DAMAGED BUT WORTH SALVAGING

Sometimes, you're too far gone emotionally to see your worth, your beauty, your value in the world, to see a way out of your suffering. Sometimes, it takes someone else to be compassionate enough to not only see past your flawed layers but also to help you see past them so you can move forward with uplifting yourself. Nobody gets through this life without others' encouragement. You're lying if you say you've made it through every tough situation all by yourself, with no mental or physical assistance. Too much standing around judging and watching people suffer and not enough helping leads to lost souls ... and lost lives.

Is this your story or the story of someone you know? Check out the video below. Join the Anti-Suffering Movement. Challenge your focal point. No judgment where suffering is concerned.

MY SENTIMENTS EXACTLY

My Sentiments Exactly, my most personal compilation, was written over the course of about four years, while I was deep in the throes of major life changes and spiritual transformation. It's my favorite poetic work to date, and it features poems such as "Asunder" and "Time Management." 
To order, click the "Treat Yourself" link below the book.                                                                 
                                                                               

    

$15.00

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Haiku #13 for January

MOVING ON

Boxes packed, U-Haul's
here; only thing missing's the
love they moved in with

Copyright 2014
Charlene E. Green

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Haiku #11 for January

BUSTED LIPS

Lipstick stains on mug
found in boyfriend's dishwasher ...
and she don't wear pink

Copyright 2014
Charlene E. Green

Thanks for reading! Please continue to support my work by viewing my tour campaign, contributing to my cause, and sharing the campaign link with your networks! https://fundrazr.com/campaigns/ecUob/ab/0255N5 Thank you in advance!

LIFE-ALTERING QUESTIONS AT BREAKFAST

When she asks you
where he is
for the first time
at age seven
casually
out of the blue
while sitting at the kitchen table
mouth gorged with Cookie Crisp cereal
milk dribbling down her chin
no eye contact
but
staring at the side of the box
feigning astuteness of its
foreign ingredients

when she lays
the $64,000 question
in the middle of the table
calmly
and assertively
like
cross-examination
clearly premeditated
with an air of suspicion

first

miss me
with the mock shock
in your eyes
you had to know
this would happen
it’s not like
he’s ever been there
to tuck her in
at night
piggyback her
around the house
twirl her in her
favorite dress
and tell her how pretty
daddy’s little girl looks
or be there at the bottom
of the slide to catch her
at the playground
drop her off
at the school bus
share an ice-cream cone
and prop her on his knee
to tell her how much
he adores her
like all the other little girls’
fathers do

not like she hasn’t noticed
wondered
bathed her pillowcase
in tears
when you turned out
the lights at night
hoping he’d become a magician
and appear in places
other than her dreams

not like she hasn’t
wanted to ask you
before today

so don’t act brand new

second

brace yourself
this is the single-most
important answer
you'll ever give her
you have this chance only
to nail it
don’t screw it up
third—

and this may feel
like thumbtacks
kung-fu fighting
in your throat—

but
swallow your rage for him

hide your noxious words
in the alcove
of your voicebox
and deadbolt them
they're not trustworthy

detour the fatal venom
speeding down your tongue

if you let it crash
onto the table
and allow its toxic debris
to penetrate her innocence
it will destroy her
on impact

your jaws of life
won’t be quick enough
to retract any regrettable utterances
or extract her from
the spiritual wreckage
you'll entomb her in

you'll destroy her

do not rip
her embryonic esteem
from her 3-foot soul
she's precious
and impressionable
so guard her from your contempt
at all costs

acknowledge the fact
that although he left you
with the memories
of the worst of your merger
he also left you
with the best part of him
a lotus flower
that emerged from the swamp
of your muddy relationship

you were pro-him
when you let him
probe you
now the problem of his absence
and how it’s affecting you
is yours
not hers

truth is
you don’t hate him
you loath yourself
for being an open target
for a bullet
you were too weak
to dodge

so when she unglues her eyes
from the side of the box
and they meet yours
in preparation
for the critical reply

smile

with everything you’ve got
no matter how much it hurts
and tell her
he’s there
with her
every minute of the day
in her laugh
eyes
walk
sense of humor
the curve of her smile
shape of her hands
texture of her hair
the mole on her chin
in all the things she can do
that you can’t

tell her

how lucky she is
cuz he’s
closer to her
than he is
to anyone else

grit your teeth if you have to
hold that smile in place
with every thread of
strength your face can muster
when you profess
what a great man he is

because

every bit of good
he ever was
every bit of love
he ever possessed
he stored it
inside of her

©2013 Charlene E. Green

NATIONAL POETRY MONTH - 1/30: ASUNDER

It's the aftermath
of last night's
shrieks
accusations
and blaming

After they
dishonored each other
then
broke their promise
again
to never go to bed
stone-hearted
to never leave
more than
three inches of space
between them
during slumber

