Wednesday, December 8, 2010

Night Madness Poem

by Sandra Cisneros

There's a poem in my head
like too many cups of coffee.
A pea under twenty eiderdowns.
A sadness in my heart like stone.
A telephone. And always my
night madness that outs like bats
across this Texas sky.

I'm the crazy lady they warned you about.
The she of rumor talked about -
and worse, who talks.

It's no secret.
I'm here. Under a circle of light.
The light always on, resisting a glass,
an easy cigar. The kind

who reels the twilight sky.
Swoop circling.
I'm witch woman high
on tobacco and holy water.

I'm a woman delighted with her disasters.
They give me something to do.
A profession of sorts.
Keeps me industrious
and of some serviceable use.

In dreams the origami of the brain
opens like a fist, a pomegranate,
an expensive geometry.

Not true.
I haven't a clue
why I'm rumpled tonight.

Choose your weapon.
Mine - the telephone, my tongue.
Both black as a gun.

I have the magic of words,
the power to charm and kill at will.
To kill myself or to aim haphazardly.
And kill you.

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  5. There once was a knight in a kingdom far far away, this knight served his Queen loyally for many years. He fell in love with the beautiful Queen and wanted to be with her more than anything. She was elusive as a deer, courageous as a bear, fierce as a lion and delicate as a orchid. She was the most beautiful queen and all her following loved her. The knight slowly developed expectations of the Queen that could not be met and the queen just smiled. She couldn't be bothered by such petty things inspired by jealousy and greed. The knight was a show off and tried many things to draw the queens attention but she was unflappable.
    One day the knight thought he saw something dark lurking in the dungeon of the castle and the knight, who believed he was so sly, wanted to impress the queen, so he set a trap to catch the dark creature roaming the dungeon. He thought the Queen would be proud of him for his cunning but the hapless knight didn't realize that the Queen also walked the halls of the castle at night. The next evening the Queen stumbled on the trap and she was barbed near her heart. She was wounded badly and was furious with the knight for setting the trap. She judiciously banished the knight for his treason, but out of the kindness and compassion of her heart she spared his life, because she knew that the knight was a good man.
    The knight loved his Queen and could not speak against her decision. He was distraught with anguish for what he did, it nearly crushed his soul to think he had caused his love such pain. If only he had humbled himself and discussed his plan with the queen first.
    The knight was so sorry, that he spent the rest of his life roaming the wastes slowly going mad, the voice of his Queen filled his head with thoughts of love lost and grief that would eventually grind him into dust. His only solace was the thought that one day the Queen would find it in her heart to forgive him. He never let go of the hope that the Queen in all of her benevolence would enlist him back into her service and return him from exile.

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