Sliver Moon

Sliver Moon

At night when the sky seems navy blue

And the moon shines golden

I see a picture postcard dotted with amber stars

The moon is a tiny sliver

Drawn there just for me

And I expect to see the funny cows and cartoon characters

Come bouncing over a painted, metallic rainbow

Impossible in a night sky

But dreams see possibility in everything.

Being a dreamer has also made me a writer

And I love being this

When I see the sliver moon

I hear my Dad calling me “Sliver”

And my Mom’s nickname for me… “Wee Chicken”

The warm fuzziness of childhood memories

Create the little golden chickens and cows

That come bouncing over that sliver moon

Delivering joy, exuberance, and magic

My world seems happy, safe, enchanted

And I am delivered like a postcard with a stamp

To that place of magic where dreams are real.                                                                                

 cailin raine

Winters Over Time

It was a winter like no other

The frosty air and bone-cold winds

Had kept me indoors

More this time than ever before

My body winding down like the seasons

The chill is so inner now, that it penetrates to the core

And begs for "no more"

So that I opt for the warm couch

And balls of wool

That work so easily into cozy afghans.

The TV keeps me company

When my man is not here with me.

The wool is soft and comforting

And I have come to a place where finally

I feel a "rightness" about staying home

If someone wants to see me they know

Where to find me; I am here

I made the effort for so long

Past driving and roads, and pain and ache

That no one wants to see.

I don't want it either, but it cannot be turned off

Oh how we despise the old and worn out

Our culture is cruel; we say we do not

But it is a lying field, we pretend to be kind.

My bones ache less if I stay in and move slower

My back does not bend without real effort

I no longer have the will to hide it all and smile

Come to me if you really care, if you can spare

Some time to show that something I did sometime

Meant something to you after all.

The pot bubbles on the stove with carrots and meat

Potatoes and herbs drift their scent into warmed air

Moist in the kitchen, but quickly dried by furnace heat

I am comfortable in big, thick, pink-striped socks

On sale at Mark's that day that I did venture out

What a deal, made me smile, made me so glad to get home

And adorn my cold feet in the easy warmth of their softness

We all make our choices; we all have to face ourselves in the end

My girlfriend could not wait to welcome me to the "Over 60 Club"

She could have been a little more kind, but she does not have a man.

I wonder how many more winters I will compare the weather 

To before, to an earlier time when I was still young

Rushing to and fro, and trying to make something count

Somewhere, sometime, for someone.