Again

Alone

Forever

That is all.

Candlelight Memory: A Poem

I miss you.

Your strong and calloused hands

Massaging, probing, stroking,

Clavicle, rib, sternum.

Eyes closed, I reach out

And feel

The curve of

Pelvis, abdomen, and thigh.

Brush fingers over a

Fine dusting of man down.

Your voice echoes

A virile timbre of

Power and pitch.

Your scent lingers

On this drowning woman’s

Every breath.

Succor for

Long deprived lungs

Then, in shadow

I see your soft brown eyes

Locked on mine

And blink

A candlelight memory.

About Laurie: The author of The Pharaoh’s Cry, Portal Shift, Kidnapped Smile, and Dragon Sky from the fantasy series The Artania Chronicles, as well as the middle-grade Forest Secrets. Laurie Woodward co-wrote Dean and JoJo: The Dolphin Legacy. Her poetry has been published in multiple journals and anthologies and she was a collaborator on the popular anti-bullying DVD Resolutions. Bullied as a child, Laurie is now an award-winning peace consultant, poet, and blogger who helps teach children how to avoid arguments, stop bullying, and maintain healthy friendships. She writes on the Central Coast of California. More about her work can be found at artania.net

Love’s Beginning: A Memory

I met my ex-husband in a college astronomy class and from the first moment I saw him, was mesmerized. It was a night class, so one evening we went out to coffee after. We talked for hours! Debating politics. Sharing stories. Laughing. Getting a little angry. His mind was so intriguing.

Within two weeks we were spending most of our days together. It was beautiful beyond compare. I was infatuated but wasn’t sure he was the one until Spring Break when we went backpacking in Big Sur.

It was a cloudy day but we weren’t worried. The weather reports were clear. So we set off hiking the mountain. Then is started to rain. And rain. Continuing in a steady stream all afternoon. By the time we got to camp, we were shivering and exhausted. Still we made a fire, warmed our soup, and set up our little pup tent. Around dark, we had a break in the storm and were hopeful that we could continue with the rest of the trip.

But nature had other plans. In the middle of the night we woke to the pattering of rain on canvas and a full-on stream flowing between our sleeping bags! Now I was scared. I read a lot about the dangers of hypothermia and how this insidious condition can be life threatening. So we crawled in the same bag and fought to keep each other warm.

In the morning it was still raining so we decided to hike back to the van. When we got there, it wouldn’t start.

David didn’t cuss or punch metal. Didn’t stomp his feet and fume. Instead, he said, “The alternator’s wet. We just need to wait for it to dry out.”

He was right. An hour later it started up just fine. And in those two days, my infatuation turned to love.

(Photos by my ex-husband, David Stroup)

Between two worlds

Dream Lover: A Poem

I see him

In shadow

And light

In dreams

And waking.

I reach out

But he isn’t there.

Love’s Rewrite: A Poem

Mind revisions

Of pain

And loss

Where dreams edit

Every goodbye

And failure.

A delete button

Of the mind

Where he never left

Cleaving me into two

And enveloping hearts intertwined.

I rewrite the past

In whispered fantasies

That lull me into

The stupor of sleep

A psyche typing REM

Day after day.

That Moment: A Poem

For that moment

Life was perfection

And I became

Not separate

But a part

Of something sublime.

Nexus: A Poem

We are linked.

One species.

Sharing

A fragile planet.

Orbiting

One perfect sun.

Connected

By invisible bonds

Of light.

Threads

Silken and silver

Uniting chests

Tensile and strong

Our gossamer webs

Waft on squalls

Of an entwined and interwoven

Nexus

Covid 19: A Fifth-Graders View

What is it like for a fifth-grader to live under the shadow of Covid 19? How does an eleven year old in California experience shelter-in-place? Children are currently living through a time period that will be looked back upon and analyzed as historically significant. Thus, asking them them to share their stories in a slide show will help capture this unprecedented time. Here are the condensed versions from two of my students, Eliseo and Natalie.

***This assignment was inspired by Lauren Brown Created by Jessica Vannasdall***