Carriage Returns: Poetry 1988-2008

by Robert Ropars

Carriage Returns

  Poetry 1988-2008

  By

  Robert Ropars

  * * * * *

  PUBLISHED BY:

  Carriage Returns

  Poetry 1988-2008

  Copyright © 2008-2010 by Robert Ropars

  All rights reserved. Without limiting the rights under copyright reserved above, no part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in or introduced into a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form, or by any means (electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise) without the prior written permission of both the copyright owner and the above publisher of this book.

  This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, brands, media, and incidents are either the product of the author's imagination or are used fictitiously. The author acknowledges the trademarked status and trademark owners of various products referenced in this work of fiction, which have been used without permission. The publication/use of these trademarks is not authorized, associated with, or sponsored by the trademark owners.

  * * * * *

  Dedicated with love and affection

  To my family: ever a source of inspiration and strength.

  To my love: ever on my mind and guiding my heart.

  To all my friends: ever a source of support and encouragement.

  Contact the author:

  Email: robropars@gmail.com

  Twitter: https://twitter.com/robertropars

  * * * * *

  CARRIAGE RETURNS

  * * * * *

  Haunted

  You wait for me

  While I sleep

  Like Mary’s lamb

  Wherever I go

  There you are

  Like an angelic demon

  Possessing my soul

  Your ghost remains

  No priest can dispel

  The lost love

  Of an empty soul

  Though I live on

  It’s always alone

  In your shadow

  Brightened by your darkness

  Calmed by you cold touch

  I need you still

  * * * * *

  An Old Church

  Sweet twisting daggers of the mind

  Little pixies dance on the altar of perception

  Burning so bright preventing clear sight

  A chorus screeching deafening the ears

  Mighty strength of water crashing over falls

  Swiftly selectively combing through dark places

  Reds Greens Blues explode chained to Yellows and Oranges

  Cutting through self-mockery and deceitful greedy malice

  So marked by these falling ruins

  * * * * *

  The Danger of Loving You

  Like a moth I’m ever drawn closer to your flame

  My heart yearns to burn in your heat

  Touch me now so may know you feel the same

  All my life I’ve searched for such passion

  Deep in the night in your eyes I see what I seek

  Your eyes burned through my loneliness

  Now all I can see is my love etched in those blue eyes

  As you engulf me with flames of intense love

  I know surrender so complete it scares me

  A person shouldn’t feel this much passion

  The rest of the world is now black and white

  I live to see the colors your love creates

  How else can I make it through each day without you

  I wish you could know how much you mean to me

  As I nightly die within your fiery embrace

  Know that my escaping soul has found paradise

  * * * * *

  The Burning Touch of Fire

  Never before and never again will I know

  The pain of such heat and passion in my heart

  Your love has burned away the ice and cold

  I can barely understand this feeling inside

  Now all things glow with your love and kindness

  Take me now again into this light into this love

  How ever did you come to be and how ever did I find

  You can’t be real my mind won’t allow you to be

  A brand new me has replaced the old one

  I surrender my dear without question

  No longer an empty shell the blood stirs in me

  Through my veins runs fluid that burns

  Driving me mad I can’t go on but I must

  How much more can I endure before I collapse

  I must continue onward facing whatever pain comes

  I surrender my dear without question

  Hoping only to share some of that power with you

  Knowing I will fail miserably and die trying

  But know that your heart has made mine whole again

  My soul sings in praise of that singular gift

  A life renewed by the ever-wondrous love

  Given to me by this angel from above

  I surrender my dear without question

  * * * * *

  Autumn

  The colors of your heart captivate

  Changing daily over time

  I stand in the glow of your soul's bonfire

  Keeping warm and the chilly air at bay

  I want to always be in this season

  Somewhere between heat and cold

  Only here do I feel truly happy

  Energized by your colors and warmth

  Our love should know no seasons

  Only Autumn ever more

  Winds blow across our bodies

