when winters fail to chill

[amuse]

the hottest
chilis leave
no trace
nor do briar patches
leave a
mark.

yes i can
dawdle
would as soon
dive in ice
as gather
bouquets

you and i
destroyed
all of me
my defenses
beliefs, hopes,
dreams.

and somehow
created new
strengths.

so i may leave
you now, you know,
because you can
never maim
me again.
it would be
a jolly walk;
i am free.


but no.

no darling.
since you ask,
and i am freer,
i will stay and love you
again, with an
renewed
and indestructible
delight.

[mono]

Wow, amuse, it seems you have posted less poetry recently, but what you do post reads so impressively that it weighs down my heart! :)

the hottest
chilis leave
no trace
nor do briar patches
leave a
mark.

yes i can
dawdle
would as soon
dive in ice
as gather
bouquets
In that second line, do you mean 'chills' and not 'chilis'? You show some very aesthetic word use - always ideal, and a practice you have always demonstrated well - particularly with words like 'briar,' 'dawdle,' and 'bouqets.' Even reading it aloud, the language rolls easily.

you and i
destroyed
all of me
my defenses
beliefs, hopes,
dreams.

and somehow
created new
strengths.
Wow, this marks where the poem comes together, after what one could call a preamble to the poem. How you incorporate 'you and i' sounds really touching and poetic, and I can see you placed a lot of thought into this one; most emotions attempt blame, blame, blame, but, if oneself played a role in the pain, and he/she can acknowledge that, I entirely agree, that 'somehow created new strengths.'

so i may leave
you now, you know,
because you can
never maim
me again.
it would be
a jolly walk;
i am free.


but no.

no darling.
since you ask,
and i am freer,
i will stay and love you
again, with an
renewed
and indestructible
delight.
A very modest and confident ending that really made me smile. Again, you use a lot of aesthetic vocabulary, and the story-like structure sounds so reminiscent of a William Stafford-like style; it wraps up so personally and autobiographically - specifically with 'no darling' and all of the 'i am' and 'i may' statements.
Beautifully done, amuse. :nod:

[amuse]

thank you, mono...i like how you sum up what i felt so beautifully. and it really is a treat, to be able to share the restructuring of yourself with someone, esp. when that someone has seen you at your best and worst and can work with you, not just around you. you know? :)

a treat, as always to read your commentary. i so wish there were more of your poems to read, though...

oh, i meant "chilis" as in jabeneros, etc. but i like the juxtaposition of "chills" now that you mention; it would have made for interesting reading, kind of like when you've got a fever and feel frozen to pieces...hm. :)