You are not the kind of book with a slick jacket I can collect on my shelf; nor can I mark my place with sticky notes, gum wrappers, or old receipts.
You are an audio book with raucous laughter, one-liner quips of witty dialogue, random philosophical musings about religion, and societies latest great failings.
Sometimes I need to slow the playback speed and crank up the volume to discern the subtle nuances of your narration and tune my ear to your frequency.
Other times I realize you’re on full blast in the middle of a raunchy scene in public rather than coming through my headphones like a gentleman.
Actors (clockwise from top C) Martin Luther McCoy, Dana Fuchs, T.V. Carpio, Ekaterina Sknavina, Evan Rachel Wood, Jim Sturgess, Kiva Dawson, Joe Anderson and Halley Wegryn Gross are shown in a scene from the film “Across The Universe” in this undated publicity photograph. https://images.app.goo.gl/VGx3qPKwxrQnu3xp6
i’m just a Girl standing here wanting you to Hold Me Tight so i can give you All My Loving. I Want to Hold Your Hand. though i endure tough times With a Little Help From my Friends, It Won’t Be Long before i need more than they can give, but I’ve Just Seen a Face that i can never forget, and that is saying a lot for me. i pray that god will Let It Be our destiny that we will Come Together forever, and if we ever get married, Why Don’t We Do It in the Rain? If I Fell, would you catch me? I Want You to be the one who always catches me, not the one who says, “She’s So Heavy”, and shirks the hard parts of love. Dear Prudence will be our saving grace, for our future will never lack with us in it. we’ll be Flying high the Blue Jay Way over the rainbow and off to neverland where I Am the Walrus and you are the Being for the Benefit of Mr. Kite because you make my heart soar. Something you said to me changed my perspective forever, Oh! Darling. you loved me as i was, freckles and paleness, green-eyed simplicity, and Strawberry Fields Forever. it was a Revolution to be loved for myself and celebrated for my curves. you love me when i suffer, and While My Guitar Gently Weeps, you hold and comfort me, transporting my grief Across the Universe. you love me when my anger has turned our world Helter Skelter and i have forgotten Happiness is a Warm Gun aimed at a Blackbird the only way to handle strife? no, you have shown me that it’s ok to walk away, to pause, to let things simmer down, then say Hey Jude-iciously discuss our differences. Don’t Let Me Down, my love. don’t ever become someone other than who you are. whoever said, All You Need Is Love, never got a divorce. you also need the right person, a person who makes you feel like Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds when things are rough and you feel like lana in the dirt with slime.
@Home Studio – 89th poem of the year
Todd, Suzanne., et al. Across the Universe Widescreen., Sony Pictures Home Entertainment, 2009.
You make me so angry. Then you want to go on with conversation as if nothing has tilted my axis, forever altering my perception of you. I am not designed as others. Once you lose my respect, it is difficult to gain it back. Refusal to explain when confronted seems to be your protective measure to maintain privacy, dignity? I am man, I owe nothing to no one, hear me roar, but to me it is weakness, denying vulnerability, insisting others accept your reality without a hint of clarification for those of us whose realities include other humans in community. How strange to be a lone commuter on this subway of life without a care for anyone else.
The new year arrived without much ado while I slept. Then the proverbial fan spluttered. Five hours later, I drove my husband home from the emergency room a little doped up, but thankful for temporary relief from a kidney stone. Two days later I propped up his ass so he wouldn’t fall off the porch after a root canal and more meds than his delicate constitution could withstand on a weekday. We’re only a few days in to 2024, but it needs to slow its roll, pace itself, it’s doing too much.
@Home Studio – 8th poem of the year
(Some more images playing around with AI…one of my favorite is this dragon representing 2024 doing WAY TOO MUCH!)
(Here are some more because I was having trouble coming up with an image to represent what I wanted. We’ve got bleak city streets, Dickensonian dental surgery, and the after Christmas blues in this collage.)
Candles lit Cleared space Tea at the ready Blank page Dogs asleep at my feet Husband in a snuggie so the air can be comfortable for the furnace that is me Perfect evening to sit and write Melt my soul back to the night Quiet peace Edge of dream Twinkle lights add softness Husband’s touch subtle as a battle cry but welcome and enough Nice to share a relaxing day alone together Our secret foreplay And when he switches the laundry my heart melts a little bit more softening edges I forget are rough, angry and wounded in need of love
I went to a lovely tea party at the Christadelphian Hall. My mother and granddaughter sat at the table with me and enjoyed a delicious spread, a variety of teas, and fun conversation. A Bible class was led by Maritta Terrell pointing out metaphors for spiritual life in the form of tea. Ideas like the following:
It is what’s inside that counts. The tea bag itself is not significant. It’s the tea leaves that create the flavor.
Hot water is needed to steep the tea. Just like we are tested at times to see what we’re made of.
It takes time to steep tea. We need to be patient with ourselves.
Additives make it even better. I prefer cream and sugar in mine. Our connections with others add to our experience and make life better.
I am not a member of the Christadelphians anymore, but I am thankful for the foundation of discipline, critical thinking, ethical standards, and examples of faith that have helped to shape me. I was asked when I would return as a member by a dear friend at the tea party. I explained that my current status as a feminist makes such a likelihood improbable.
But these people are my family, my past, and hopefully part of my future. If they will accept my presence without complete agreement with their views, I will continue to visit and connect. I love tea parties!
rebekahjmarshall 