I'm sorry ... what slumber?
too much malignant
head chatter
desecrating their bond
loud enough to deaden
the love they professed
the previous morning
a rare moment
when they kissed
uttered sweet good-byes
but now it's
2am
and their mouths
are rancid
tongues mangled
from lashing
while the devil's
watching with glee
cackling heartily at
the ruinous discord
it has succeeded
in executing

You know it hates
these sissy-ass
marital unions anyway

The quote says
what God has
joined together
let no man
put asunder
yet
here they lie
with enough space
between them
to sleep
the elephant in the room
teetering on bedsides
fetal positioned
lips tightly pursed
arms defensively crossed
reek of enmity
pouring from the pores
in their backs
to each other

And
unless they realize
"man" in the quote
is THEM
and the devil
ain't nothin' but
a savage named Ego
alias THEM
they will never know serenity
and
these walls will howl
about never knowing
the peace
they were built
to surround
how
they're tired
of World War III
on rewind daily
tired
of being dismantled
by flying objects
how
the slamming of doors
every ten minutes
rocks them like

the Bay Bridge
in the 1989 quake
how
just like this couple
their foundation
is fractured
and
just like this couple
their days
are numbered
cuz
this couple
and these walls
will never
survive
emotional cancer

©2013 Charlene E. Green

MISINFORMED (IF THE SHOE FITS)

                                               

I guess you thought

That after we were done

My world would fall apart

Crumple to little pieces

Like, like...

You know like

When an earthquake hits

And the ground breaks

And buildings, they separate

Then come tumbling down?

Yeah, like that...

But somebody dun told you wrong...

See, I just wanna

Set the record straight

So you can tell the story

The way it’s supposed to be told

Not with your own twists ‘n’ turns

Embellishments and enhancements

Tryna puff yourself up

And deflate me in the process

The real story goes like this:

I knew I was in too deep

Real early on and was gon' hafta

Back that thang up...

And out the door...

Right around the time

You started treating me like

Some old hand-me-down trinket

Or better yet

Like that old, dusty pair of shoes—

You know—the ones waaaayy

In the back of your closet—

The ones you only

Pay attention to every blue moon

‘Cause you got fifty-'leven

Other pairs of shoes that are

So much more important...

Yeah, like that...

And I guess you thought

Just because I loved you

And I really did want us to work

That I was gonna let you keep

Shoving me in the back of the closet

Allowing dust to collect on all my good love

While day after day

You chose other shoes over me

But somebody dun told you wrong...

‘Cause while you traipsed around town

With your feet in all those other shoes

That didn’t even fit you right

That gave me time to breathe—

To air out, so to speak—

You know, like neglected shoes

Have time to do when

They’ve been cast aside—

And I started makin’ plans to

E’hem...git ta steppin’...

To another closet...

Where I would no longer be

The old, forgotten and mistreated shoes

But instead I’d be ... 

The all-purpose shoes

You know the all-purpose shoes—

The ones you love so much that

No matter how many other pairs you have

You just can’t seem

To keep your feet out of ‘em…

Yeah, like that...

And I guess you mighta

Got beside yourself...

Started thinkin’ you were cute

And thought that no other feet

Could replace yours

But somebody dun told you wrong...

‘Cause what had happened was:

One day while you were out

Wearing down the soles

On one of those other

Unfortunate pairs of shoes

I got up, blew the cobwebs off me

Laced myself up nice ‘n’ tight

And eeeeased on down

The Yellow Brick Road

And what I found

When I got to the end

Was more love, respect

Admiration, honesty

And special treatment

Than I ever knew existed—

And you know what

The best part was?

There were no other

Shoes there but me

So I know once you realized

I was long gone

And what you had lost

You kicked yourself real hard

And then, not understanding

That whole concept of appreciating

And nurturing 

The exceptional relationship you have

'Cause you rarely find true love

More than once in a lifetime

You thought you could just

Run out right quick

And find all that you had in me

At the drop of a hat

But somebody dun told you wrong...

‘Cause when you got out there

In that vast sea of shoes…OOPS!

Surprise, surprise…

You couldn’t find the right size

There were none out there

That fit you as perfectly as I did

And there you stood...

Barefoot and outta luck...

While I was off

With my new boo

Gettin' shined and polished and buffed

On a regular basis...

And lovin’ every step

Those new feet and I took together...

Yeah, like that…

I know you thought that in time

You’d be okay without me

‘Cause you had all those other shoes

Lined up waiting to be the new me

But guess what?

Somebody dun told you wrong…

You’ve been misinformed

Copyright 2008

Charlene E. Green

From Me to You ... Through Mine Eyes: Visual Expressions
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