lost & found

...

i lost it somewhere between
the water can and the moon -
that little round bell of laughter
that used to bob within my heart
when the world weighed in
too solemnly

it liquified and ran
beneath the door of
late night, some november ago...
no letter of resignation
no parting gift,
save spot stains
dry and absurd

time began to tell the truth
i spoke in whole sentences,
even the rain forgot
how to misbehave

i searched the pockets of my coats...
the margins of neglected books...
beneath the bed with
that one sock
that never believed in pairs...

then one very common wednesday
it returned
wearing someone else’s face -
a stranger on the bus
who sneezed in three-part harmony
and apologized to the window!

the sound clattered inside my chest
like a marble in an empty mosque.
i felt my mouth betray me
and without permission, tickled

there it was:
not bright, nor loud
but quiet as a mote
learning
to cha-cha in a shaft of light

i sought not to grab it
but only opened my hands...
the way you open a window
for a bird
that already knows the way home

now it lives here again,
perched
on the windowsill of my pulse;
sometimes dropping feathers
of sheer nonsense
to the serious soup of the day

aswell, i remember:
the ulna and my humerus make
a very fine spoon

...

Reviews

[Chris Shaw]

How welcome that must have been. Strange things tickle me too. I laugh when no one else does:) So many creative and beautiful metaphors here Lara. Always a delight to read you. Thank you.

Chris

[jacob erin-cilberto]

this is the kind of metaphorical writing I love.

For me it is like into a window that speaks to me in reflection...
I definitely want a cup of that soupl of the day.
Such good writing.
And at my age I need to hold on to that laughter and not let it go.

[Lara]

It comes and goes sometimes, doesn't it, j... South for the winter, at best just a season afterall 🤞
God bless

[Thomas W Case]

Beautiful imagery and so creative. Excellent.

[Lara]

Thank you, t. 🙏
And best wishes re your new release!

[emmajoygreen]

What an imagination you have! You write as if sketching or painting to lure your reviewers to read and read again. Your words create an unknown language, yes - metaphorical, but turned inside out and dancing!

Superbly lyrical, finely laid......

'i sought not to grab it
but only opened my hands...
the way you open a window
for a bird
that already knows the way home

now it lives here again,
perched
on the windowsill of my pulse;
sometimes dropping feathers
of sheer nonsense
to the serious soup of the day

as well, i remember:
the ulna and my humerus make
a very fine spoon'

[Lara]

I appreciate you, em. 🙏
Yes: inside out best describes how I try to see it, too!

[emmajoygreen]

Smiling into yet another day!