  Sunlight burns red through your hair

  I feel the stare of pumpkins

  Spying on our love as winds howl

  Spirits walk past our circle

  I fear nothing you are so strong

  And in this of all seasons

  Your power is beyond understanding

  I submit mind body and soul

  As my tears of love fall

  You pull me closer still

  * * * * *

  Dancing Shadows

  Darkness fills the room where the remains of our loving lay

  Cuddled in each other’s arms we ward off the cold air of midnight

  Our warm bodies retain the glow and heat of passion

  As we lay falling asleep our eyes drift upwards

  Shadow figures dance to the music of the flickering candles

  Created by the heat and light of nearby flames

  They are cold and distant like the troubles of our lives

  Our love protects us and pushes away all fear and pain

  And like those candles I cannot stare at you

  For in your incandescent radiance I will surely be blinded

  And how on Earth can I go another day unable to see

  What beauty rests in your sweet face and deep in those eyes

  We fall into the dreamworld together safe from danger

  All our troubles dancing safely out of reach

  The music of the flames keeping them occupied and unaware

  So sleep with me darling and know peace

  And those shadows will dance on unaware

  * * * * *

  Never Let Go

  For years have I searched for such love

  In your arms I have found a sacred serenity

  Hold me now my love and never let go

  The world is cold and empty without you

  Your touch drains all pain and fear from me

  If only you could know how I love you

  Deep in the night the stars burn bright

  But they all fade in the light of your heart

  Take me now my love and never let go


  Lead me deep within the garden of your soul

  I want to bathe in your presence forever

  And knowing such glorious release

  I will fly away into the night with you

  You are my saving angel my dear

  I am blessed by your lips and breath

  Kiss me now my love and never let go

  * * * * *

  From Camelot to Avalon

  Arthur’s weary face wrinkled into a smile

  Cold morning air filled his nostrils

  Dawn’s early mists wet his cheeks

  The valley below was obscured by the haze

  Hiding Mordred and his fallen angels

  He turned to his legion of friends

  They who would follow him to their deaths

  Did his mind wander upon his fate

  Or to his queen’s betrayal

  The Grail Quest that took so many friends

  Or did he only think of Lady Britain

  Excalibur managed to flash in the fog

  As Arthur led his men down the hill

  And into the cold mists of history

  * * * * *

  Picnic

  Flowers bend

  Catching a breeze

  As our picnic unfolds

  The sun burns bright

  Firing your eyes

  Eyes of blue

  Champagne toasts begin

  Warming us within

  Your golden hair alight

  Whispering willow above

  Dappling the sunlight

  As we lay chasing dreams

  In our private heaven

  * * * * *

  Eyes of Ocean Blue

  In the sea the anemone dance in your naked eyes

  The seagulls cry out in jest circling above

  My fingers caress you under the water

  The winds play with your hair

  As we lovers tease and explore

  Mermaids taunt nearby playing along

  As we give in to what is between us

  Let the heat mix with the cold sea

  The waves grip and pull around us

  In a frenzied embrace we join the rising tide

  Starfish race seahorses to the shore

  As they are driven into land by a wave

  We tumble into the sky in each other’s arms

  Your eyes of ocean blue consume me

  As jets of sea mist spray our bodies

  We stiffen as we hit our shore

  And become liquid drifting freely

  In each other

  * * * * *

  Mask of Love

  How could I have know

  The sweet girl next door

  Could have such power

  To hurt and love with leather

  Where does she find the whips

  Why does she like me bound

  As she slaps and cuts

  Coldly smiling behind her mask

  The mask of control

  How could I have known

  You daughter of perversion

  Mistress of domination

  Disciple of de Sade

  That you could be so

  Good

  * * * * *

  “_____” Dies

  A cold winter chill turns the cheeks a dark red

  Streetlights and neon flicker with false warmth

  “_____” turns over to the left side again

  The blanket of newspapers fall from on her paved mattress

  Dark with grime she awakens looking around the alley

  Through weary eyes rarely used, eyes hardly needed eyes

  A cat cries somewhere as she tries to

  Two blocks away children selling their bodies

  Money to survive another week in hell

  “_____” hasn’t been worth a dime in years

  Once laying with strangers now lying alone

