Preemptive Summer

they knew that april
had never felt like this
before
never felt so warm
with
sunlight so potent
it could be tasted
and so enduring
that it could not be measured
in seconds
or in hours
the preemptive summer
freckled their noses and shoulders
and bathed them in a quiet and perpetual
euphoria
as they drove along the gulf
stopping only to
count the shark's teeth
found along their path

Copyright © Catherine Young, 2008

After the conclusion of this life
I fear I might find myself
alone
Without her
Without him
and I will never forgive myself
for this, even though
I feel unable to change the
course on which
I find myself
unchanging
unchanging
unwilling

Copyright © Catherine Young, 2008

Positive Darkness

I want to choose positivity
for myself
and for you
but this butterfly stomach
and snapping violin
string heart
torment and
torment
and
torment me
long into the wee
hours of
midnight’s suffocating
darkness

Copyright © Catherine Young, 2007

Oh, life

Oh, life
why must you beat me down
with your self-righteous
fists and bludgeoning
club
...that I am supposing you possess...
and then,
the next minute,
lift me up upon your
shoulders
celebrating my very existence
with loud applause
and hurrahs from every direction?

a little more consistency, please!

Copyright © Catherine Young, 2007

Victoria

Another poem about one of my students....

Those thick-rimmed glasses
suede fringe boots
and over-sized ear-flap hats
are completely you
unique, unapologetic, unbending
every ounce of you is
pure and true
never wavering from
your selfless beliefs
and attempts to
cure the world
you don't really understand
your own strength
and though I am
twice your age
next to you I pale
and feel I could be broken
by the power of
a single feather

Copyright © Catherine Young, 2008

Her Ring

It was four and a half
years ago that I tried
on her ring
it was weathered and seasoned
- a mirror of her fingers, yet
against my skin
it felt smooth and
soft and
right

but today

I recognize that my eyes
will probably never
settle upon
that ring
and certainly not
those fingers
again

Copyright © Catherine Young, 2008

Perfectly flaw-filled

Your pistachio eyes
are sometimes weary
and broken.
Your tongue is
sometimes biting,
carrying a scorpion's
sting.
Your hands
are sometimes not
soft and young
as I once remember.
But your heart
is always open.
Your flaws are what
render you
perfect...
And what would
this life
be without you?
This is a mystery
I wish to
remain forever unsolved.

Copyright © Catherine Young, 2008

A New Friend

I wish I had a
friend named
Julio
so that I could
correct people
who
improperly pronounced
the name with a
Hard J
rather than the
Soft H

(and also)

Julio sounds like
the name of a person
who could
really handle his drink
and I
am up for that
challenge

Copyright © Catherine Young, 2008.

Six Months

six months is a finite
infinity
in this mind
but I want to suck the
endlessness in
tasting its seconds
and minutes and days
letting each moment
wash over me
immersing my soul
only in thoughts of you
to quench the passing time
and ease my waiting

Copyright © Catherine Young, 2008