Free Verse

ADVENT 2018

donaldlindsey Free Verse , , , , , , , ,

Advent begins Sunday, December 2nd, and we’re celebrating Christ the God-Man who came to save those with whom he is well pleased. Please read on to hear about his birth in a free verse poem titled “Light of the Living.” 


LIGHT OF THE LIVING

Mary's water breaks, 
God shuffles his feet,
and light beckons
from the birth canal. 
The child
arrives in grandeur.
Angels appear 
before shepherds. 
They announce: 
“Glory to God 
in the highest, 
and on earth 
peace among those 
with whom he is pleased!”
The Heavens 
and its inhabitants
strike the hallelujah chorus: 
"In Israel's darkest days, 
Her promised Savior,
is here: Emmanuel!
God with us." 
And two millennium later, 
still, we sing 
and praise
His holy name.
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    The Death of Ectoplasm

    donaldlindsey Free Verse , , , , , , , , 
    The Death of Ectoplasm

    In my dream this epoch battle rages
    between angels and demons. My mom,
    is Mother Goose. She barks and barks 
    at my dad, who is Jack Sprat.
    They are fighting over me and my siblings,
    whether we should be fed to the Ectoplasm,
    or simply turned over to Beezlebub.
    The demons race for the high ground,
    my parents take up the rear. Angels 
    reach the peak first and blow the shofar,
    preparing for a bloodbath. The demons, 
    already frightened by the trumpets, see
    that the angels are not human-like, 
    and begin falling like flies.
    Michael and Gabriel 
    execute all the Ectoplasm.
    I see Michael staring into my face, longing 
    to understand the spirit in me. I snap to,
    and I'm relieved that my dream
    is a vision. The sky is not actually falling, 
    and I will not 
    be fed to the Big Bad Wolf.

    © by DB Lindsey
    11/23/2018
    All Rights Reserved

    Anishinaabe

    donaldlindsey Free Verse , , , 
    Anishinaabe

My name is "Anishinaabe," created 
from nothing interesting,
until Gitche Manitou cut out my heart, 
gave me a new one,
and now I walk a straight path.   

    I was spontaneously selected
by Gitche's mercy and grace
for life abundant, 
but I rebel against it.
I don't know why.

I have a murderous heart,
a tongue of fire,
and a desire to steal Gitche's glory, 
but I want to make him smile,
and I don't know why.

He breathed new life 
into my loathsome soul,
purges my offenses,
and loves me completely,
but why?

He adopted me into his family,
and I call him "Abba,"
daddy, and I'm his child,
and he will never leave me.
This I know that I know that I know,
and I consent to it.

    Pavlov’s Dog

    donaldlindsey Free Verse , , , , ,
    Photo courtesy of Molly Lindsey

                 

    Who Is Pavlov’s Dog?

    For starters, do you know about Pavlov?  Ivan Petrovich Pavlov (1849 – 1936) was a Russian born physiologist known for his work in classical conditioning. His work has greatly influenced our understanding of human behavior and learning processes, and he continues to influence the formation of modern behavior therapy.

    His contributions have influenced a broad spectrum of fields, from psychology and physiology, to medicine and philosophy, but in popular culture he is well known for his “conditioned reflex” experiments with dogs. Various stimuli would be presented as an antecedent to feeding time, and the dogs would then become conditioned to salivate upon the stimuli presented before food was actually presented.

    Hence, the image (above) of my Australian Shepherd, Molly, licking her chops. All we have to do is mention “treat, snack, breakfast, lunch, or supper,” and she begins licking her lips. The other day it made me wonder who Pavlov’s dog was, but then I discovered, he had many dogs! Duh!

    Oh well . . . Pavlov and Molly conspired to make me think about who Pavlov’s dog was, which inspired a poem. I hope you enjoy “Pavlov’s Dog.”

    Continue reading →

    Falling In Love with Selene

    donaldlindsey Free Verse , , ,

    “Going through life without seeing a total eclipse of the sun would be like going through life without ever falling in love.”—Rick Fienberg

    I thought about this guy’s quote (off and on) all morning. I heard the story on NPR. Fineberg is a press officer who works for the American Astronomical Society. His quote is also published in a story titled Be Smart: A Partial Eclipse Can Fry Your Naked Eyes.

    Really? I guess it depends on what type of love into which you’re falling. I can confess to a fascination of natural cosmic anomalies—even a passing obsession. But I get it: Fienberg is comparing his love for nature with agape love. Or at least I’d like to think so. One thing for certain: I admire Fienberg’s passion. And don’t get me wrong: I relished the notion of getting to see today’s solar eclipse. I missed it but I’m not broken-hearted or disappointed in the least.   

    I know I’ll never fall in love with an object of nature, but what if I did? What if I fell in love with supernovae and black holes and eclipses of every kind? This is the notion (and passion) that drives this poem: Falling In Love.   Continue reading →