Submissions by javalini
POEMS AND SHORT STORIES
PRAYERS
#erotic
#sensual
465 reads
9 Comments
PERFECTION
how perfect that image
of a man
beaten blue
bloody
crowned with a circle of inch long thorns
and nailed
to a wooden beam
how can one resist him
hanging there
when the shit is hitting the fan
and the rent is past due
and the air conditioner quit
and the job sucks
and the wife is carping
and you're late for your shift again
and you think you're at your limit
only to find
that the goddamned car won't start
of a man
beaten blue
bloody
crowned with a circle of inch long thorns
and nailed
to a wooden beam
how can one resist him
hanging there
when the shit is hitting the fan
and the rent is past due
and the air conditioner quit
and the job sucks
and the wife is carping
and you're late for your shift again
and you think you're at your limit
only to find
that the goddamned car won't start
#LifeStruggles
#religion
247 reads
2 Comments
BECAUSE YOU'RE YOU
you ask me
why i love you
and i say some
inane bullshit
like "because you're you"
and you know it's crap
and so do i
and the truth is
i don't know why
but i'd carry
you on my back
across a goddamned
thousand mile expanse
of hell hot bone dead desert
if that's what it took
to save you
why i love you
and i say some
inane bullshit
like "because you're you"
and you know it's crap
and so do i
and the truth is
i don't know why
but i'd carry
you on my back
across a goddamned
thousand mile expanse
of hell hot bone dead desert
if that's what it took
to save you
#love
633 reads
8 Comments
CODE
there always seemed a code
some equation involving a certain sort of congenial pretense
a secret handshake, maybe,
a wink
something barely whispered
between those smart and savvy enough to know
what to say
and when
and how to say it
some language tucked between ordinary words
that we never learned to speak
and we could fake it a little
but it seemed so obvious
or at least felt that way
and we were just more comfortable
out here in the element
tending to others
who didn't seem to fit --
our...
some equation involving a certain sort of congenial pretense
a secret handshake, maybe,
a wink
something barely whispered
between those smart and savvy enough to know
what to say
and when
and how to say it
some language tucked between ordinary words
that we never learned to speak
and we could fake it a little
but it seemed so obvious
or at least felt that way
and we were just more comfortable
out here in the element
tending to others
who didn't seem to fit --
our...
#identity
448 reads
2 Comments
SWIM
he fought the nurses
off that night
and lay in rumpled sheets
cool as
as that first swim of the season
and i could see him push deeper
trying to touch the bottom
the priest arrived
to give last rites
calling on saints and angels
and all the beloved of my father's god
to cheer him on
and sure enough
by the time he closed the book
the old man was gone
off that night
and lay in rumpled sheets
cool as
as that first swim of the season
and i could see him push deeper
trying to touch the bottom
the priest arrived
to give last rites
calling on saints and angels
and all the beloved of my father's god
to cheer him on
and sure enough
by the time he closed the book
the old man was gone
#death
242 reads
2 Comments
BURN BARREL
that time i was broke
and frustrated
and so goddamned lonely
and saw no end to my misery
and so resolved not to waste any more
of my precious time
and set every scrap i'd ever written
by a burn barrel in the backyard
and set fire to every journal
every stupid fucking poem
every short story
every goddamn effort i'd ever made
to produce a piece of writing
and said "fuck it"
and "fuck you"
and "fuck this" and "fuck that"
and regretted it
even as the shit was burning
but couldn't stop
and how i...
and frustrated
and so goddamned lonely
and saw no end to my misery
and so resolved not to waste any more
of my precious time
and set every scrap i'd ever written
by a burn barrel in the backyard
and set fire to every journal
every stupid fucking poem
every short story
every goddamn effort i'd ever made
to produce a piece of writing
and said "fuck it"
and "fuck you"
and "fuck this" and "fuck that"
and regretted it
even as the shit was burning
but couldn't stop
and how i...
