Bedtime

The light is fading 

Time for growing bodies to slumber

I sing them old lullabies after bathing

Then kiss rosy cheeks, watching consciousness glimmer

When they lay down their golden heads,

I can’t help but linger, 

Reading the excitement of sleep on their dormant little faces

Breathing stertorous, nothing but a murmur

Enter the sleep monitors without delay.

A cat and a corgi to send them on their way

Peaceful dreams furry warm bodies do convey

A comfort only they can parlay

Swiftly, their lithe little bodies take over

Pulling them deeper into much needed sleep

I tell God how I love my little kinder

As I pray for their little souls to keep

~Charlotte Greer Slater 7.7.11

APOLOGIZING:  Does not always mean you are wrong and the other person is right.

It just means you value your relationship more than your EGO.

Unrest is my prescription

Uneasy is my manner

Unsettled is my description

Unctuous is my mood

The nervous energy keeps me going

I feel cast adrift with nothing to cling to

It seems my life I am throwing

To the wind without a clue

I know I am strong

I know I will survive

I just need a place to belong

I need to imagine and describe

That lovely horse farm

Big front porch

Horses in the barn

And a good man to share it with

~Charlotte Greer Slater  

5.5.09

Symphony

Our lives are like a symphony

Success and failure make up the notes

Resulting a plaintive harmony

Life’s beauty it does denote

But her symphony is off key

A lament from major to minor

The sound a jarring cacophony

Testament to all that divides her

When her music plays

No one fills the hall

Avoiding the musical dismay

For the screeching woodwinds only appall

Maybe a better conductor is required

To shape the composers strife

Will someone help me?  She inquires

For my music cuts like a knife

While the rest is akin to Beethoven and Bach

Hers is a tuneless lament

She suffers every off-key shock

Of a skewed life misspent                                                        

Charlotte Greer Slater 3/19/2012

RAPTORS

I hear the red tails

Make their plaintive calls

Look as if they should leave contrails

Riding thermals high in the sky

Making me wish I could fly

It is a mated pair

See how their flight patterns intertwine?

As they drift in the air

See their feathers so fine?

I wonder if she is carrying eggs.

Has their nest site been claimed?

Have they built a platform of sticks and twigs?

Has their territory been proclaimed?

I wish you luck my fine feathered friends

For life is too short to be at loose ends.

~Charlotte Greer Slater

4.28.09

For Mama on mothers day

Prayers for Rain

I beg for rain
I plead in vain
now I find I have gutters full of rain
to ease the pain

I listen to the drumming on the roof
I lay bare in my bed
this is nothing more than proof
that the demons are at play in my head

The rain washes me clean
a temporary respite
a moment for me not to demean
to the troubles unseen

I still jump at every noise
still looking over my shoulder
Still attempting to maintain poise
still letting the hurt smolder

So come rain, put out my fire
let me fall asleep to your soothing patter
and get lost in the mire
after all, what does it matter?

~Charlotte 5.2.09

Prayer to the Sandman

I listen to my music

Pen poised in hand

I hear the purring of a cat

I feel soft sheets beneath me

I see soft lighting

Unpacked boxes of books

Things yet undone from a great upheaval

Now I feel the furry warmth of my beloved pewter

Snuggled to my side

I hear my loyal corgi-dog

Shift at the foot of the bed and sigh

I see stark walls;

Awaiting my beloved prints

Pamphlets gathered from my latest horsey function

I am wearing a soft grey t-shirt

A big sloppy one

Given to me by an old boyfriend long ago

I am propped on pillows

Writing fast to maintain my exhaustive train of thought

The blinds are drawn

I proverbially draw the blinds on my day

As if to say ‘goodnight world’

Please let this be a proper rest

For the first time in ages

Let me slip into sleep oh elusive sandman

Let me sleep and dream of sheep

~Charlotte Greer Slater

4-28-09

Of the moment exercise

I sit in the car

It is 9:21 am

I wait and soak up the sun

Today I feel above par

And I am ready for rewarding fun

The car interior is warm

So is the sun on my face and arms

I hear airplanes

I see endless azure skies

I admire the first green leaves 

Upon the trees

Oh how they inspire

I am being patient

I am taking time

To write a few lines

I am expectant

To see an old friend

Who needs a little nursing

As means to an end

~Charlotte Greer Slater

4.28.09

I want so many things

So many things I desperately need

But I cannot succeed

I am adrift and desperately looking

Seeking attention

I am nervous ticks

Restless and lost

I cannot trust myself

I fear my own impact

I only hope I come out of this intact.

I need help

I need my friends

But somehow this minute I am struck mute.

I have no escape

I have no car

I am left agape 

At my bleeding scars

My body paces

Emotions raw

My heart races

At my chains I gnaw

I do not trust myself

I do not know why

When I attempt to divest myself

I feel like a kite that will not fly

Watch as I self destruct

Unravel at the seams

My manner I cannot conduct

I have lost touch with my dreams

~Charlotte Greer Slater

5.12.09