i see them there sometimes
lying lifeless
discarded and disowned
tossed nonchalantly
along the rough shod berm
just there
at the edge of the road..
and every time i do
i think about
the white florida sweatshirt,
that found its way into my path
one cold windy morning
as waited to cross
the bridge on atlantic blvd
that winter i worked at diana’s..
and the gold silk midriff top
with the garishly large golden buttons
that i found in the bathroom
of the agora ballroom,
that summer my little sister
married the ski instructor
that she met in denver..
or the metallica tee shirt,
that had “me” written all over it-
way back when i was
blessed with naturally flat abs
and a penchant for wearing rosaries
and way too many cheap bangle bracelets…
and it always makes me wonder
if maybe it never really was,
out of need
that i rescued
those lonely abandoned pieces
of someone else’s life..
maybe, just maybe
it was because
i was hoping that someday
someone would happen upon
and rescue,, all the little lost
pieces of me,,
in much the same way…
photo:
July 4th, 2008 at 2:52 pm
Come on then! Take my hand!
July 4th, 2008 at 3:21 pm
oh this is wonderful writing. your images are concrete and readily available for view. i can so relate to this…i have so many “pieces of me” that it is hard to get into my closet.
July 4th, 2008 at 6:36 pm
wonderful. this really held my attention, which is quite a task. i loved the vividness and the strong voice.
July 5th, 2008 at 12:16 am
great idea behind this, beautifully done. good to see you back.
July 5th, 2008 at 2:49 am
It is sometimes said that a picture tells a thousand words …..
This picture certainly conjures many thoughts in my mind, however,
I love your words a whole lot better
Shaz
July 5th, 2008 at 4:08 am
wonderfully written with emotion Paisley..I sometimes wonder who is picking up my pieces…everything came across in this verse..
July 5th, 2008 at 4:19 am
one of your best
July 5th, 2008 at 5:02 am
Your usual amazing ability to look at the small and see bigger and representative nature. I was truly moved by the end’s longing.
July 5th, 2008 at 7:52 am
A stark image which would take excellent words to complement it.
You did it!
July 5th, 2008 at 8:01 am
Pieces of me? Paisley, each and every visit to your site is a treat and a challenge! You challenge me to probe inside my prosaic, naturally-unpoetic and realistic “me” for an ever better method of expression what I feel and find unable to put into words.
July 5th, 2008 at 8:19 am
I thought you’d been rescued and gone fishing … Drat … OK then, c’mon I’ll give you a huge hug, make you a mug of hot, steaming coffee and a we’ll have a gigantic heart to heart …OK? LYM. xoxoxo
July 5th, 2008 at 8:39 am
What a lovely piece. Next time I take a walk I’ll drop something in the hope you rescue it!
July 5th, 2008 at 8:40 am
I think you’ve gathered the pieces quite well yourself, P. …and are arranging them in a more and more beautiful mosaic every day.
July 5th, 2008 at 10:59 am
im thrown away
how the pic
makes me understand the words
July 5th, 2008 at 1:09 pm
honey, you’ve done it again. I can see myself in alot of this piece. Loved the Metallica Tshirt that said “ME” all over it. I still have mine.
July 5th, 2008 at 1:57 pm
The wonderful images of these items did not prepare me for the poignant ending. Excellent Jodi!
Did you stir up any chaos?
July 5th, 2008 at 2:03 pm
This is powerful! Loved this wander in dark inner streets. For some reason, I immediately thought of T.S.Eliot, especially his lines about the street lamp stuttering and muttering. I thought of his “Rhapsody on a Windy Night” and “The Lovesong of J.Afred Prufrock”. Very similar sensibilities are all there, but you you have internalised them with passion.
July 5th, 2008 at 11:32 pm
Slightly timid, maybe you just wanted to try their life on to see how it would feel! Profound perspective!
Hugs Giggles
July 6th, 2008 at 5:45 am
this is superb! i adore the pacing of it, the ache too … deeply poignant …
July 6th, 2008 at 5:57 am
i love this, how beautiful.
July 6th, 2008 at 8:39 am
That’s why we’re friends!
July 6th, 2008 at 9:02 am
for me this poem speaks to the way women are treated nonchalantly,
cast aside until the next victim appears, and one will, sometimes i feel
women are socialized into becoming victims, however now women
have the opportunity to be more aware.
i enjoyed the stages this woman went through in her life and how it
speaks to where her head and heart were.
the clothes representing only pieces of the whole woman.
the ultimate - woman as puzzle, waiting, as usual, for the right person
to come along and piece her together.
July 6th, 2008 at 10:29 am
Wonderful Paisley. So touching and original. You expressed these emotions so well. G
July 6th, 2008 at 11:39 am
Paisley:
I lost pieces of myself a long time ago. I can DEFINITELY relate. I lost my entire self in the town I grew up in and I’m just now getting her back.
I liked this poem.
-Nicole
July 7th, 2008 at 5:42 am
What an incredible piece. I collect vintage jewellery and can feel the essence of the original owner in each piece. This poem means so much to me. Thank you.
July 7th, 2008 at 6:12 am
the more i read..the more i wish..we could be friends
July 7th, 2008 at 8:52 am
Something very touching in this observation/thought.
I hope people do find and embrace them.
They do here.
July 7th, 2008 at 6:33 pm
Simply beautiful.
July 10th, 2008 at 4:53 pm
Hi Paisley! This is just beautiful, and very moving at the end. Thanks for sharing it.
I’m embarrassed to say that I somehow inserted a hyphen into your blog address on my link list - I’m not sure when - and I’ve been sending people on a dead end internet journey instead of here. Luckily, when I mention you in a post, I have been cutting and pasting the address directly from your blog. Anyway, I rectified the mistake today.
Have a nice blog break,
Laurie
July 13th, 2008 at 9:33 am
Today was my Birthday…I wished that I would have read it then because it is one of your best.