unicorn Challenge photo prompt. It was originally intended to be a story, but I could not whittle it down to fit the parameters of the prompt, so I made it poetry instead. Don’t be surprised if you read something similar here in the near future though, because it worked very nicely as s tory too.

Hard Candy Shell

Woman by ~xthekillingx on deviantART

i have
immersed
myself in
bittersweet, molten
chocolate..
i retreat,
further and further,
into its comforting sweetness..
it covers me, cools and hardens
to the touch..
the essence of
my soul has become
embedded
in layer after
layer, of whipped butter
crystallized sugar cane
masticated cocoa..
it no longer coats me
but has become me.
even the heat, of your stare
cannot penetrate
this hard candy shell,
this dark armor,
deep inside which-
i hide….

Jim’s Thursday Inspiration #276 called for something Sweet- I wrote this many moons ago, but it came to mind in response- so here it is.

Sign of the times

PHOTO PROMPT © Sandra Crook

the meaning of life
has been reduced
to punchlines delivered
in 280 characters or less…
the fabled wisdom
of the ages
has been screen printed
on t shirts
that didn’t sell-
were bundled up
and sent off
to “underdeveloped”
third world countries
that don’t speak the language..
life’s truths
continue to unravel
like thread bare afghans
kept tucked away
in the hall closet
for posterity
unused
cuz they clash
with the colors
in the couch…

This is my entry to Friday Fictioneers in response to the photo prompt displayed above.