a walk

though the path was overgrown

by years of sad neglect

she took a walk there anyway -

was there beauty left?

the quiet sound of pretty birds

had been her friend for years

and this day was no different -

it calmed her soul of fears ~

she sat down on the mossy grass

to rest and contemplate

a place to think about her life -

to think about her fate ...

then looking over to her right

just inches from her toes

arising proudly through the weeds -

a perfect deep red rose.

    ~~~~   

often it's the little things

that make us think, and nod

it comes as if by accident -

you're smiled upon by God.

hope is eternal.

© Debbie Finlay

07-31-2011

** This is dedicated to my beautiful daughter, Lauren ... who makes me believe in beautiful things ... happy (early!) birthday! Love, Mom :-)

anonymous

never having climbed too far

she hadn't far to fall ...

the choices were not easy ones

with her back against the wall ~

the steady sound of water drips

was all that she could hear …

their ever rising levels

added fuel to her fears ~

she couldn’t jump – she couldn’t stay

she knew she’d die here either way …

with arms uplifted, clutching air

her final debt was paid.

may she rest in peace.

© Debbie Finlay

shades of gray

the starkest shades of
black and white
when seen through youthful eyes ...
turn gently gray - their lines erased
when seen with love’s
great gift of time.

© Debbie Finlay



sleeper



as the day turned into night
and darkness filled the sky
i watched as you quickly fell
into a world of lies

into the land of peaceful sleep
with your dead reality
where nothing is quite what it seems
and your ghosts sing harmony

when shadows fall across your face
i'm looking for a clue
but you're blanketed with dreams
that i'm not privy to

in the morning when you wake
you start it all again
is this the day i see you
or will you still pretend ...

are you just a sleeper
on the road to nowhere fast
you can't have a present
while you're caught up in the past.

© Debbie Finlay

another player


i took a lot of chances
maybe they were wrong
maybe i am paying now
as you have been all along

isn't that what it’s about
what we call real life
and when the circus ended
we both turned out the lights

took a chance and placed a bet
on a thing that made us blind
left our own reality
to create a piece of time ...

our castle crumbled slowly round me
but was it really there
had it all been built on dreams
pretty lies whispered to the air

if i fell hard, don't let it wake you
this thing, too, shall pass
another lover, with clever lines
will also break this heart of glass.

taking chances - sometimes wrong ones
placing bets and stealing hearts
bodies hot, at midnight burning ...
and ending things that shouldn't start ~

play on ....

© Debbie Finlay

08-07-10 dhf.

endings

whats your pleasure

whats your pain

name your poison

its all the same

in the end

a cloud of dust

is all thats left

of both of us

so lets just skip

the hardest part

and act as if

we didn't start ...

© Debbie Finlay

my blues

a deeper shade of me and you

was what i wanted

long ago ...

i couldn't have it so i found

a deeper shade
of blue  ...

© Debbie Finlay

discarded

what the tide has swept away
was never really meant to stay
it washes out at end of day
never to return

all those stones were left unturned
the bridges now have all been burned
and as far as i'm concerned
they've all been turned to waste

do you dare to start again
when the day's new tide comes in
or simply try to still defend
your painful misconceptions

it's so sad you have to choose
of things you think are yours to lose
surely your gods are amused
at what you think you've found

truth comes when eyes are open wide
to think it's only on your side
will leave you with a big surprise
and dreams of starting over ...

from what has been discarded.

© Debbie Finlay

alice



all the things i hoped to be

shattered deep inside of me

with twists and turns my dreams fell
but i could not be freed

so i turned to follow you

but when i did you fell from view

and like the rabbit in the hole

you were gone before i knew

but this is not a wonderland
my quest for you got out of hand
and though i do not wish it so
i'll end what you began

because I am the queen of hearts
but you'll no longer play the part
of the king that i once loved
i'll make another start ~

deal me in.

© Debbie Finlay

solitude

i sit in quiet solitude
a lonely soul - i wait for you
in a room without a view
while silence fills the air ~

i dream of all the used-to-be's
with their old haunting melodies
they seem to come right back to me
and dance across the room ~

but i know all my rooms are bare
and i can't find what is not there
a tight fist clutching empty air
while tears fall down my face ~

i'd stay in here til you returned
but the past is gone, it's bridges burned
chalk it up to lessons learned ...
while i slowly turn the page.

© Debbie Finlay

unknown

among the things
you'll never know
is how these hills look
in the snow ...

the pure of white
at break of day
and how it fades
so quickly away ~

the first new buds
of the roses in spring
or the joy that
their new colors bring ...

butterflies dancing
around the blooms
and how the light
fills all these rooms ~

the intensity of the
summer sun
how nights and days
turn into one ...

storms that bring
a sudden breeze
with strong winds
playing in the trees ~

leaves that turn
to gold in fall
with reds and yellows
i love them all ...

i love the fireplace
when it glows
and spreads its warmth
down to my toes ~

but more than these ...

among the things
you'll never know
is how it hurt
to let you go.

© Debbie Finlay