These are poems that I have written at various times in
my life. I make no excuses for any of them . . .
Springtime in Arizona
Pastel Blossoms
Aged Nature
Greed Ode
To St. Jude In
a Nutshell Five
Sonnet 1
Race Envy
Sleepless nights
April Marie McKlellan
Orange blossoms bud
Filling the air with their sweet
Scent. Arizona.
It sits alone
Waiting for someone to walk by
And utilize its fruits
Pastel blossoms capped with
A snowy white blanket
Ready for the flood
When soon after it will die
And be forgotten. Forever.
Aged: their skin is
Darkened with time
Their wisdom, or lack thereof,
Must be input into the
Human computer.
Holding a life that
Is not really alive.
Green grass gallantly grows
Through the crooked cracks of the cement sidewalk.
We shamefully stunt the soil’s growth
With concrete carelessly covering the earth.
Nature will naught but live,
Persistently pushing its path through
Those places where the sun and snow
Bend and break
The bountiful concrete bastards.
Greed is…
Children starving and people suffering
The loss of human life to secure an oil supply
Professional athletes
A million dollars for a spilled cup of coffee
Bankruptcy, debt, stealing… the American way
Not down on the ground
Nor up in the sky
Nowhere to be found
Is my piece of the pie.
We work like dogs
But what does it matter?
The managers are hogs
Only they’re getting fatter.
Some get the work out
Others are lame
Without a doubt
Our pay is a game.
Those who work hard
Who never leave a mess
As if drawn by card
Always get paid less
But to those who are slow
And make all the mistakes
All the awards go
‘Cause they’ll snitch like snakes
When I’m in this mood
They’ll tell you I’m crass
But to excel at St. Jude
One has to kiss ass
No! It’s too lewd
And I think I’ll pass
Instead old St. Jude
Can kiss MY scrawny ass!
Jaded by life’s unfairness
And paradoxes, but
Making the most of what I am given
and
Expecting nothing in return.
Sadly, though, I see that I will
never understand.
I died when I was five years old
My soul remains dark and cold
The joy of being a child from me he took
He never even gave me a second look
The life from with in me was drained
And forever there from my heart was pained
My physical body roamed, like a zombie, the earth
For love, and life, and happiness, and joy there was
a dearth
Such a jewel can never be returned
I sometimes wish I could have simply burned
The pain would have been extremely bad
But I’d take 30 minutes over a life of being sad
I often never knew if I’d live to see tomorrow
Wanting to end my pain and my sorrow
Somehow I made it. Somehow I won
But I can never forget that the fight is not done
I wish I could go back and be again five
I wish that my whole life, I would have been alive.
Long Summer nights dressed up in blue and gray
A new beginning not yet begun now
I loved you always, you never knew how
Your sweet but deceptive voice that did say
Robed in the garments of wife yesterday
That life not yet gone, soon a broken vow
My soul, weak with loneliness wants to bow
A touch, soft skin, I tremble, fall away
My heart does grieve for the choice I must make
I see joy in a life filléd with you
I see a sorrow; I, alone, will wake
Yet there was something, not of which I knew
There was desire in me to do right
And so we must not but say our good night.
I wish that I could be
A minority
I could be an Arshloch
In the name of
Ethnic pride
You see
I learned my ancestors
Language and history
To connect with the roots
Of my
Family Tree
As I said
If I were a minority
I could be an Arshloch
I could steal a TV for
Rodney King
And beat an innocent man
To near death
Because of the color of
His skin
Meine Familie komt aus Deutschland
But I’m not allowed
to be proud
of being a Kraut.
A German
Cultural diversity
does not include
European Americans
Our traditions
Our language
Our ancestry
Our skin
Is not to be celebrated
Ich bin Froh
Daß ich Deutsch sprechen kann.
I am not
A Nazi
I do not
Hate Jewish people
Because I listen
To Rammstein
I have never been
Rude to anyone
Because of the color of
His skin
Or his accent
Nor have I rejected
A potential friend
For those reasons
I have not
Opressed the black man
But,
I have been kicked
Because
I am white
I have been called nasty names
Because
I am white
I have been pushed and shoved
Because
I am white
I had to watch my girlfriend
Be sexually assaulted
Because
I am white
I cannot stand up
For myself
Because
I am white
I quietly and humbly
Accept it all
Because
I am white
And YOU call ME
Racists
Sleepless nights, staring into space
Kept awake by the image of your face
Like a child whose thoughts are so grand
He knows he’s going to Disneyland
I feel the excitement; I know it’s true
Today I will be spending time with you
My heart races faster, my mind filled with glee
My spirit cannot rest because of the image I see
Your eyes are so caring, gentle and kind
Such true beauty one rarely finds
I love to stare into the beautiful brown
Peace and tranquility are there to be found
I love your smile, so warm and bright
Just to see it, makes my heart light
I love your skin, so freckled and fair
The perfect accent to your curly, red hair
We share a kinship of the soul
Your modesty makes you an original
Watching you with children, so precious and dear
Has quelled in me my parenting fears
I often imagine that smile on your face
A baby in your arms, and me in my place
Let’s take our time; this isn’t a race
But I will cherish every moment, that I’m in your grace
I have wanted to touch you, your hand to hold
For me this would be more precious than gold
I am looking forward to that moment of bliss
Caressing your face before our first kiss
Days filled with yawns because of nights filled with you
But I would rather be tired and to my heart be true
Alone in the world, no one to care
People would pass me without acknowledgement
Ready to give up, ready to give in
I doubted that this world was ready to give me
Love: true love.
My soul was searching
And my heart was longing for the
Right person to move me and
Inspire me and be
Exactly what I needed.
My God! I found her.
Caring, sweet, smart, and even a bit nerdy
Keeping her arms around me
Letting me know her, know her soul.
Extraordinary beyond my wildest dreams
Loving me for who I am
Letting go of the worries of the world.
Always showing me the depth of caring in her eyes
No one can ever know, the joy she is to me.