In a world
where all
goes
one
way
or
another
in a blink of an eye
in a moments notice
a breath
a heartbeat
a life
a death
finger that edge
a
cool
carbonate
cocked
prize
is the winner
behind the trigger
or
staring down
the oiled barrel
into blackness
take your chances
if you feel
lucky
you are on
the right side
of
random
Camp NaNoWriMo Day 16
In the still
early hours
of my ordinary day
I walked the two city blocks
I call home
I made my way
towards
the corner coffee cafe
serving hot drinks
to start
your day
the daily
broadcast
streaming
and
the chronicle
on the counter
where the headlines
read
Trump Survived Assassination Attempt
screaming red
dirty thirties
in
helvetica
black and white
I walked
past
the local hardware store
a curiosity shop really
packing in
newly delivered wares
where
outside
a car ambled up
the steep street
Stereo
screaming
blasting
an
unfortunate
blunder
on
repeat
a right wing
call to war
I spied
the driver
dusky
leaning low
in his seat
seemingly
seeing
and
yet
still
blind
Photo Credit: Credit: MARK GARLICK/SCIENCE PHOTO LIBRARY
Camp NaNoWriMo Day 15
#100daysforLionel
How many times
is it again
that one
promises
something
that it becomes
more than law
it becomes
divinely
decreed?
first time
following the father's
footsteps
the sock and buskin
two step
back
into
the
middle
of where
we did not belong
the second
sliding and scraping
sideways
up against
a cutting
collegial
fraction
and
the
people's
plebiscite
the third
an ambush
of prodigious
proportions
Hate on display
riots on demand
body sovereignty
abolished
PTSD
persists
to this day
this fragile day
some say the word
was written
it is three
Not
to deny
knowing
doing
what was said
promised
but
to be
strengthened
fortified
exacted
I fear
my
hand
will
be
forced
so I cry
out
"Liberté, Egalité, Fraternité"
Vive la France
2025
Camp NaNoWriMo Day 14
*La Marseillaise - French National Anthem
#100daysforLionel
She glances
down
at her mother's hands
fluttering
like an autumn
monarch
having
long
since
laid
her
gifts
on the milkweed
world
her fingers
quiver
as if
keeping
time
with
the season's
staccato
taking
aim
she watches
as
torpor
takes
over
then stillness
She looks at her own
hands
seeing
the fine
shimmering
mica
of
memories
scales
her mother's wings
have left
behind
Camp NaNoWriMo Day 13
#100daysforLionel
Lost
Deep
within
hallowed halls
a wealth
of
words
spill forth
like long tendrils
of golden light
streaming
from
above
always
Seeking
ever
amazed
always
amused
the muse
meanders
her
self
made
maze
making
her
labyrinthian
way
back
to
the
goddess'
source
Here
she
is
Found
at
last
and
she
bends
the
knee
Camp NaNoWriMo Day 12
#100daysforLionel
In the shadowed alleys of forgetting
where echoes of identity once danced
I shed skins like moth-eaten silks
threadbare from the weight of others' expectations
In the labyrinthine maze of conformity,
I navigated by flickering candlelight
losing myself
in the whispers of shoulds and musts
until my voice became a distant echo
muffled by the cacophony of societal scripts.
But beneath the layers of acquiescence
beneath the shroud of societal silence
a seed stirred
a defiant ember
ignited
by the sparks of sisters’ solidarity
the anthem of generations demanding more.
With each step
I wove threads
of resilience
braiding strands
of defiance and hope
unraveling the tapestry
of imposed identities
to reclaim the mosaic of my own truth.
I am the phoenix
reborn from the ashes
a symphony of scars and triumphs
a testament
to the resilience of the human spirit.
I am the river
carving its path
navigating obstacles
with unwavering purpose
a force of nature
reclaiming its sovereignty.
In the kaleidoscope of shattered illusions,
I find fragments
of my essence
each shard
a prism
reflecting untamed light
each crack
a testament
to the beauty of imperfection.
And as I rise
unapologetically myself
I embrace the mosaic of my being
where scars are sacred tattoos,
and vulnerability is a badge of honor.
For I am not just a survivor,
but a creator of my own narrative
weaving dreams into realities,
and reclaiming my place in the cosmos.
Camp NaNoWriMo Day 11
Image Credit: Image Credit: phoenix I (made with AI) by Humanzoodisco
#100daysforLionel
Lionel, the fluffy orange, so bold,
With whiskers twitching in the gentle breeze,
And Sophie, tortoiseshell, her grace untold,
Their purrs and playful antics did appease.
Now over the rainbow bridge they dance free,
In realms where golden sunlight ever gleams,
Together forever, their spirits agree,
In the realm beyond, where dreams are streams.
Though they have left this earthly domain,
In hearts they dwell, where love shall remain.
Camp NaNoWriMo Day 10
#100daysforLionel
the craving
consumes
her
the desire
for clarity
amidst the chaos
of a disregarded
life
left
out too long
discarded
on the floor
sits
the evidence
among the detritus
a crumpled candy wrapper here
a tattered notebook there
take out
containers
tossed in the corner
trash overflowing the bin
shut in
the notion
that there is nothing
more
to be done
can be done
deserved
and yet so much
remains
untasted
unseen
unheard
unfelt
she parts
her lips
as if to kiss
to take a taste
her mouth
wet
with
want
her breath
caught
like the skinny stray cat
she lets out a piercing cry
at last
hearing her own voice
she remembers
who she is
Camp NaNoWriMo Day 9
#100daysforLionel
Where are those
damned words
they hide from me
like skittish cats
newly nipped and neutered
not trusting
I mean them no harm
I search for them
under the bed
lurking behind
dust puffs
and forgotten socks
I pull open drawers
toss all my emotional
underpinnings
onto the floor
only to see a word or two
scamper away
their vapors rising
towards the cracked plaster ceiling
leaving me
all alone
in this humid haunted hovel
Camp NaNoWriMo Day 8
#100daysforLionel
I am a wandering wordsmith and storyteller captivated by the beauty in imperfection.
Join me on this exploration of all that is authentic by acknowledging three simple realities:
nothing lasts, nothing is finished, and nothing is perfect .