#LifeAsAWriter
#frustration
356 reads
2 Comments
Another Piece, Gone
i lost another tooth
last Thursday
this one to a failed root canal
and I swear, it's
getting hard to chew
and a partial gags me
so, shit...
they want $1500 for one implant
and Jo suggests
Go Fund Me
and i think who the fuck cares
if an old man eats his almonds
and how my young self
would've prob'ly said
"Go Fund Yourself, Old Man"
which is an idea for a website
but don't steal it
i need one big windfall
before i die of almond deprivation
or drown in a vat
of mashed potatoes
or frickin'...
last Thursday
this one to a failed root canal
and I swear, it's
getting hard to chew
and a partial gags me
so, shit...
they want $1500 for one implant
and Jo suggests
Go Fund Me
and i think who the fuck cares
if an old man eats his almonds
and how my young self
would've prob'ly said
"Go Fund Yourself, Old Man"
which is an idea for a website
but don't steal it
i need one big windfall
before i die of almond deprivation
or drown in a vat
of mashed potatoes
or frickin'...
#aging
273 reads
5 Comments
LIVING AND DYING
my soul is a cord
strung knot to knot --
all i've been
and will be,
every face
i've loved and lost
strung along
on currents
under the skin
where oceans
ebb and roll
undetected
and gods
and devils
navigate,
seeking
treasure
our friends
and family
point the way
home
at the final turn
the hammer
comes down
hard,
the sternum
splinters
like oak
and the air goes
thick with memory --
a box of
Polaroids, ...
strung knot to knot --
all i've been
and will be,
every face
i've loved and lost
strung along
on currents
under the skin
where oceans
ebb and roll
undetected
and gods
and devils
navigate,
seeking
treasure
our friends
and family
point the way
home
at the final turn
the hammer
comes down
hard,
the sternum
splinters
like oak
and the air goes
thick with memory --
a box of
Polaroids, ...
#death
377 reads
2 Comments
PRAYER
what a lucky thing
you are
to move like that
through ordinary air
and your smile
is a blessing,
an instant
holy as christ
that brightened me
and made me whole
for maybe a second
and i wondered
if you felt it --
felt what you gave
and what i took
like jesus felt that woman
who touched his cloak --
and may the gods
continue to bless you
and keep you bright
and holy
as you are
this day
amen
you are
to move like that
through ordinary air
and your smile
is a blessing,
an instant
holy as christ
that brightened me
and made me whole
for maybe a second
and i wondered
if you felt it --
felt what you gave
and what i took
like jesus felt that woman
who touched his cloak --
and may the gods
continue to bless you
and keep you bright
and holy
as you are
this day
amen
#beauty
339 reads
4 Comments
THE FUZZY BEAST
listen...
a boy lets it spill
but a man has learned to tuck it in
and hold it close
and push on through
and not shake
or quake
or cower
or at least not let anybody see
and hell, son,
feelings ain't shit
and ain't nobody gonna
ask about your feelings anyway
'cause you're man
and a man don't fret
and don't dwell
and don't crack or cry
but stands stalwart
and takes it on
and damn if a man whose beat down
can't fake a swagger
and say "fuck it" and "goddamn"
and flick...
a boy lets it spill
but a man has learned to tuck it in
and hold it close
and push on through
and not shake
or quake
or cower
or at least not let anybody see
and hell, son,
feelings ain't shit
and ain't nobody gonna
ask about your feelings anyway
'cause you're man
and a man don't fret
and don't dwell
and don't crack or cry
but stands stalwart
and takes it on
and damn if a man whose beat down
can't fake a swagger
and say "fuck it" and "goddamn"
and flick...
#masculinity
283 reads
4 Comments
encounter
i wondered
if you felt it
felt what you gave
and what i took
like jesus felt that woman
who touched his cloak
if you felt it
felt what you gave
and what i took
like jesus felt that woman
who touched his cloak
#angels
312 reads
2 Comments
WORKOUT
today i hold the weight
and let it stretch the muscle
i don't want to push anymore
or pull
or sweat
i don't care if age makes me small
or even if it ruins me
i hold the upright
and stretch the spine --
that's all
no curls
no pull ups
or pull downs
no rows
or military presses
squats
or lunges
some calf raises
using a thick book
easy
as though i'm recuperating
from a surgery
that's what life
does sometimes
just takes it all
so...
...
and let it stretch the muscle
i don't want to push anymore
or pull
or sweat
i don't care if age makes me small
or even if it ruins me
i hold the upright
and stretch the spine --
that's all
no curls
no pull ups
or pull downs
no rows
or military presses
squats
or lunges
some calf raises
using a thick book
easy
as though i'm recuperating
from a surgery
that's what life
does sometimes
just takes it all
so...
...
#LifeStruggles
258 reads
6 Comments
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