  Saving for the exodus from oppression and pain

  Trying to stay warm looking for food dying

  No longer able to attract attention and so tired

  Her eyes close for another sleep

  To the sweet blues of late-night traffic

  In an alley full of waste and smells

  No one noticed “_____” fade further into the scene

  No one heard the last wishes, last prayers

  That didn’t quite escape her dying lips

  * * * * *

  Firedance

  The frozen wastes of my heart

  Now feel the heat of your smile

  Like a blessed sacrament

  You raise me among the eagles

  Surrounding me like a whirlpool

  Gently, long lost feelings surface

  Giving me purpose again

  I come out of my dream

  Blinking at the light

  In your eyes

  Dazzled and startled

  Yet deeply comforted

  I stand to face you

  Taking you in my arms

  We dance around our fire

  Turning and swaying

  Near the dizzying heat

  Wandering closer to it

  Trying to avoid the flames

  We are drawn into its realm

  Consumed yet we dance on

  Spirits in the smoke

  Crazily twisting

  Up into the night

  Our dance written in the stars

  * * * * *

  Mindvision

  As darkness caresses the land

  A fire lit my mind’s eye

  Almost a dream almost real

  Your fingers are sunbeams

  Warming my outer shell

  Breaking free I emerge

  A new form of being

  Your sunlit kisses strike

  My eager body shakes

  Unfolding beneath your warmth

  We chase away the dark

  Light up the night

  What crazed mind

  Sees a butterfly and sunbeam

  Dancing in the darkness

  Redefining what life is

  As what could be

  What must be

  Colors hidden by darkness

  Still persist unchanged

  Kept alive by thought

  By the rushing cries

  Of starlit bliss

  Overcome by the strength

  In your heated caress

  I surrender to you

  Lay in your arms

  As my mind shifts focus

  Into another dream

  You remain my guide

  * * * * *

  Rainday

  I turn from the window

  And look at you

  Naked as the night

  You lay dreaming

  How am I so lucky

  I haven’t got a clue

  I silently thank God

  As tears are streaming

  You stir

  In your far away fantasy

  Are we riding

  A wild horse on an isle

  Do we hold tight to the palomino

  Dodging the sea

  The full moon dances on your eyes

  As we hold each other for awhile

  Is that your dream

  Making endless love in the sand

  I return to the bed and lay

  Face on your breasts

  You move and stroke my back

  And my neck with your hand

  I start to say I’m sorry for

  Ending your rest

  You pull me closer and we kiss

  The rain slows

  We hold tight and I say

  I was watching you

  There are no lies when we’re this close

  You whisper

  You were being watched too

  * * * * *

  Because of you

  Snow falls on the scattered pines

  A cold wind cuts through my clothes

  But I don’t feel winter’s icy touch

  My heart is glowi
ng with new warmth

  Your love has rekindled its flame

  Not long ago I feared a lifetime alone

  A life without color

  All beauty buried

  But like the spring sun this snow will melt

  And I know whom to thank

  Who to praise

  You, my love, you

  Bringer of warmth and love

  I’ve waited so long to feel this happy

  I know we have a long way to go

  But I’ll never get lost with your heart guiding me

  Take my hand dear love and hold it tight

  Know that I am so happy in your presence

  Because of you

  I am at peace

  * * * * *

  What I’m made of

  My heart is a garden

  A hidden place

  Doesn’t appear on a map

  The greens

  The reds

  The oranges

  The yellows

  Colors explode all around

  Winter never shows its face

  Spring, summer and fall

  Existing as one all the time

  Visitors never feel a chill

  Come through the lone gate

  Into my garden

  The beauty is easily missed

  It doesn’t appear to be much

  From a distance it’s any garden

  Come sit under a maple

  Take a swing on the hanging chair

  Happiness and pleasure guaranteed

  Few approach the gate

  Fewer still come inside

  But no visitor has left

  Unchanged by the beauty

  No visitor is turned away

  Stop in any time

  * * * * *

  Patience

  Patience is a virtue

  Or so we’re told

  Does patience coronate

  Am I a king of virtue

  When we sit and talk

  So close but so far apart

  I wait wanting to be

  Alone with you

  To hold you gently

  Love you faithfully

  Treat you as a lady

  Will we start down this path

  How far will we follow it

  Would you remain by me

  Will you when you know

  How I feel warm

  When you’re near

  How I want to move closer

  To touch you