Tag Archives: maturity

Don’t You Ever Learn (Epistle)

WDBWP Monday Poetry Prompt #22: What Would You Say to You?

~

I

Don’t you ever learn

You spent our childhood always trying to please others

But where did that get you

What about pleasing us

What about it

II

Our teen years weren’t much different

Still trying to please the same people

Ignoring what we wanted

You acted like some kind of martyr

I don’t remember anyone asking for it

III

We had things we wanted to do

Sports, career, dreams that should have been a reality

And what did we do

We didn’t follow through

We ignored our own desires

IV

Whose fault was this

It was nobodies but ours

To blame anyone else would be a lie

We didn’t stand up for what we wanted

So shut up and deal with it

V

Its nice though that we finally wised up

At least a little…maybe

We didn’t turn out half bad

We got smart and realized we missed her

And did something about it before she got away for good

VI

She’s put up with us now for over 24 years

And hasn’t killed us yet

Although we probably deserved it

A long time ago

We can be high maintenance you know

VII

And our children

What can we say

Thank God, the stars, dumb luck that they are great kids

The greatest treasure we could have asked for

A blessing if there ever was one

VIII

I’m thankful that they didn’t turn out like us

Well–At least not entirely

They did get some of their mother’s traits

Mostly the good ones…quiet she might be listening

Really, they don’t know how lucky they are

IX

After all is said-and-done

We should be happy with how things turned out

Family is what is important

In spite of us we are doing pretty darn well in that area

A loving wife, wonderful children and a comfortable life

~

~~ Dominic R. DiFrancesco ~~

With The Coming Of Summer

With the coming of summer

The years midlife begins in earnest.

Infancy is replaced by the maturity of time,

The dead forgotten to the wake of new life,

No more is there the barrenness of winter.

Cold, gray nakedness gives way to colors multitude,

Death’s pungent odor yields to the fragrance of flora,

Rebirth is complete…for a time.

Youthful fauna take comfort in nature’s bounty

Feeding in gluttonous fervor,

Instinctively knowing it is but momentary,

With the scarcity of later year fast approaching.

What a wondrous gift is nature;

Our lives mimicking her cyclic clock,

Stages of life revealed since time began.

~

~~ Dominic R. DiFrancesco ~~

Metamorphosis (For My Daughter)

Faces in the crowd,

Nameless, peering through me,

Recognizing every minute flaw,

Silently laughing,

They whisper behind cupped hand,

Eyes dart in my direction then away,

Not so very subtle,

They think I’m oblivious,

But I see them,

I know what they are thinking,

I know what they are saying,

These things are not who I am,

One look in the mirror bears this out,

My reflection is unique,

Beholden only to me,

Blonde hair,

A shade unlike any other,

Ivory skin,

Imperfect, but my own,

Neither stick thin nor tall,

Comparisons to runway models are unfair,

Artificial life forms,

Moulded from botox and silicone,

Airbrushed to flawless perfection,

Idols born of magazine covers and centerfolds,

An unrealistic expectation for any young woman,

To live up to this cosmetic fraud is impossible,

Beauty is only skin deep,

Physical and momentary,

I am so much deeper than the shallowness of this pool,

If you could only see my essence,

The storm raging inside me,

Hopes, dreams, passions, opinions

Swirling like a typhoon,

A perfect storm,

Waiting to erupt with explosive force,

Breaking out of this cocoon of fear,

Leaving shards of this scared little girl,

In pieces on the floor,

Rising out of the wreckage,

A stronger more self-confident woman,

Able to speak for myself,

Defend my views,

Hold my head high in the face of adversity,

To cower no more,

Behind a mask of insecurity,

My opinions matter,

Commanding respect,

Regardless of whether we disagree,

I am an equal,

And I demand to be treated as such,

No longer subordinate,

My age, race and gender should have no bearing,

Yes, I may fall, but I will not break,

Yes, I may occasionally fail, but failing does not signal inadequacy,

I will sprain and bruise,

Scars left as reminders of experience gained,

But you must grant me this right of passage,

Allowing me to grow and become independent,

Crawling out from under my parents wings,

To stand unaided as if for the very first time,

An infant in a brave new world,

Opened up to be lived and explored,

I will voice my politics,

This is now my right,

Using my vote to shape the world I live in,

Unafraid to stand up,

Even when ridiculed by those of differing views,

This is their right as it is mine,

I will pay them no head unless civil,

Extremists hold no sway over me,

My hopes and dreams stand before me,

With open arms waiting to embrace,

I have the power of mind and body,

To grasp and hold all that I desire,

Be it business, education, the helping of others,

All these things are within my reach,

It is not for you to determine my passion,

You do not live within me,

But you benefit by my being,

I will break out of this shell,

Becoming all that life has endowed in me,

If I will just let me go.

~

~~ Dominic R. DiFrancesco ~~